TOY Toolkit

A Training Manual for Intergenerational Learning Initiatives

The TOY Toolkit was developed in 2014 during the original TOY project. It was delivered and tested in 5 EU countries.

The Toolkit is intended for anyone who wants to organise a training workshop about intergenerational learning involving young children and older people – a so-called Together Old and Young or TOY workshop.

The Toolkit provides: background information on IGL, guidelines on how to structure and organise a TOY Training Workshop, five modules on IGL, each containing examples of training activities with step-by-step guidelines, hand-outs and additional resource material. Participants in a TOY workshop are typically those who are interested in setting up an IGL initiative or further developing an existing IGL initiative, which brings together young children (0-8 years) and older people (see glossary for definition of older people).

The TOY Training Workshops consist of five modules. Each module comprises four or five activities including an opening ‘energiser’ activity and ending with an ‘evaluation’ activity. Activity descriptions include: activity objectives; a list of material needed; an estimation of how long an activity will take; a step-by-step description of how to implement an activity. Some activity descriptions also suggest follow-up work and links to other actions.

A general introduction to each Module, then step-by-step guidelines for each activity are provided in Part II of the Toolkit.
Additional tools and resources relating to IGL involving young children and older people, available online, and can be found in the Appendix.