Lesson Plan:

There’s Nothing Better than a Good Friend

 Title: There’s Nothing Better than a Good Friend
Theme: Considering the Characteristics of a Good Friend
Time: 120 minutes (approx. 2 hours)
Materials: Want Ad for a Friend - Assignment
Friendship Stoplight - Laminated Game
Ball (beach ball or object that can be tossed between students)

Objectives:
● to teach students about the concept of positive, healthy friendships
● to acknowledge the links between healthy friendships and positive self-esteem
● to consider the reasons it is important to have good friends
● to allow students to think about their own criteria for healthy friendships
● to discuss the healthy signs, warning signs and unhealthy signs in friendships
● to have students explore strategies to deal with difficult situations in friendships
● to identify the effects of social influences on gender roles and equity

Background Information
This lesson focuses on the issues young people face surrounding friendships during adolescence. This
topic is important because while friendships are vital throughout life, peer groups and social relations
among friends gain increasing importance during puberty and adolescence. As the peer group becomes a
more significant source of influence, friendships begin to take on new meaning. During puberty, children
will be making new friends at school and in social settings, and many will also be coping with evolving
friendships from their earlier childhood. Friendships are often put to the test during senior elementary
and secondary school. Children struggle to maintain relationships with peers who may be changing in
a variety of ways. In addition, adolescents may be subjected to peer pressure, which can influence their
choices and make lasting impacts on their life experiences.
This lesson is designed to compel students to think about their own criteria for postive friendships,
to discuss ways to evaluate friendships and to explore ways to deal with difficult situations in their
friendships.
Activity One: Class Discussion Regarding Friendships - 30 minutes
Tell your students that you will be discussing friendships during today’s lesson. Encourage students to
participate frequently during the discussion, as their input on this topic is very important.

Here are some ideas you may use to guide your discussion.

What kind of things can we do to begin and keep friendships?

Join a club or a team. Meet a neighbour. Seek out a friend at school. Make contact with the person
you would like to know better. Find ways to spend time with them. Talk about yourself, sharing more
information as time goes by. Talk on the phone, write text and/or instant message or e-mail notes to your
friend.

What is a friend? Friends are people …

…we feel close to. Friends are people who have similar interests, people who care about us, and people
we can trust. Friends offer support and understanding when we really need it. Friends are people we feel
comfortable around. Being around them makes us feel good about ourselves.

Self-esteem is how we feel about ourselves. Having a good self-esteem means that we feel
good about ourselves.
When we feel good about ourselves, we are more likely to choose friends that are good for us. There is a
saying that says, “we teach people how to treat us”. In other words, how we behave toward ourselves and
other people gives them clues as to how they should behave towards us. If we feel good about ourselves
and respect ourselves, and treat others with respect, we are showing people how we would like to be
treated.

Why is it important to have good friends?

True friendship is important. Friends support one another, listen to each other and give advice. When you
and your friend share personal information about yourselves, you can learn from each other and explore
what you have in common and what makes you different. Friends can teach us many things like how to
play a game or how to make a craft. Friends can introduce us to exciting things like delicious new foods
and interesting customs or celebrations. You can also learn about acceptance by appreciating the different
qualities that make us unique individuals. When you accept people for who they are, you are being a
respectful friend.

What kinds of things do you like doing with your friends?

Ideas might include: playing games (video) and sports, hanging out, having lunch together, attending
community groups, going to classes together (e.g., dance, martial arts, music lessons), watching
television/movies, using the computer, working on projects and/or doing homework together.
 How can we be good friends?
● Share our interests and activities
● Trust each other and be honest
● Share our thoughts and feelings
● Respect each other’s opinions and beliefs
● Try to relate to how the other person feels
● Be sincere with each other
● Accept each other for who we are
● Encourage and support each other
● Commit to the friendship

ActivityTwo: (2 parts)
Part A: Ball Toss – 10 minutes
This is a warm-up activity to help students explore the qualities of healthy relationships. Have the students
stand up behind their desks or in a circle at the front of the room.
Toss the ball to someone in the group, and ask them to call out a word that represents qualities of a healthy
relationship (for example; trust, supportive, kind, fun…). Ask that person to then toss the ball to someone
else. Each time a new student catches the ball, ask them to share a new quality… and so on.

