Getting to Know Others

Overview

In this second lesson of Friendship and Feelings, students practise the friendly actions and conversation skills that help friendships begin and grow. Through short, supported partner activities, they greet others, join play, ask open questions, listen actively, respond kindly and identify shared interests.

Learning intentions

• WALT use friendly actions and conversation skills to begin and maintain friendships.
• WALT adapt our words, voice, facial expressions and body language to suit the situation.
• WALT listen carefully and respond in a kind, respectful way.
• WALT notice interests and experiences we have in common with others.

Success criteria

• I can greet someone in a friendly way.
• I can ask a suitable open question.
• I can show I am listening and respond kindly.
• I can find or acknowledge something I share with another person.

Curriculum links

• Health and PE — Relationships: developing strategies for respectful discussion, critical thinking and empathy.
• Health and PE — Relationships: adapting verbal and non-verbal communication for different contexts and personal experiences.
• Key Competencies: relating to others; participating and contributing; managing self; using language, symbols and texts.

Lesson structure (45 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Welcome and hook. Display the opening question in the friendship hook slide: “What might help someone feel welcome when they are new to a game?” Students think quietly, then share one friendly action; acknowledge that people may prefer different kinds of greetings and personal space.

2. 5–10 min · Model friendly conversation. Use the communication skills slides and the Friendship Skills Reference Poster to introduce greeting, joining, open questions, active listening and kind responses. Model two versions of joining a game—one unhelpful and one respectful—and invite students to identify differences in words, tone, eye contact, facial expression and body position.

3. 10–17 min · Greeting practice. Give each student a dyslexia-friendly prompt card from the conversation practice sheet and rehearse a greeting with a partner: “Kia ora, I’m ____. How are you?” Students practise using a spoken greeting, a wave or another comfortable non-verbal response, then swap roles and give one kind observation.

4. 17–27 min · Rotating partner conversations. Set up three two-minute rounds, using the instructions on the rotating activity slides. In each round, students work with a new partner and practise one skill:

• joining a game: “Can I play too?” and accepting the response respectfully;
• asking an open question: “What do you like doing at break time?” or “What is something you enjoy?”;
• active listening: facing the speaker appropriately, waiting, and responding with “That sounds fun” or a relevant follow-up. Pause briefly between rounds so students can change partners and reset.

5. 27–36 min · Shared interests challenge. Students use the “Find out” section of the conversation practice sheet to ask questions and record or draw one interest shared with their partner. Encourage students to use follow-up questions such as “What do you like about it?” or “How often do you do that?” Students may point to picture choices or give a non-verbal response when speaking feels difficult.

6. 36–42 min · Demonstrate and improve. Invite pairs to perform a short conversation for the group, or demonstrate privately to the teacher. Use the checklist on the reflection and demonstration slides to identify a greeting, suitable question, listening behaviour and kind response. The class offers warm, specific feedback: “I noticed…” and “You could try…”

7. 42–45 min · Exit reflection. Students complete the final box on the conversation practice sheet: draw or write one skill they used and one skill they will practise next time. Share two examples and reinforce that friendship grows through repeated respectful actions.

Resources

• the complete Getting to Know Others slide deck
• the dyslexia-friendly conversation practice sheet
• the Friendship Skills Reference Poster
• Open floor space for role-play
• Pencils, coloured pencils and timer
• Optional quiet area for private demonstrations

Assessment

• Observe whether students greet, ask an open question, listen without interrupting and respond kindly during each rotation.
• Use questioning and feedback to check whether students can explain how verbal and non-verbal choices affect another person.
• Review the final reflection and conversation checklist; note students needing further rehearsal with greetings, turn-taking or joining play.

Differentiation

• Provide visual conversation scripts, icons, minimal text, large clear print and a dyslexia-friendly sans-serif font on the worksheet. Read prompts aloud and allow students to dictate or draw responses.
• Rehearse each interaction with the teacher or a trusted partner before role-play. Offer non-verbal choices such as waving, nodding, pointing to a picture or using a sentence strip.
• Carefully match pairs and allow students to pass, observe first or demonstrate privately. Explicitly teach that eye contact, touch and personal space can vary across cultures and individual preferences.
• Support students with sentence starters and modelled examples. Extend confident learners by asking them to create and demonstrate a three-step friendship conversation: greet, ask an open question, then listen and respond while identifying a shared interest.

Extension

• Students create and perform a three-step conversation using their own scenario: greeting someone new, joining a game or discovering a shared interest.
• Partners explain which verbal and non-verbal choices made the conversation feel welcoming and suggest one respectful improvement.