| Dub-In | DUB-IN project has as ultimate goal fostering the social inclusion of people with psychosocial disabilities. by training their social and interpersonal skills

SESSION 4. TRANSACTIONS

🎙️️Welcome to this new Dub-in workshop!

This session is designed to enhance participants’ communication skills and explore voice modulation and tone using real-life interactions.
Through a series of engaging activities, participants will not only delve into the mechanics of dubbing but also explore social skills, emotional expression, and successful communication strategies.
Active listening, empathy, assertiveness, and conflict resolution are some of the social skills to perform, role-play, and analyse: Participants will step into the shoes of characters, navigate stress-inducing scenarios, and refine their dubbing skills while mastering the art of delivering lines with the right tone, intonation, and emotional impact.
Enjoy!

1. WARMING UP

This game serves as a fun and engaging warm-up activity.

SILENT DUBBING (15 minutes)

In pairs of two (or three): One person gets silently without speaking into a position – either with his/her whole body or just the face (e. g. frowning, looking angrily, crouching down, doing a face palm). The other person “dubs” what the silent person with its expression or posture might be thinking right now. Voice it the way the person might think it: Angrily, surprised, exhausted, etc. A sentence or just a word is enough.

2. GETTING FAMILIAR, PLAYING AND ROLEPLAYING THE PROPOSED SCRIPTS

In this section of our Dub-in workshop, we provide you with some activities aimed at exploring this session scripts about various facets of communication dynamics related to daily activities and transactions as go shopping or going to the doctor.

With this first activity you will introduce todays topic of transactions to students. The goal is to realize that we often have to talk to strangers on a regular basis due to transactional needs. Knowing how to act and react and being able to have transactional interaction that empower us and make us feel competent and safe is therefore important.

THE LINE (20 minutes)

The trainer takes/finds a free space in the room draws an imaginary line on the floor: “This end of the line means “0/zero/not at all/never” and this end of the line means “daily, very often, all the time”. I ask you a couple of questions, please stand up and position yourself along the line depending on how you would answer the question.”
(The two ends of the line should be repeated with each question.)

All participants stand up and the trainer asks students the following three questions:

How often in a week do you talk to strangers?
How often in a month do you go to the doctor? (Maybe ask first “in a week”.)
How often in a week do you go someplace to shop something?
How often do you buy something to eat or drink in a supermarket?

This second activity allows participants to start focussing on dubbing but also explore and understand different social skills in a fun and interactive way.

SOCIAL SKILLS INTRO (20 minutes)

Divide participants into pairs.
Each pair will be given a SHORT DIALOGUE that involves social skills, such as active listening, empathy, assertiveness or conflict resolution.
Instruct the pairs to read through the script and discuss the social skill being depicted. They should identify the key elements of the skill and how it can be applied in real-life situations.
In this script, the focus is on active listening, empathy, assertiveness, and conflict resolution in the context of shopping for a gift. The characters demonstrate the importance of listening to each other’s suggestions, empathizing with the gift recipient’s preferences, and finding a collaborative solution that ensures the chosen gift is thoughtful and practical. Participants can practice dubbing this scene, paying attention to the tone and delivery that reflects the characters’ emotions and communication styles.
Next, the pairs will practice dubbing the dialogue, focusing on emphasizing the social skill in their delivery. They can use their own voices or try to incorporate specific tones, emotions, or vocal cues that reflect the social skill being highlighted.
After practicing, a volunteer pair can perform their dubbing in front of the rest of the group.
Once a pair has finished their performance, facilitate a discussion about the social skills as active listening, empathy, assertiveness, and conflict resolution strategies demonstrated in the script.
Ask questions like:
What social skill was being demonstrated in the scene?
How can this social skill be applied in real-life situations?
Can you think of any personal experiences where this social skill would have been helpful?

Third activity will allow participants to start exploring the three video-scenarios provided.

