Friendship building
Welcome to your very own Friendship Passport, a special booklet where fun and learning about friendships go hand in hand!
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If your pages are printed on a single sheet, fold it in half carefully. If they are printed on separate sheets, cut each page out along the lines. Place the pages in order so that when you flip through your passport, each activity follows the next. You can staple the pages along the folded edge. Now that your passport is assembled, decorate the cover with your name, stickers, or drawings.
Suggestions:
- Write down the names of friends who love to read. You can also jot down what books they enjoy most.
- Unleash your inner artist by drawing a picture of you and a friend having a wonderful time together.
- Design your own unique stamps for two places you've visited with friends or family. Be creative!
- Discover new things by writing about your friends' hobbies. Maybe you'll find a new hobby for yourself too!
- Don't forget to personalize each page with your own colors and stickers, making your Friendship Passport as unique as your friendships are. Share it, swap stories, and enjoy the journey of friendship together!
An end of year BINGO to help students have fun and get to know each other at the same time. This can also be used at the start of the year or anytime. Use the blank version to customize your experience.
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Suggestions:
- Use for end of year celebrations, parties, group activities or to help your students get to know each other.
- For higher grades or larger groups, you can have the students write down multiple names or additional information.
- Use the blank one for family activities, or other events.
Simple cards to express kindness and love for occasions such as Valentines day, birthday parties, or just as reminders that we care for each other.
Please take this opportunity to discuss the importance of making every child included in your celebrations.
Suggestions:
- Share the importance of including every classmate when sharing these cards. Discuss empathy, kindness, inclusion and respect in your conversations.
- Print on card stock if possible.
- Color and decorate.
- Add other messages to your cards.
- Pick cards that you think will make others feel appreciated and make sure everyone gets a card.
- Cut the cards and share them.
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- * Don't forget to give the special teacher card to the teacher!
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A blank version was also created for those who want to write their own
text or use in another language. Click below to download and print.
A discussion guide to help talk to our children about what healthy friendships look like.
Suggestions:
- Share with a child and use to open up a discussion of what healthy friendships should have.
- Use to stimulate conversations and sharing.
- Use the blank version to come up with your own suggestions about friendships.
- Print and use at school or part of therapy.
A discussion guide to help children with friendship issues in a way that helps them discuss solutions and choices.
Suggestions:
- Share with a child and use to open up a discussion of what is happening to them and their options.
- Use to stimulate conversations and sharing.
Suggestions that can help us make new friends and step out of our comfort zone.
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Suggestions:
- Use these practical steps as a starting point to start new conversations around friendships.
- Use in the classroom or at home as a starting point for these important conversations on inclusion, acceptance, empathy, compassion, kindness and acceptance.
- Use the blank version to create your own tools and your own list of what we can do to explore new friendships.
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Talking can be hard sometimes. Our hearts have been bruised and we don't know where or how to start. These cards can serve as starting points to facilitate conversations.
Suggestions:
- Use in the classroom when broken friendships start to interfere and no one knows how to start mending. These can be used as examples of how we can open a space of conversation by sharing how we feel based on a specific event.
- Can be used at home between siblings as a way of building a bridge.
- As a visual example that children can inspire themselves from in creating their own version of a We Should Talk card.
Teaching children to understand how good friends behave is essential to helping them make choices that can have lifelong benefits.
A great way to start a conversation about friendship...
Suggestions:
- Use these examples as a starting point to make to talk about friendships.
- Make your own list of the different types of behaviors certain people have and which kind of friend you want to have.
- Think about your own actions as a friend.
- Talk about bullying and manipulation and what to do about it.
- Discuss your own experiences as a parent/teacher and what you did in certain situations.
- Find other words to describe the different types of friends you see.
To remind our children that good friendships are worth celebrating and working towards, all year long.
Suggestions:
- Use as a discussion tool to talk about the qualities of good friendships.
- Use as an example in the classroom and have the children create their own version of what a friend is.
- Give to your good friends to show that you appreciate them.
- Color, fill and assemble cube to share with friends.
- Use this in class to celebrate friendship day.
A great way to encourage and help children talk about friendship. These steps can help children gain their confidence as they show courage, regardless of the outcome.
Suggestions:
- Come up with 1-2 simple things that can be done in each of these situations. These should be discussed together and make sure the child feels this is something they can do.
- Think progress and effort rather than immediate success.
- Talk about actions and consequences and share your own experiences with friendships.
- Discuss the importance of persistence, and how the child should be proud of themselves for trying, regardless of the outcome.
- Stick a sticker or punch a hole every time an effort has been made.
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Give your children tools to understand good friendships. Understanding boundaries allows us to respect our inner and other spaces, to worry less and make better choices.
Suggestions:
- Sit down and have a conversation with your child. Use the activities as conversation-starters to bring up the topic and ask them in what categories their friends fit in. Listen and create a sharing space.
- Share a painful story or experience. Be honest and explain that you want to share these tools because you want them to have the skills to avoid these experiences.
- Fill in your own words or examples with the blank version (when available) and have your child bring the papers to school if they've faced challenges in the past, and even if they haven't. This will show the teacher that you are doing extra steps to teach limits and give your child tools. Encourage the teacher to share these activities with all the kids if possible.
- Encourage your child to make a presentation at school about good friendships. Arrange it with the teacher.
- Do the activities in a group setting or among friends and be present to questions and stories that arise in follow-up conversations.
- Use them in ways that work for you.
