Helping Others: Welcoming New FriendsActivities & Teaching Strategies
Active learning works well for this topic because it builds empathy through direct experience rather than abstract discussion. Students practice welcoming behaviors in a safe space before applying them in real life. Role-plays and group projects make the abstract concept of inclusion tangible and memorable.
Learning Objectives
- 1Explain common reasons why individuals or families might move to a new country or community.
- 2Identify specific actions classmates can take to make a new student feel welcome and included.
- 3Analyze how acts of kindness and inclusion contribute to a positive and democratic community environment.
- 4Compare the feelings associated with being welcomed versus being excluded in a new social setting.
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Role-Play: First Day Scenarios
Divide class into pairs: one acts as new student, the other as host. Pairs improvise welcoming conversations, then switch roles and debrief on effective phrases. Conclude with whole-class sharing of top tips.
Prepare & details
How can we make new friends feel welcome?
Facilitation Tip: During Role-Play: First Day Scenarios, assign roles clearly and provide scenario cards with simple prompts to keep interactions focused.
Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging
Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet
Welcome Pack Creation: Small Group Design
Groups brainstorm and assemble welcome packs with maps, local phrases, and fun facts about Ireland. Each member contributes one item, then presents packs to class for feedback.
Prepare & details
Why do some people move to a new country?
Facilitation Tip: When Welcome Pack Creation: Small Group Design, rotate materials so each group has access to craft supplies and language support tools.
Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging
Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet
Migration Story Mapping: Whole Class Timeline
Project a world map; students add sticky notes with reasons for migration (e.g., from Syria for safety). Discuss paths to Ireland and personal connections.
Prepare & details
What can we do to help others who might be different from us?
Facilitation Tip: For Migration Story Mapping: Whole Class Timeline, use large paper and sticky notes to allow students to physically place events in order.
Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging
Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet
Empathy Interviews: Pair Sharing
Pairs interview each other on times they felt new or different, noting one welcoming action received. Share anonymized stories in circle discussion.
Prepare & details
How can we make new friends feel welcome?
Facilitation Tip: During Empathy Interviews: Pair Sharing, model open-ended questions like 'How did that make you feel?' to encourage deeper reflection.
Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging
Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet
Teaching This Topic
Teaching this topic effectively requires balancing emotional engagement with factual understanding. Start with concrete role-plays to build empathy, then introduce migration stories as evidence. Avoid overwhelming students with too many facts about policies or statistics; focus on human experiences. Research shows that students learn inclusion best when they experience it, not just discuss it.
What to Expect
Successful learning looks like students confidently explaining migration reasons, proposing concrete ways to welcome others, and demonstrating kindness in role-plays. They should connect their actions to feelings of inclusion, showing they understand the impact of their behavior. Group discussions should reflect thoughtful consideration of others’ experiences.
These activities are a starting point. A full mission is the experience.
- Complete facilitation script with teacher dialogue
- Printable student materials, ready for class
- Differentiation strategies for every learner
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Common MisconceptionDuring Role-Play: First Day Scenarios, watch for simplistic or trivial reasons students give for migration. Redirect by asking them to consider the story behind their scenario, such as 'What happened before arriving in this classroom?'
What to Teach Instead
After Migration Story Mapping: Whole Class Timeline, ask students to revisit their role-play scenarios and compare them to real migration patterns on the timeline. Challenge any assumptions by pointing to specific historical events or personal stories.
Common MisconceptionDuring Welcome Pack Creation: Small Group Design, listen for comments like 'They should just learn our way.' Redirect by asking groups to brainstorm universal gestures of kindness that cross cultures.
What to Teach Instead
During Empathy Interviews: Pair Sharing, listen for dismissive attitudes toward cultural differences. Guide students to ask follow-up questions like 'What if they don’t understand our traditions? How can we help?' to uncover deeper understanding.
Common MisconceptionDuring Migration Story Mapping: Whole Class Timeline, watch for students assuming all migration is negative. Ask them to highlight positive contributions migrants have made to communities on their timeline.
What to Teach Instead
After Role-Play: First Day Scenarios, ask students to reflect on moments when a small gesture, like sharing a smile or a pencil, made a big difference in their scenario. Use this to shift the focus from barriers to shared humanity.
Assessment Ideas
After Role-Play: First Day Scenarios, provide students with a card asking: 'Name one reason someone might move to Ireland and two specific things you can do to help them feel welcome at school.' Collect responses to gauge understanding of migration reasons and welcoming actions.
After Migration Story Mapping: Whole Class Timeline, pose the question: 'Imagine you are the new student. What is one thing someone could say or do that would make you feel happy and included on your first day?' Facilitate a brief class discussion, noting common themes of kindness and connection.
During Welcome Pack Creation: Small Group Design, circulate and ask pairs: 'How does this action help someone feel more welcome?' or 'Why is it important for our community to be welcoming?' Listen for student explanations connecting actions to feelings and community values.
Extensions & Scaffolding
- Challenge: Have early finishers research a local refugee support organization and design a poster to promote their work in the school hallway.
- Scaffolding: Provide sentence starters for students who struggle during Empathy Interviews, such as 'One thing that might help a new student is...'.
- Deeper exploration: Invite a community member who migrated to speak to the class about their first day in Ireland and the small acts of kindness that mattered most to them.
Key Vocabulary
| Immigration | The action of coming to live permanently in a foreign country. This often happens for reasons like seeking safety or new opportunities. |
| Integration | The process of becoming part of a larger group or society. It involves both newcomers adapting and the community being open to them. |
| Empathy | The ability to understand and share the feelings of another person. It is key to relating to someone's experience of being new. |
| Inclusion | The practice of ensuring that everyone feels they belong and are valued, regardless of their background or differences. |
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