Part B: Want Ad for a Friend - 20 minutes

Tell your students that you would like them to think about the characteristics that are most important in
a friend. Distribute the assignment entitled, “Want Ad For A Friend”. Ask your students to complete this
assignment individually. Allow students ten to fifteen minutes of quiet writing time. Once students have
written the advertisement, ask some students to share their work by reading aloud to the class. (Friendship
Want Ad handout can be found following this lesson)
Activity Three: Friendship Stoplight Game - 30 minutes
STOP! These are unhealthy/bad signs in a friendship! Here are the instructions to set up the Friendship
Stoplight Game. (The Stoplight game cards can be found
following this lesson).
On the top left corner of your board or wall space, use
tape or magnets to attach the red stoplight card that
reads, “These are bad signs in a friendship”.
Place the corresponding yellow and green stoplights
CAUTION! These are warning signs in a friendship! underneath, like in a street stoplight.

Shuffle the stoplight scenario cards to ensure that they

are not in order.

The graphic shown below appears on each scenario

card.
GO! These are healthy/good signs in a friendship!

The object of this game is to decide which scenarios are most compatible with each of the following three
statements: “these are bad signs in a friendship”, “these are warning signs in a friendship” and “these are good
signs in a friendship”.

Attach the appropriate answers to the board/wall beside the corresponding stoplight with tape or magnets.

There are several ways that you can play this game. You can read the scenarios aloud and ask students
where they think they best belong. You can give scenarios out to groups of students and they can arrive at
a consensus. You can place the scenarios on overheads or on the document arm and ask volunteers to give
suggestions. You might also consider placing the scenarios around the room and asking for volunteers to
place them beside the proper stoplight on the board.

No matter what pedagogical strategy you use to play this game, be sure that you ask students for
explanations regarding their choices. The most important part of this activity is the discussion around
whether each scenario constitutes a good, a warning or a bad sign in a friendship. It is in this arena that
students will be able to discuss their various points of view. Your role in this game is to facilitate and mediate
the conversations of your students. When there is disagreement, you might choose not to place the scenario
beside one statement, but rather choose to set it aside for further debate and discussion. If the scenario
clearly represents a bad or warning sign, be sure to make this clear for your students.
There are fifteen scenario cards. Five scenarios correspond with each coloured stoplight: red(unhealthy/
badsigns), yellow(warningsigns) and green (healthy/good signs).
While there may be some discrepancies, the following is a list of suggested correct answers.

RED LIGHT: These are unhealthy/bad signs in a friendship.

1. You are afraid of your friend’s temper.
2. Your friend criticizes you or people you care about.
3. Your friend threatens to hurt you.
4. Your friend bullies and makes fun of you or other kids at school.
5. Your friend pressures you to do things you do not want to do.

YELLOW LIGHT: These are warning signs in a friendship.

6. You are nervous that if you tell your friend something personal, they will tell other people at school.
7. Your friend sometimes makes fun of you.
8. You rarely get to plan what the two of you will do together.
9. Your friend tells you not to hang out with certain people.
10. You say that you agree with your friend, even when you really don’t. You are afraid they won’t be your
friend anymore if you disagree.

GREEN LIGHT: These are healthy/good signs in a friendship.

11. You usually feel happy when you are with this person.
12. Your friend respects your feelings and your opinions.
13. Your friend talks to you about their feelings.
14. Your friend is happy when good things happen to you.
15. You enjoy being with this person, but you also enjoy spending time with other friends.
Assignment
Want Ad For A Friend
Date:_______________________ Name:______________________________

We are a young couple who is looking to I am eleven years old looking for a friend
adopt a puppy. We would like to add a who is also in grade six. I would like my
golden retriever to our family. new friend to play volleyball with me. This
The puppy should like children and person should be funny, honest and a good
should enjoy going on long walks. listener.

Have you ever seen a want ad in the newspaper or online? Sometimes people who are looking to adopt a
pet write ads describing the type of pet they are hoping to find. Other times, adults write want ads if they
are looking to find a friend. Pretend that you are trying to make a new friend. Write an ad that describes a
friend you would like to find. Think about what age you would like this person to be. What personality traits
are you looking for in a friend? What kind of person do you think would make a great friend? Are there any
activities that you would like to share with this new friend? If you spend a lot of time rollerblading, you
might want a friend to share this activity with you. Think about all the things you need in a good friend.
Today, you will be writing a want ad for a friend. This is how your written assignment will be marked.

