Your Social Network
Brief:Explores healthy relationship and socialising
Equipment: Pens and paper
Step by Step
- Ask the young person to write their name at the centre of a piece of paper
- Then around their name, ask them to write the name of their 5 closest friends
- They should then draw lines between themselves and their friend and writes what each connection/friend brings to their life and vice-versa (e.g. emotions, feelings, associations)
- Discuss what they have written down
- Help them identify positive and negative relationships in their social network.
- You can keep building out the network to include more friends or friends of friends.
Things to Consider
This is a good activity to use when a young person is hanging out with negative influences.
However, it’s important to avoid pointing out/answering for them. As well as making certain you do not assume certain friends are negative for the young person based on your own prejudice – just help them to reflect.
This can also be a good exercise to use as a starter activity with a group to explore who are the people they can go to and talk about how they are feeling or when they have problems.
Explainer
Negative friendships can encourage negative coping mechanisms which in turn have a negative impact on a person’s mental health and wellbeing.
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