Psyched for Success: Building your Interpersonal Skills (Beirut Campus)
Objective
This camp aims to support students in strengthening their interpersonal and emotional intelligence skills through engaging, psychology-based activities, fostering self-awareness, empathy, and ethical communication in the digital AI age.
Summary
This week-long Psychology BootCamp for students in grades 9–12 offers an interactive exploration of how we connect, listen, and understand one another. Through hands-on sessions, self-assessment tools, and creative activities, students will discover their communication styles, practice assertiveness and empathy, and learn to navigate bias, emotion regulation, and nonverbal cues. The camp also introduces the ethical use of AI as a communication partner, inviting students to reflect on how technology influences their interpersonal interaction. By the end of the week, each participant will have built a personal portfolio and presented their insights on self-awareness, connection, and growth, for the chance to win a scholarship at LAU.
Location
Fouad Makhzoumi Innovation Center (FMIC), Irwin, 6th Floor
Tentative program
Monday, July 13
Know your Communication Style
| Time | Activity | Champion |
|---|---|---|
| 8.15am – 9.00am | Registration + Breakfast | |
| 9.00am – 10.00am | Meet and Greet Icebreaker | |
| 10.00am – 12.00pm |
Know your Communication Style Students will explore different communication styles through self-assessment and group interaction. They will identify their own strengths and challenges, learning how to adapt their style for clearer, more effective connections. |
Pia Tohme & Sara Sabbah |
| 12.00pm – 1.00pm | Lunch | |
| 1.00pm – 2.30pm |
AI your Communication Buddy: Ethics and Safety This session introduces AI as a modern communication partner. Students will discuss ethical considerations, privacy, and emotional awareness when using AI tools, reflecting on how technology shapes the way we interact. |
Pia Tohme & Sara Sabbah
|
Tuesday, July 14
Listening and Being Heard
| Time | Activity | Champion |
|---|---|---|
| 8.15am – 8.45am | Breakfast | |
| 8.45am – 10.45am |
Are you Really Listening? Through experiential listening exercises, students will learn to differentiate between hearing and active listening. The session emphasizes empathy, attention, and understanding as keys to meaningful communication. |
|
| 10.45am – 11.15am | Break | |
| 11.15am – 12.45pm |
Being Heard: Practice Assertiveness Students will practice expressing their thoughts confidently and respectfully in various scenarios. This hands-on session highlights the balance between assertiveness, empathy, and respect for others’ perspectives. |
|
| 12.45pm – 1.45pm | Lunch (with SDEM/Financial Aid) | |
| 1.45pm – 2.45pm | Portfolio | Pia Tohme |
Wednesday, July 15
Empathy, Perspective Taking, and Regulation
| Time | Activity | Champion |
|---|---|---|
| 8.15am – 8.45am | Breakfast | |
| 8.45am – 10.45am |
Empathy and Bias in Perspective Taking: the Art of Story Telling Using storytelling and role-play, participants will explore how empathy helps us see beyond our biases. They will practice perspective-taking and reflect on how narratives influence understanding and connection. |
|
| 10.45am – 11.15am | Break | |
| 11.15am – 12.45pm |
Self-Regulation: How do I Affect Others? This session focuses on emotional awareness and regulation in social situations. Students will learn strategies to manage emotions, respond constructively, and recognize how their moods and reactions impact others. |
|
| 12.45pm – 1.45pm | Lunch | |
| 1.45pm – 2.45pm | Portfolio |
Pia Tohme
|
Thursday, July 16
Me, Myself, and the World around Me
| Time | Activity | Champion |
|---|---|---|
| 8.15am – 8.45am | Breakfast | |
| 8.45am – 10.45am |
Stereotypes and Social Cues: How I See Others? Students will examine how stereotypes and first impressions shape social interactions. Through guided activities, they will practice noticing and challenging biased interpretations of others’ behavior. |
|
| 10.45am – 11.15am | Break | |
| 11.15am – 12.45pm |
Decoding Nonverbal Behaviors: Silent Stories In this interactive workshop, students will analyze body language, facial expressions, and tone to understand the unspoken side of communication. They will practice reading and sending nonverbal cues effectively. |
|
| 12.45pm – 1.45pm | Lunch (with Honors Program) | |
| 1.45pm – 2.45pm | Portfolio | Pia Tohme |
Friday, July 17
Bringing it all Together, AI are you Talking to Me?
| Time | Activity | Champion |
|---|---|---|
| 8.15am – 8.45am | Breakfast | |
| 8.45am – 10.15am |
Who Learned it better, AI or I? In this reflective closing session, students will compare human and AI communication skills through a creative challenge. They’ll evaluate what makes human interaction unique and present insights from their week-long learning journey. |
Pia Tohme & Sara Sabbah |
| 10.15am – 10.30am | Break | |
| 10.30am – 12.00pm | Prepping you Portfolio | Pia Tohme & Sara Sabbah |
| 12.00pm – 12.30pm | Lunch | |
| 12.30pm – 2pm | Pitch and Competition | Pia Tohme & Sara Sabbah |
| 2 pm – 2.45pm | Wrap up activity – What did you learn about you, your friends, and what do you want to tell them? | Pia Tohme & Sara Sabbah |