Criteria poor fair good very good excellent

Student completed at least five full sentences

Response shows evidence of careful consideration of

characteristics desired in a friend

Quality of written work including spelling and grammar

Grade out of 15 ……………………………………………………………............….......... /15

 In the space provided below, write a want ad for your new friend.

Make sure that you write at least five full sentences.

Use your best spelling and grammar.

Total Grade out of 15 ………………………………………………………. /15

STOP! These are unhealthy/bad signs in a friendship!
CAUTION! These are warning signs in a friendship!
GO! These are healthy/good signs in a friendship!
 You are
afraid of
your friend’s
temper.
 Your friend
criticizes you
or people
you care
about.
 Your friend
threatens to
hurt you.
 Your friend
bullies and
makes fun
of you or
other kids at
school.
 Your friend
pressures you
to do things
you do not
want to do.
You are nervous
that if you tell
your friend
something
personal, they
will tell other
people at
school.
Your friend
sometimes
makes fun of
you.
 You rarely
get to plan
what the two
of you will do
together.
 Your friend
tells you not
to hang out
with certain
people.
You say that
you agree
with your
friend, even
when you
really don’t.
You usually
feel happy
when you
are with this
person.
 Your friend
respects
your feelings
and your
opinions.
Your friend
talks to you
about their
feelings.
Your friend is
happy when
good things
happen to
you.
 You enjoy
being with this
person, but
you also enjoy
spending time
with other
friends.
Homework Assignment
Solving Problems In Friendships

Everyone will have some difficult times in their friendships. Even in the best of friendships, problems do
arise. It is important that you are able to know the difference between good friendships and not-so-good
friendships. One way you can do this is to decide if the problems you face with your friend are “warning signs”
or “unhealthy/bad signs” in your friendship. By now, you have played the Friendship Stoplight Game with your
class. Remember that “warning signs” make you feel a little worried about your friendship, while “unhealthy/
bad signs” make you feel very uncomfortable.

Think of a time when you had a problem with a friend. For this homework assignment, you will be writing a
solution to a problem in a friendship. The solution can be something you actually did to solve a problem, or it
can be something you might do if the problem came up again. If you cannot think of a problem in your own
life, please provide a solution to either Caitlin’s or Taylor’s problem which are listed on the following page.

On a lined piece of paper, complete all three tasks below.

Task # 1: In one or two sentences, describe the problem you faced with your friend OR write down that you
will be trying to solve Caitlin’s or Taylor’s problem.

Task # 2: Explain why you think the problem is a “warning sign” or a “unhealthy/bad sign”.

Task # 3: Write a solution that you used, or that a person could use, to solve the problem. If you are not sure
how to solve the problem, try writing a few ideas that you think might work.
Homework Assignment
Solving Problems In Friendships

Caitlin’s Problem:
Caitlin and Suli are best friends. They see each other every day at school and sometimes get together on the
weekend. Two weeks ago, an exchange student named Heather joined their class. Caitlin likes Heather and
wants to be friends. Suli is not happy about this. Suli is jealous of the attention Caitlin is paying Heather and is
nervous the friendship with Caitlin will be lost. Suli tells Caitlin not to be friends with Heather. Caitlin wants to
be friends with both Suli and Heather. Caitlin is scared that Suli will be mad and want to stop being friends if
Caitlin keeps spending time with Heather.

How can Caitlin solve this friendship problem with Suli?

Taylor’s Problem:
Taylor and Lee are good buddies. They sit beside each other in class. Lee is really funny and makes Taylor
laugh. Sometimes, Lee acts like a “class clown”. Taylor likes school and is a good student. Lee struggles in
school, usually goofs around during class and often gets in trouble with their teacher. When Taylor is trying to
pay attention in class, Lee often talks and writes notes that distract Taylor. Their teacher sent home a note to
Taylor’s parents telling them that Taylor is not paying attention in class. Taylor is not happy. Taylor is proud to
be a good student. Now, Taylor is nervous to have lower grades because of this and is also worried to lose Lee
as a friend.

How can Taylor solve this friendship problem with Lee?

Criteria poor fair good very good excellent

Student
thoroughly
completed all
three tasks

Quality of the
solution(s)
provided

Grade out of 10...................................................................................................... /10

3904 July 2023 Adapted with permission from Peel Public Health, Changes In Me: A Puberty and Adolescent Development Resource for Educators Junior
Grade Level, Second Edition