Teaching Elementary Students How to Make Plans with Friends
Introduction
As educators, one of our primary goals is to help students develop valuable life skills that they can carry into their future relationships. One such skill is learning how to effectively make plans with friends. In this blog post, we will explore a simple, no-prep activity that will introduce elementary students to the process of making plans with friends, followed by discussion questions to deepen their understanding of the concept. We will also touch upon related skills and provide resources for further exploration.
No-Prep Activity: Role-Playing Making Plans
This no-prep activity is designed to help students practice making plans with friends through role-playing. Follow these simple steps to get started:
- Divide students into pairs or small groups.
- Explain to students that they will be practicing how to make plans with friends by taking turns asking each other if they want to do something together and suggesting an activity, day, and time.
- Encourage students to be creative and come up with different scenarios for making plans, such as going to the movies, playing at the park, or having a sleepover.
- Allow students to practice making plans for a few minutes, and then ask them to switch partners or groups to practice with different people.
After the activity, gather the students together and ask them to share their experiences, discussing what they found easy or challenging about making plans with friends.
Discussion Questions
Use these discussion questions to help students think more deeply about the process of making plans with friends:
- Why is it important to discuss the day and time when making plans with friends?
- How can you be flexible when making plans with friends, and why is this important?
- What can you do if you and your friend can’t agree on an activity or a time to meet?
- How can you show respect and consideration for your friend’s feelings when making plans together?
- Why is it important to communicate clearly when making plans with friends?
Related Skills
In addition to learning how to make plans with friends, students can also benefit from developing other related social-emotional skills, such as:
- Active listening
- Empathy
- Assertiveness
- Conflict resolution
- Problem-solving
These skills can help students build strong relationships and navigate various social situations with confidence and ease.
Next Steps
Now that you have a better understanding of how to teach elementary students the skill of making plans with friends, we encourage you to explore more resources and activities that promote social-emotional learning. To get started, you can sign up for free samples of the discussed skill and others at Every Day Speech. These sample materials can help you incorporate these essential skills into your classroom and support your students’ social-emotional growth.
