Resilience Builder Program for Children and Adolescents: Enhancing Social Competence and Self-Regulation

This innovative, field-tested program details 30 group sessions designed to help youth bounce back from the challenges in their lives by increasing confidence, self-esteem, self-control, and the use of coping strategies.

Group activities help develop the following specific protective factors associated with resilience:

• Proactive orientation toward life
• Self-regulation of attention, emotions, and behaviour
• Social connections and attachments
• Achievements and talents
• Community ties
• Proactive parenting

Each session encourages self-awareness, flexible thinking, and social competence. Through discussion, role-play, and other hands-on techniques, group members learn about self-talk, personal space awareness, problem solving, anger/anxiety management, friendship skills, and other topics essential to well being and social success.

Relaxation techniques including calm breathing, visualisation, progressive muscle relaxation, and yoga enhance self-regulation. The program applies cognitive-behavioural theory and strategies with sessions which identify, challenge, and correct distorted, or "off the mark," and pessimistic thinking. Homework assignments, community field trips, and a parent involvement component help group members generalise what they learn to the world outside the group.

Reproducible forms and handouts for this title are available via a downloads page.

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Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

PART I: Program Overview and Guidelines

1. Building Blocks of Resilience and the Cognitive-Behavioral Approach
2. Overview of the Resilience Builder Program
3. Group Formation and Parent Involvement
4. Behavior Management in Group
5. Session Structure and Guidelines

PART II: Group Sessions

Unit 1

• Session 1.1—Introduction to Group
• Session 1.2—Resilience and Being Proactive
• Session 1.3—Personal Space
• Session 1.4—Leadership
• Session 1.5—Reading Verbal and Nonverbal Cues
• Session 1.6—Initiating and Maintaining Conversations
• Session 1.7—Being a Good Sport: Team Play
• Session 1.8—Being a Good Sport: Field Trip
• Session 1.9—Optimistic Thinking
• Session 1.10—Solving Friendship Problems
• Session 1.11—Stress Management
• Session 1.12—Assertiveness
• Session 1.13—Empathy and Perspective Taking
• Session 1.14—Being a Good Sport: Game Etiquette
• Session 1.15—Review of Sessions

Unit 2

• Session 2.1—Introduction to Group
• Session 2.2—Flexibility
• Session 2.3—Maintaining Conversations
• Session 2.4—Intent Versus Impact
• Session 2.5—On the Mark/Off the Mark Thinking: Part 1
• Session 2.6—On the Mark/Off the Mark Thinking: Part 2
• Session 2.7—Being a Good Sport: Team Play
• Session 2.8—Being a Good Sport: Field Trip
• Session 2.9—Self-Regulation: Anxiety Management
• Session 2.10—Self-Regulation: Anger Management
• Session 2.11—Self-Esteem
• Session 2.12—Teasing and Bullying
• Session 2.13—Choices for Handling Challenges
• Session 2.14—Being a Good Sport: Game Etiquette at Home
• Session 2.15—Review and Showcase

Appendix A—Program Intake and Evaluation Forms

Appendix B—Parent Materials

Appendix C—Supplementary Session Materials

References

About the Authors