DUB IT RIGHT! (20 MIN)

Use these three VIDEO-SCENARIOS. This activity involves improvisation and creativity where participants have to come up with the lines that match the scene and characters on the screen.
1. Divide participants into teams.
2. Play the video-scenario on a screen and mute the original audio.
3. Give each team few minutes to discuss and come up with their own dialogue for the scene. Consider adding a time limit to come up with their dialogue.
4. Once the players are ready, start the scene again, and each team takes turns dubbing over the dialogue.
5. Continue playing with the other two scenes, and rotate participants to ensure everyone gets a chance to participate.
6. It may be useful to provide a template where to write the lines, and which provides the dialogue structure of the scene. See DUB IT RIGHT doc.
SCRIPT 1 – USE THE APP
SCRIPT 2 – USE THE APP
SCRIPT 3 – USE THE APP

Fourth activity will give participants the opportunity to reflect upon difficult situations related to the scenarios provided.

ROLEPLAY (30 MIN)

The participants go into three groups and each group gets one of the three scenarios provided. Unmute the VIDEO-SCENARIOS.
The participants go into three groups and each group gets one script.
Each group has the task to think about how the dialogue could go that would definitely lead to a misunderstanding, failure. They first think about how to fail in the situation and not reach one’s goal. What would you have to say to get to an uncomfortable situation? (10 minutes’ group work)
They should then present (just verbally) in the plenum (10 minutes, for all three groups together)
They go back in the small groups and work on a successful script: What should or could you say to have a good feeling in the situation, on both sides? What do you need to say to get what you need? What would be useful phrase? (10 minutes)

Finish this section with a short discussion about the three scenarios.

DISCUSSION (10 MIN)

Discuss what are the scenarios they find them often in, and what can be or is stressful about them. Introduce the three scenarios by showing the video with the audio and talking about the situation and the goal and how that can be difficult or illicit unease:

SCENARIO 1 “At a clothing store, you look for an employee to ask, if they have that piece in a different size or a different colour.”

Goal: Asking for more information, clarification, slowdown…

SCENARIO 2 “At the cash register in the supermarket. How to talk to the cashier and the other people in line and let them know it’s stressing you out and you feel pressured.”

Goal should be to slow down the situation when you start to feel anxious and pressured to get in a comfortable zone again.

SCENARIO 3 “Approaching a new reception at your doctor’s office – or a new doctor’s office.”

Goal: getting acquainted with the secretary, having a good start of the appointment.

A brief discussion will be generated on what the group understands about family and flatmates time to be, whether they think they are the same or different things.

Some questions can be used:

a. What themes emerged in the conversation?

b. Did any specific lines or moments stand out to you? Why?

c. What insights or observations can be drawn from the dubbing performances?

BREAK

3. DUBBING THE SCRIPTS

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Explain to the participants the importance of TONE AND INTONATION:

What is the tone of each line? This can be detected without the use of language by using beats, gibberish or plain sounds. This also defines the speed and rhythm of each line which is linked to the inherent aim of each sentence.
The importance of the intonation of each word within each line, namely, which word or beat do the actors stress or why do they stop speaking and where do they make short pauses. This, as with the cases of rhythm and adaptation, is also linked to the aim of each sentence, but it also defines the mood and sentiment behind each line.
The intonation and the general mood in each line.

Developing the right tone and intonation is crucial in conveying the emotions and meaning of a scene accurately.

One effective exercise to show how important is the tone and intonation, is TONE CHALLENGE.

TONE CHALLENGE (15 MIN)

Use the VIDEO-SCENARIOS and their ORIGINAL DIALOGUES.
Divide participants into pairs or small groups.
Assign different emotions to each group or pair. For example, one group might be assigned «excitement,» another «sadness,» and another «anger.»
Provide participants with the scripts and use the DUB-IN APP.
Each group or pair should dub the scene using the assigned emotion.
Encourage participants to focus on their tone, intonation, and pace to accurately convey the assigned emotion.
Have each group or pair present their dubbed version of the scene. After each presentation, discuss how well the emotion was conveyed through tone and intonation.
Provide constructive feedback to each group or pair. Encourage them to experiment with different ways of emphasizing emotions through tone and intonation.
Allow them to re-dub the scene with adjustments based on the feedback.
SCRIPT 1 – USE THE APP
SCRIPT 2 – USE THE APP
SCRIPT 3 – USE THE APP

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This exercise helps participants develop their understanding of how tone and intonation contribute to the overall emotional impact of a scene. It also encourages creativity and experimentation with vocal expression.
Remember that tone and intonation can vary greatly based on the context and characters, so practicing with a range of emotions and situations will enhance participants’ dubbing skills.

