Words As Bridges - Book Clubs as tools for social inclusion

The project promotes the social inclusion of the participants by organizing Book Clubs and providing in clubs safe learning communities where different kind of opinions can be said and heard. The ...

The project promotes the social inclusion of the participants by organizing Book Clubs and providing in clubs safe learning communities where different kind of opinions can be said and heard. The Book Clubs offer for the participants an opportunity to strengthen their interaction skills. Literature with its many-voiced worlds serves as a tool for understanding different opinions and to promote dialogue between different voices and views, even between people with different cultural background.

During the project there are two Book Clubs in classroom meetings in Finland and two in Poland. The participants in Finland are people who are unemployed or have mental health problems. In Poland the participants are immigrants and seniors. There's also an online Book Club, whose participants are from Finland and Poland. The participants and teachers of the Book Clubs meet each other and discuss about the books and their experiences also in the study visits in Finland and in Poland.

Being part of the Book Club provides participants with tools for constructive and dialogical discussions and reinforces their understanding of the possibilities to influence and to be an active actor in society. In the safe space of the book club also the mental well-being and self-confidence can grow. The Book Clubs promote equal opportunities for learning and being part of a community also for those who for different reasons are in a vulnerable position in society.