My relationships

Instructions
Begin the session by asking the girls about any of the self-talk they noticed since the last session that they wish to share.

Have they found their voice to be mostly positive or negative?

Tips
To encourage a positive ethos, it may be helpful to share one of your own experiences of self-talk since the last session.

If they found their voice to be a mostly negative one, encourage the girls to share strategies to overcome this such as – ‘I will say one positive thing about myself every time I notice my negative self-talk.’

Instructions
[Pages 29–37] Begin by asking the girls to think of different relationships they have with people.

Read through each of the case studies and reflect on the impact the relationships around us have on their lives.

During this task, link back to self-esteem and the issue that low self-esteem can create in terms of allowing themselves to be in an unhealthy relationship.

This is also a good point to bring in needs and values from previous sessions as the girls can use their needs and core values to reflect on whether a relationship is healthy.

Tips
When discussing positive relationships, the focus is on the various relationships the girls have with others – partner, best friends, classmates, teachers, driving instructor, guidance teacher, parents, carers etc.

Whilst completing the tasks, sometimes the discussion may centre around unhealthy relationships. During this discussion, it is helpful to point out that for various reasons two people may not form healthy relationships and it is important to recognise that it is ok to distance themselves from these relationships.

During this session it is also vital to encourage the girls to be aware that unhealthy relationships are not being discussed because they are young, with low self-esteem or other contributing factors, women of all ages can be at higher risk of forming and continuing unhealthy relationships.

Instructions
Close the session by asking the girls to share one positive thing about who they are in the relationships they have with others.

Tips
Before the next session, the girls could be tasked with making a conscious effort to carryout a supportive action towards someone they have a relationship with – friend, family member etc.

Below you will find an example of types of relationships along with some supportive and unsupportive actions.

Find the pages in your Tips & Bits booklet.