RECORD THE SCRIPT (45 MIN)

All participants must have previously given their consent for the sound recording. SEE CONSENT FORM

Starting with the first script, show the video and read the ORIGINAL DIALOGUE.
Dub and record one video scenario.
Depending on the progress of the group the second person in the video (cashier, store employee, doctor’s secretary) is dubbed by the trainer or by another participant.
The dubbed scene will be watched, and any improvement/adaptation they feel can be made will be discussed.
The scene will be dubbed again, with the agreed improvements.
Each person should have dubbed at least once scene.
Depending on the progress of the group there might be time for some to do/try a second scene.
It is important, in order to establish the fun part of dubbing, to provide an alternate sound recording in gibberish.

The scheme will be:

Dubbing the scene
Watching the dubbed scene
Discussing improvements
Recording again

SCRIPT 1 – USE THE APP

SCRIPT 2 – USE THE APP

SCRIPT 3 – USE THE APP

See ORIGINAL DIALOGUES.

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Tips on how to emphasize tone and intonation in this dialogue

Pay attention on the way that the actors stress and intone specific words on the spoken text. Discuss how it is done.
Combine the knowledge you have gained from the sessions on rhythm and adaptation.
Ask the questions: how are rhythm and adaptation combined with the intonation of a word or even a syllable within a sentence? How does the movement of the body support the pronunciation of a syllable, sound, word or sentence?
Reflect on how the volume of a word alters the tone or the intonation of the dialogue.

4. FEEDBACK

Start by summarizing important aspects of the session. You can use this points:

Silent Dubbing (Warming Up): Participants express emotions silently, and partners provide dubbed interpretations, emphasizing non-verbal communication and tone.
Exploring social skills through dubbing: Showcasing active listening, empathy, assertiveness, and conflict resolution, followed by discussions on real-life applications.
Roleplaying scenarios and effective communication: Groups roleplay transactional interactions, exploring unsuccessful and successful dialogue options to refine communication strategies.
Focusing on tone and intonation in dubbing: Participants practice dubbing scenes, experimenting with emotional tones, word emphasis, and pacing to convey emotions accurately.
Dubbing stress-inducing transactions scenarios focussed on tone and intonation.

Then finish the session with an assessment activity.

ASSESSMENT (15 MIN)

All participants stand up and the trainer asks the participants the following questions (difference line-up as previously):

On a scale from 1 (totally boring) to 10 (extreme fun): How much did you enjoy today’s session?
Go one by one asking for the different activities organized.
On a scale from 1 (very difficult) to 10 (easy as pay): What do you think about today’s session?
On a scale from 1 (totally agree) to 10 (extreme disagree): how do you rate the following sentences?

I will not change anything from the session

I am happy to have participated on it

…

Ask the participants individually for some feedback of why they stand were they stand to find out what was enjoyable and what was strenuous/difficult.

Be sure that you allow group discussion and space for participants to share their thoughts, perspectives, and suggestions. Encourage open and respectful communication.

Take notes of common topics, areas of improvement, and positive feedback raised during the discussion. Use the ASSESSMENT SHEET.

Summarize the key points from the discussion and thank participants for their valuable input.

To finish, resolve any misunderstanding or difficulty, relieve stress, if it has arisen, thanks everyone for his/her effort.

Encourage participants to continue practicing their newly acquired skills using the additional exercises available on our DUB-IN APP.

ADDITIONAL EXERCISES SESSION 4. DUB-IN APP.

Close the session.