Inclusion

Personal Doll Method

This live online course helps educators foster belonging, social-emotional skills, and respectful peer relationships in children ages 3–10, while actively making their classrooms more inclusive and bias-aware. Through the Persona Doll approach, participants learn to use dolls by developing and animating meaningful identities and stories that reflect children’s experiences, addressing differences, preventing bias, and promoting empathy.

  • Language(s)

    English

  • Schedule

    2 Sessions / 2 days

  • Format

    Virtual live sessions

  • Certificate of Attendance

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What this offering explores

  • What the Persona Doll approach is, and how using dolls with identities, backgrounds and real-life stories helps children reflect on emotions, relationships and diversity in a safe and playful way, 
  • How to support the development of children’s emotional awareness, empathy and social-emotional skills through the use of Persona Dolls and identity-based storytelling, 
  • How to create emotionally safe, bias-aware and inclusive environments that prevent exclusion, anxiety and behavioural difficulties, 
  • How to use narrative, dialogue and reflective questioning to help children explore feelings, relationships and perspectives in a developmentally appropriate way, 
  • How to collaborate with parents and colleagues to reinforce the values of respect, diversity and emotional wellbeing in both home and educational settings. 

Topics covered during this 2-day training: 

  • Understanding the social-emotional world of preschool and early primary children through the Persona Doll lens – recognising children’s experiences, identities and needs in diverse contexts.
  • Storytelling and questioning techniques that foster inclusion, curiosity, critical thinking and respectful communication among children. 
  • Integrating the Persona Doll method into small group work, daily routines and curriculum goals in educational settings. 
  • Supporting emotional expression and empathy development using narrative, puppetry and guided dialogue with Persona Dolls. 
  • Planning and facilitating Persona Doll sessions: selecting themes, building identities, structuring stories and responding to children’s reflections. 
  • Reflective practice for educators: managing personal triggers, bias awareness and creating emotionally safe, non-punitive environments for children and adults. 

This offering is designed for

This course is designed for professionals working with children aged 3–10, including:
  • Early childhood educators (ECEC)
  • Primary school teachers
  • Community Leaders
  • Psychologists and professionals in formal and non-formal educational settings
  • Caregivers and social workers

Course contents

Meet your instructors

Facilitators Bios

Zsuzsa Laszlo
Psychologist & Trainer

Zsuzsa László is a psychologist with 20 years of professional experience and the founder of the Persona Doll method in the Central and Eastern European region. She has delivered in-person and online trainings for many years, creating engaging and supportive learning environments for early childhood educators. She joined Partners Hungary in 2013, and since then she has been the Hungarian coordinator of REYN, the Roma Early Childhood Network. Itis close to her heart to provide educators with tools that help them create safe, accepting and connected environments for every child.Her favourite method is the Persona Doll approach, which for her is not just a technique buta whole mindset: a doll and the doll’s stories help children talk about differences, feelings and injustice — in their own language, playfully, yet deeply. She is convinced that working with the youngest children has the greatest impact, and that educators play a key role in this process. Their sense of safety, support and openness forms the foundation for children togrow into accepting, empathetic adults.


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Meet our Knowledge Partners

This course is developed and delivered by Partners Hungary Foundation, a professional NGO with over 25 years of experience in mediation, education, and social inclusion, providing accredited trainings for professionals working with children and families.
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