The group activities where children learn new skills are crucial to the success of the Fun FRIENDS program. These evidence-based, play-focused activities allow children to build foundational resilience skills in a way that can be easily grasped, understood and used in everyday life:
- Helping other people including family, peers, and teachers
- Self-awareness of body clues (e.g. tense means stressed, butterflies means nervous)
- Relaxation techniques for the body and mind during stressful situations
- Engaging and relating to peers, as well as making friends
After undertaking Fun FRIENDS, parents and teachers may notice the following changes in a child:
- Improved confidence
- Increased ability to cope with stress
- Increased ability to cope with fear
- Enhanced social skills
- Improved ability to communicate better with adults
- Boosted self esteem
- Increased happiness and enthusiasm
The secret to the Fun FRIENDS Program is the group activities that help children to learn new skills. There are a number of different evidence-based play-focused activities, which help teach the following skills to participants in a way that can be easily grasped, understood and used in everyday life:
- Smiling and making eye contact when communicating
- Speaking with a brave and confident voice
- Talking about and understanding feelings in one's self and others (empathy development)
- Helping other people including family, peers and teachers
- Self-awareness of body clues, e.g. tense means stressed, butterflies means nervous
- Relaxation techniques to relax the body and mind during stressful situations
- Approaching groups of peers and making friends
- Trying new things, and different approaches to problem solving
- Identifying negative thoughts and turning them into positive thoughts
The effectiveness of the FRIENDS Programs is independent of the chosen mode of delivery.
Accordingly, the mode of delivery is entirely flexible, provided the following three guidelines are met:
- 01 Facilitators have first been trained in the program/s being delivered;
- 02 The sequence and structure of the program/s is followed; and
- 03 Each participant receives his or her own private book, which can be used to review the skills practiced, during delivery of the programs. For example, at home with parents, carers, siblings or extended family.
Specifically, the following modes of delivery can be used and adapted to suit the needs of the participants and school curriculum:
- 1.5 hour weekly sessions over a single school term (preferably term 2 or 3);
- 45min weekly sessions over the course of 2 school terms (preferably terms 2 and 3);
- 15min daily sessions (after morning tea), where the same activity is repeated daily for a few weeks, using new examples until the skills become second nature;
- School holiday programs – 2 hours across 5 days; and/or
- Weekend intensives - over 2-3 full days.