Interventions for Building a Positive Peer Culture
Bad Habits
Supplies
1-12 inch ruler
1 sheet of newspaper
1 magic marker
Write "bad habits" across the top of the sheet of newspaper. Brainstorm a list of bad habits and record them on the paper, [profanity, lying, cheating, stealing, whining, not following directions, not wearing seat belt, not brushing teeth, not wearing a bike helmet]
Place the ruler at the edge of a table, the ruler should extend from the table by 5". Explain that the ruler represents a person. Lay the newspaper over the section of the ruler that is on the table. Explain that the newspaper represents a person. Ask clients if the bad habit [newspaper] is strong enough to hold the person [ruler] down when you strike the ruler. Demonstrate [strike the ruler]. Discuss that bad habits restrict personal freedom. Also discuss the deception of bad habits; people do not recognize the control bad habits have over their lives.
Being Kind to One Another
Supplies
Bowl of water
Pepper
Sugar
Bar of Soap
Sprinkle pepper in the bowl of water, explain that the pepper represents all the people in the clients lives. Discuss that how we get along with the people in our lives is largely determined by how we treat them and speak to them. Discuss "Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will break my heart". Tell the clients that the soap represents negative harsh words. Have a client touch the soap to the water [soap will repel pepper]. State when we speak unkindly to others, they won't want to be around us, and will scatter. Now pour a teaspoon of sugar into the center of the bowl [sugar attracts pepper]. Discuss how being kind and loving towards others causes other people to want to be around us and be our friends.
Bad Habits
Supplies:
2 popsicle sticks
Thread
Ask for 2 volunteers. Have each child hold a popsicle stick about 1 foot apart. Wind the thread around the sticks 1 time and tie it. Ask the children to pull the sticks apart and break the thread. Continue the process by slowly increasing the amount of thread wrapped around the sticks until the children can no longer pull them apart.
Explain that habits are like the thread; bad habits [profanity] are easy to break in the beginning, but become harder to break the more they are repeated. Good habits [wearing seat belt, telling the truth] are strengthened each time they are practiced and like the string are less likely to fade.
Ask:
What is an example of a good habit you have?
What is an example of a bad habit you have? How can staff help you break the bad habit?
What is a bad habit the group needs to work on? How can staff help?
Being Kind and Supporting One Another
Supplies:
Drinking glass filled with 1 cup of water
1 egg
1/4 cup salt
tablespoon
Place the egg in the glass of water. Explain that the egg represents someone who does not feel cared for by others, sinking to the bottom represents how someone who is made fun of would feel [low, sad, depressed, unappreciated]
Remove the egg and set it aside. Slowly add salt to the water a tablespoon at a time. Explain that the salt represents different ways to make someone feel good inside. Discuss examples.
After all the salt has been added, replace the egg to show how it is now supported by love and held up by encouragement and acceptance of others.
Negativity
Supplies:
Small pebbles
Small pieces of candy
Give each child a piece of candy. Now, ask each child to place a pebble in their shoe. Go outdoors and have the children walk around until their candy is gone.
Ask each child to talk about their walk:
What did he feel during the walk?
What was he thinking about?
Explain how this compares to life:
Do we sometimes focus on the bad things [pebbles] and forget about the good things [candy]?
Ask the children if they spend most of their time noticing and pointing out the negatives of others [tattling], instead of the nice things people do for us?
Fulfilling Responsibilities
Supplies:
Clear jar
Large objects [walnuts]
Small objects [rice]
Preparation:
Measure amount of objects needed by placing large objects in jar first, then fill the jar with the small objects.
Discuss all the important and fun things we need to do in a day [school, bike riding, chores, TV, homework].
State the jar represents a day, the large objects represent all the hard things we do, the small objects represent all the fun and easy things we do.
Ask one child to fill up his day with as many hard and easy activities as he can fit in the jar. The child will most likely not fit everything into the jar. Note that he was not able to accomplish everything he needed to do.
Demonstrate by placing responsibilities [large objects] in the jar first and explain by fulfilling our responsibilities first, there will always be time left for fun, as you poor the small objects into the jar.
Telling the Truth
Supplies:
Chair
Ball of Yarn
Prearranged volunteer
Discuss honesty. Ask children to think of a time when they made a decision to be honest when it might have been easier to tell a lie. Ask to share how it felt to be honest.
Ask the volunteer to sit in the chair and ask simple arranged questions, as he lies wrap yarn loosely around the chair until all tied up, asking follow up questions throughout. [example: what did you do over the weekend - went to Disneyland - question what rides he went on, souvenirs, etc]
Explain to the group that you asked the volunteer to lie and that everything he said was made up. Discuss how one lie leads to another and how quickly you can become trapped by the lie.
Ask the group about times they have been caught in a lie or had to tell another one to cover up the previous lie. Discuss why it is important to tell the truth [safety, trust, feel good about self, because its the right thing to do]