🔑 Key Information
Activity ⭐️ Title
Play to Learn: Creating Educational Games for Youth Work
Activity 🔶 Type | 📆 Dates | 📍Location
Seminar
17 September 2026 | Zoom, Greece
🌍 Erasmus+ explained — the complete beginner's guide to Europe's largest youth programme.Millions of young people have taken part in Erasmus+ since its launch, but many still don't fully understand what the programme actually includes, who it's for, or how to get involved. This in-depth guide breaks down everything: the different types of mobility, funding opportunities, eligibility criteria, and what you can realistically expect from participating. If you've ever wondered whether Erasmus+ is right for you, this guide gives you all the answers in one place. 👉 https://youthworkshub.org/15096/
❗️What Is This Training About?
A creative online workshop for youth workers who want to turn real issues from their practice into simple learning games using scarves, balls and easy, nature‑found materials. Each new game becomes a new question to explore with young people.
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ℹ️ Description About The Opportunity
An online workshop for youth workers, trainers and educators who want to move beyond using ready‑made games and start designing their own educational games around real themes from their practice. Every game is treated as a new question: an invitation for young people to explore “What is really happening here?” and “What could we do differently?” through play.
The focus is on low‑tech, easy‑to‑run games that can be prototyped and facilitated with very simple materials: scarves, balls and objects that participants can either create themselves or find easily in nature or their immediate environment (stones, sticks, leaves, paper, recycled items). This makes the method realistic for any youth setting, regardless of budget or equipment.
Participants are invited to bring one concrete issue or learning goal from their context – for example: low participation in discussions, online conflict, inclusion and exclusion, stress and wellbeing, or ethical questions around AI and technology. Through guided reflection, they translate this into a potential game situation: Who are the players? What choices do they face? What tensions or dilemmas should appear in the game? What question will this game ask the group?
The workshop introduces the core elements of game design for learning:
- a clear learning purpose and target group
- a simple narrative or theme that makes sense for young people
- roles, rules and resources (such as scarves, balls, natural objects)
- game mechanics – what players actually do and repeat during play
- feedback and endings – how a round finishes and what “success” can look like
- debriefing questions that help participants connect their experience back to the central question behind the game.
In small design teams or individually, participants sketch a first analogue prototype using whatever they have at hand: drawing a space or path on paper, assigning meanings to different coloured scarves or types of balls, or using found/natural materials as tokens, obstacles or resources. They write short, clear instructions and then run mini play‑tests in breakout rooms, where others try to play, notice which questions the game raises, and give feedback on clarity, engagement and learning potential.
Special attention is given to inclusion and emotional safety: how to avoid reinforcing stereotypes, how to balance competition and cooperation, how to support players who struggle with movement or language, and how to handle strong emotions that may arise. The facilitator also highlights ways to involve young people themselves in co‑creating or adapting the games, so that designing the game becomes part of exploring the question, not just an activity prepared in advance by adults.
By the end of the workshop, participants will:
- understand how each game can act as a focused question in their youth work practice
- know how to design simple, low‑resource games using scarves, balls and easily found or self‑made materials
- have created at least one new game concept or prototype linked to a real issue and guiding question from their context
- leave with a draft facilitation and debriefing plan to help young people reflect on the question behind the game and connect it to their own lives.
Training overview
This Seminar is
for 16–24 participants
from Erasmus+ Youth Programme countries 
, Other countries in the world , Partner Countries Neighbouring the EU
and recommended for
Youth workers, Trainers, Youth leaders, Youth project managers, Youth coaches, 15-50
Working language(s):
English
Organiser:
Artemis Sapountzoglou (Others)
Sapounofouska Events & More is a creative interdisciplinary team specialised in children’s parties, educational programmes, non-formal learning activities, and participatory events. The team brings together educators, facilitators, artists, and creators of imaginative group experiences, with a strong focus on playful engagement, inclusion, creativity, and meaningful human interaction.
Its framework of activity combines STEAM education, educational robotics, theatrical play, music-and-movement activities, improv theatre, group dynamics, outdoor experiences, educational games, creative workshop design, and interactive festive elements such as bubble show-inspired experiences. The team designs activities for children, young people, educators, and communities, creating spaces where learning, expression, movement, and celebration can coexist in an organic and joyful way.
The educational methodology behind the event is informed by non-formal education, experiential learning, STEAM principles, and the 5E model, which supports a learning journey from curiosity and exploration to meaning-making, extension, and reflection. This makes the event suitable not only as a participatory experience, but also as a space for educational inspiration and practical learning design.
At the heart of the team’s philosophy is the belief that play, creativity, movement, imagination, collaboration, and embodied participation can create powerful conditions for learning and connection. Through its events and educational programmes, Sapounofouska seeks to build experiences that are lively, inclusive, memorable, and grounded in the idea that learning can be both meaningful and joyful.
✅ 10 practical tips to write a stronger Erasmus+ or ESC application and actually get selected. With growing competition for spots in Erasmus+ and ESC projects, a well-crafted application can genuinely make or break your chances. This guide shares 10 concrete, actionable tips based on what selection committees actually look for — covering everything from how to frame your motivation to the common mistakes that get applications rejected. If you're serious about getting selected, take the time to read this before you hit submit. 👉 https://youthworkshub.org/8396/
📥 Contact
Contact for questions:
Artemis Sapountzoglou
E-Mail:
Phone: +306944533091
💶 Costs
Participation fee
10€
Accommodation and food
-
Travel reimbursement
-
📜 Certificate
https://youthworkshub.org/15122
⚠️ Important Dates
Application deadline (24h UTC): 31 August 2026
Date of selection: 2 September 2026
🔗 Official Link
⚠️ Important Notice
Youth Works Hub is not the organiser, partner, or representative of the listed projects. This listing is shared for information only, based on details from the source. Deadlines, eligible countries, dates, and other details may change or be withdrawn at any time, and all funding, reimbursements, and allowances are set by the project coordinator or National Agency. Applications go directly to the coordinator or hosting organisation through the official link. Listings may include third-party links (ESC Portal, infopacks, forms) that Youth Works Hub does not control. Always verify the details on the official project page before applying.
