KEY INFORMATION
Recommended age group: 5–14
Time required: 30–45 minutes
Equipment: Olympic Value of friendship presentation.
ACTIVITY IDEA
Use these discussion points and activities to explore the concept of friendship further.
What is friendship?
- Invite students to ask themselves: who are my friends? What qualities do I admire in them? What qualities do I think friends admire in me?
- How difficult is it to have friends who are also rivals? Do students have any experience of this in their lives? Perhaps they compete with friends on the sports field or in a hobby or school subject?
- How do you really listen? Listening is an important part of friendship that is often neglected. Think about ways that students can improve their listening skills.
Extension
Go the extra mile
- Challenge the students to find out more about great moments of sporting friendship. Think about the courage that Lutz Long displayed in order to show his friendship to Owens in front of Hitler. Students could write a piece of empathy writing or a play script about such a situation.
- What do you do as a school community to encourage friendly attitudes and generosity towards others? Encourage students to sit next to someone new and create a fact file all about their new neighbour. This is especially useful as an ice-breaker at the start of a new term.
- Celebrate friendship with certificates and awards in assemblies. Who has shared well or looked after someone who has a problem or feels down this week?