Some children, for all manner of reasons, struggle to make friends and fit in socially. What’s the Buzz? is a unique sixteen-lesson social skills enrichment programme designed to explicitly teach children how to think and relate to others in social situations.

This lively, highly practical role-play and play-based programme targets everyday themes: how to greet, make and keep friends, fit in, read one’s own emotions, read the feelings of others, deal with competition and cope with worry, frustration and disappointment more constructively. Based on an extensive body of research believed to stimulate social thinking and accomplish powerful outcomes, What’s the Buzz? is:

Sequenced – it follows a logical breakdown of each skill

Active – it uses role-plays and rehearsal with feedback

Focused – it dedicates time solely towards teaching a specific skill

Explicit – it teaches a specific social/emotional skill each session.

The programme has proven wide appeal to teachers, counsellors, psychologists, teacher assistants, support staff and parent volunteers in schools. While tailored for small specific groups of children, it also has a broader multi-purpose scope with larger mainstream classes. Each lesson also includes extensive notes offering parents and teachers handy ideas to reinforce the themes presented.

This book is complemented by the website www.whatsthebuzz.net.au which offers online training modules and wealth of other resources..

Contents

About the Authors A quick guide to the games Introduction Practical considerations for implementation as a small group initiative or a whole class strategy Photocopiable and Online Resources Lesson 1: meeting people and exiting Lesson 2: getting attention Lesson 3: following instructions Lesson 4: being friendly Lesson 5: competition, winning and losing Lesson 6: identifying feelings Lesson 7: feelings; the warning signs Lesson 8: feelings and thinking py Lesson 9: feelings; ideas to create wellbeing Lesson 10: empathy, responding to others Lesson 11: handling worry Lesson 12: dealing with disappointment Lesson 13: responding to bullying behaviours Lesson 14: the connecting art of conversation Lesson 15: learning to ‘fit in’ Lesson 16: giving and receiving compliments References

Author Bio

Mark Le Messurier is an educator, counsellor, author and conference presenter. He works in private practice and in schools supporting teachers and students, and is a recipient of the prestigious Australian National Excellence in Teaching Award. www.marklemessurier.com.au

Madhavi Nawana Parker is a behaviour consultant in private practice for children with Asperger Syndrome, Attention Disorders and Learning Difficulties and regularly presents training workshops throughout Australia for parents, teachers and allied health professionals. www.madhavinawana.com.au