Friendships
Friendships
6 - short films
6 short films centred around a group of 17 year old males and the issues they are dealing with. Topics: self-esteem, bullying, sexuality, suicide, crime, drink driving. .
Alexander and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day
Topics: resilience, emotions, feelings, jealousy, anger, hate, isolation, injustice, siblings, friendship.
Fiction
Alexander knew it was going to be a terrible day when he woke up with gum in his hair. His best friend deserted him. There was no dessert in his lunch bag. And, on top of all that, there were lima beans for dinner and kissing on TV!
Age: 6 to 9 years.
YouTube reading - 4min 33sec (external link)Because it's my body!
Topics: protective behaviours, child abuse prevention, bodily autonomy, safety, art.
Fiction
Focusing on empowerment and prevention, this approachable book gives young children a way to reject unwanted, possibly harmful physical contact by adults and other kids.
Age: 4 to 7 years.
Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul
A collection of short stories, anecdotes, poems and cartoons which present a positive outlook on life (8 to 12 years). Topics: courage, hope, laughter.
Don't let the pigeon drive the bus
Topics: peer pressure, emotional literacy, positive coping strategies.
Fiction
When a bus driver takes a break from his route, a very unlikely volunteer springs up to take his place - a pigeon! The pigeon pleads and begs his way through the book offering lots of opportunity for audience participation.
Age: 2 to 6 years.
Girls like that and other plays for teenagers
Fiction
'Girls Like That' explores the pressures caused by technology when a schoolgirls naked photograph goes viral.
'Banana Boys' is about the challenge of being on the school football team and being secretly gay.
'Holloway Jones' is a about with growing up with a parent in prison.
'Pronoun' is about two childhood sweethearts dealing with the fact that one of them, Isabella, has come out as transgender.
Horton hears a who!
Topics: friendships, kindness, trustworthiness, emotional literacy, perseverance, resilience.
Fiction
Horton, the loveable elephant, represents kindness, trustworthiness, and perseverance in his quest to protect tiny creatures on a speck of dust.
Ages 4 to 8.
How to be a friend: A guide to making friends and keeping them
Topics: friendships, conflict resolution, emotional literacy.
Fiction
This picture book contains many examples of how to be a friend and offers kids practical suggestions about resolving arguments, getting over being shy, handling bossy children and bullies, and more.
Agers 4 to 8 years.
How to be a good friend - songs
Songs about how to be a good friend.
How to take the grrr out of anger
Topics: emotional literacy, anger, coping strategies.
Non-fiction
This book combines information, jokes and funny cartoons to help children understand that anger is normal and can be expressed in many ways—some healthy, some not. It teaches them how to recognise anger in themselves and others, how to handle situations and emotions (loneliness, guilt, frustration, fear) that lead to anger, and how to deal with the anger they feel.
Ages: 8 to 11 years.
Kaiyai Girl
Kaiyai Girl is a teaching resource for use with students in early adolescence through to early adulthood. It tackles the issues of drug and alcohol use and its impact on decision-making and personal control.
King of the playground
Topics: friendship, bullying, emotional literacy.
Fiction
Kevin loves to go to the playground, but not when Sammy is there. Sammy, who boasts that he is King of the Playground, is there most of the time. If he catches Kevin on the swings or the slide or the monkey bars, Sammy says, he will do awful, terrible things to him. A book about friendship and bullying.
Ages: 4 to 8 years.
No more teasing!
Topics: friendships, families, teasing, emotional literacy
Fiction
Mimi loves her cousin Momo but he teases her all the time and she doesn't like it. Grandma helps to make a cunning plan so that Momo soon realises that teasing isn't such a good idea.
Age: 4+ years.
Puberty Boy
Puberty Boy explains the transitions that boys need to go through to become healthy young men in a unique, colourful and commonsense way.
Puberty Girl
A practical guide for teenage girls on understanding the physical and emotional changes associated with puberty.
RELATE: Respectful relationships education program
A free three stage education program for high school students. Each stage offers a term of scaffolded lessons that builds upon the previous stage. Topics include: gender stereotypes and expectations, respectful relationship qualities, non-consensual image sharing, decision making frameworks, communication techniques, sexual consent and sexual assault, help seeking and critical analysis.
Relationships, sex and other stuff
A WA Department of Health booklet for teenagers addressing friends and relationships, sex and pregnancy.
Sex. Youth Law Australia
Youth Law Australia give free and confidential legal advice about sex and dating. This site discussed sex, dating, and relationships.
Surge in teens seeking cyberbullying and sexting help during COVID
ABC news article (Feb 2021) - searches on sexting and cyberbullying increased by 55% and 39% respectively since the pandemic began.