Effective Communication and Relationships

1. Effective Communication and Relationships Key to Success!

2. Communication: • the process of sharing information, thoughts or feelings.

3. What is the most common way you communicate? • Text messages • Phone calls • In person talking • Non-Verbal • Notes • Email • Facebook

4. Effective communication skills include: • “I” Messages: a statement that expresses your feelings, but does not blame or judge the other person. • Active Listening: is focusing your full attention on what the other person is saying and letting that person know you understand and care. • Assertive: able to stand up for yourself while expressing your feelings in a way that does not threaten the other person. • Body Language: includes posture, gestures, facial expressions, and body movements. Ie: eye contact)

5. Cooperation: • working together toward a common goal. • Builds strong relationships that are based on mutual trust, caring, and responsibility.

6. Examples of where you need to use cooperation throughout your day:

7. Compromise: • is the willingness of each person to give up something in order to reach agreement.

8. Examples of where you needed to compromise either today or yesterday:

9. Checklist for choosing friends • Complete the Personal Inventory worksheetto identify important qualities you look for in a friend.

10. Friendship: • a relationship based on mutual trust, acceptance, and common interests or values. • People look to their friends for honest reactions, encouragement during bad times, and understanding when they make mistakes.

11. Types of Friendships: • Casual Friends- • Close Friends- • Friends of the opposite sex-

12. Problems in Friendships: • some possible problems in friendships are envy, jealousy, cruelty, and cliques. • For the relationship to be a lasting one, it is important that friends face any problems that do arise and work together to resolve them.

13. Envy and Jealousy: • appearance, talent, popularity, when a best friend wants to develop a closer bond with another friend.

14. Cruelty: • sometimes a friend may act cruel because they may be facing problems at home or other reason and take it out on you. • Confront friend with I messages that they are treating you unfairly and try to find the real reason,show concern and desire to help friend work things out.

15. Cliques: • narrow exclusive group of people with similar backgrounds or interests. Pros: can give a member a sense of belonging Cons: can deprive a person of forming friendships with a variety of people, discourages members thinking or acting independently, may experience peer pressure.

16. Responsible Relationships Physical Attraction and Dating

17. Journal Question • Do you think dating during high school is a good idea? Why or why not?

18. Infatuation: • intense attraction to another person What can you gain by dating someone…? … you can learn about his or her interest, personality, abilities, and values.

19. Going out…. As a group- group of teens going bowling together for example gives the advantage and opportunity to see how people behave when they are with others and get to know more about each other. As couples- may find an attraction to a friend and enjoy spending time and bonding with another couple as a small group with similar interests. Steady dating- after a few dates, a couple may decide not to date others and see each other on a regular basis. May have drawbacks since you limit you chances of meeting other people you might like, feel pressured to make decisions about sexual intimacy, and if conflicts arise it may be difficult to break off the relationship.

20. Dating Violence: • a pattern of emotional, physical or sexual abuse that occurs in a dating relationship. One partner uses the abuse to gain control of the other partner. • Examples: slap, make fun of the other’s looks or abilities or constantly check up to find out what the person is doing.

21. Cycle of Violence: • 3 Stage Cycle: -Tension building stage -Violent episode -Calm or “honeymoon” stage. Go Animate Anger Skit

22. Warning Signs of Abuse: • 1-Your date is jealous when you talk to others. Your date makes fun of you in front of others. • 2-Your date makes all the decisions and tries to control what you do. • 3-Your date has a history of bad relationships. • 4-You feel isolated from your friends and family. • 5-You feel less self-confident. You worry about doing or saying the right thing. You change how you behave to avoid an argument.

23. Date Rape: • More than half of young women who are raped know the person who raped them. It may have been a steady date, a casual date, or an acquaintance. A “date rape drug” may be used since it is easily slipped into drinks because they are colorless, tasteless, and odorless. Later, the victim will feel hung-over and be unable to recall the rape. Friends will say the victim acted drunk.

24. Why would a teen remain in a abusive relationship? Or hide it from others? • Some teens may view a possessive or jealous partner as romantic. • They may think the behavior is normal because friends are in similar relationships. • Females may think that makes are supposed to act in a controlling manner or that physical aggression is a sign of masculinity. • Males may be ashamed to admit that they are being abused for fear of being seen as weak. • Sadly, some teens may think that deserve to be abused. • Others may fear being alone.

25. Ending the Abuse: • Admit the abuse exists • Realize that you are not to blame for the abuse and you cannot change how the abuser behaves • You don’t have to deal with the problem on your own – support help from friends and family - call abuse hotline – talk to teacher, counselor, doctor or social worker

26. Class Discussion Question • What precautions could someone take to reduce the risk of being raped or taken advantage of by a friend or an acquaintance?

27. Homework Assignment • Read the Sports Illustrated Article: “Why did Yeardley Love have to die?” • Write a 1 page essay (at least 4 quality paragraphs). • Paragraphs 1& 2 – Summary of article • Paragraphs 3 & 4 – Your personal response/reaction to what you thought and learned from this article.