Relationship Skills Teaching Resources
Help students build their relationship skills this school year with activities, games and more resources designed to support the CASEL framework and your lesson plans.
This collection of elementary and middle school teaching resources was created by the expert teachers of Teach Starter for teachers like you to help students build the skills they need to manage relationships with classmates and school staff, as well as those important friendships, family bonds and more out in the real world.
Set your students up for success with team-building activities that promote collaboration and provide opportunities for your students to work together, communicate effectively and solve problems as a team. Explore friendship activities that explore how to be a good friend. Browse printable games that teach students how to resolve conflicts with friends and teammates and a whole lot more.
Are you new to teaching relationship skills, or maybe you're just looking for fresh ideas to help your students manage relationships in your classroom and their lives? Read on for a primer from our teacher team!
What Are Relationship Skills?
We're going to start simple here, but bear with us! When it comes to teaching anything, it helps to step back and look at what's at the heart of the topic.
Relationship skills are the abilities and behaviors that enable our students (and ourselves!) to interact effectively with others, build and maintain positive relationships and navigate social situations successfully.
Simple enough, right? Like much of the SEL curriculum, there are a variety of "skills" that are intertwined here, but these are the core concepts our teacher team considers part of relationship skills:
- Communication
- Friendship
- Empathy
- Cooperation
- Conflict resolution
- Problem-solving
Of course, these will tie back to other topics within SEL. For example, it takes social awareness to show empathy, and it takes decision-making skills to resolve conflict.
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What Good Friends Do – Differentiated Friendship Worksheets
Sort verbs according to if they are friendly or unfriendly interactions with this friendship worksheet.
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What is Cooperation? Cut and Paste Worksheet
Explore the difference between cooperative and non-cooperative behavior with this cut and paste worksheet.
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Cooperation Cause and Effect Worksheet
Discover the effects of uncooperative behavior with a cause-and-effect worksheet.
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Conflict Resolution Tips - Poster
Display some top tips for solving playground conflicts with this colorful and informative classroom poster.
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Whole Body Listening Posters
A set of posters highlighting the characteristics of a good listener.
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Mini Classroom Mailbox Template
Use this mini classroom mailbox template in a variety of ways.
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Listening to Others – Discussion Task Cards and Poster
Give students the opportunity to work on their listening skills and learn what it means to be a good listener with this set of 42 discussion cards and classroom poster.
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I Can Use My Words Mini-Book
Develop strategies and skills for communicating with others when you don’t like something with this printable mini-book.
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Cooperation Puzzles - Team-Building Activity
Explore the benefits of cooperation with a tangram-style team-building activity.
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Find a Friend - Intermediate Back to School Activity
Play a back-to-school find-a-friend game for students to get to know their classmates.
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How To Be a Good Friend – Teaching Slides
Learn how to form healthy and long-lasting friendships with this set of teaching slides.
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Friendship Writing Prompts
Encourage positive relationships by using our friendship writing prompts in your classroom.
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Friendship Flower Template
Reflect on how a good friend acts with this charming friendship writing exercise.
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Asking Politely Mini-Book
Help your students learn how to ask for things politely with this social story mini-book.
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"The Scoop on Friendship" Activity
Discuss the attributes of a good friend with this ice cream-themed activity.
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Inclusion Poster
A beautiful poster to spread the message that inclusion is for ALL.
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Buddy Program Activity Task Cards
Encourage cooperation and inspire new friendships with a set of printable task cards for buddy activities.
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Interview Shuffle — Classroom Community Building Interactive Slides
Help your students get to know each other with a Back to School Interview Shuffle icebreaker activity.
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Cooperation Social Stories - Interactive Activity
Help your students differentiate between uncooperative and cooperative behavior in social situations with an interactive activity.
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Cooperation Paper Chain
Work as a team to create a paper chain to serve as a reminder of the effects of cooperation.
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Team Building Games – Upper Grades
Encourage communication and cooperation with this set of 10 team-building games.
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Race to 50: Cooperation Challenges
Explore the benefits of cooperation with a set of team-building number race activities.
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Find a Friend Icebreaker Activity - Grades 1-2
Play a back-to-school find-a-friend game for students to get to know their classmates.
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I Can Be Cooperative Sort
Practice personal and social skills to cooperate and interact respectfully with others with an engaging sorting activity.
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My Cooperation Sticker Chart - Printable
Promote and reward cooperative behavior with a pack of printable cooperation sticker charts.
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We Can Cooperate Mini Book
Read to learn about cooperative behavior with a printable one-page foldable mini book.
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Is It Cooperative? Social Skills Activity
Explore the difference between cooperative and non-cooperative behavior with a sorting activity.
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Cooperation Task Cards - Social Skills Activity
Build problem-solving skills and boost cooperative behavior in the classroom with printable discussion cards and cooperation writing opportunities.
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SEL Activities - Cooperation Mini Workbook
Help your students understand ways to show cooperation with a printable mini workbook.
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Social Skills Lessons - Cooperation Worksheets
Teach your students how to show cooperation with a set of printable SEL worksheets.
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Cooperation Cartoons - Social Skills Activity
Encourage cooperation and collaboration in your classroom with a collaborative drawing activity.
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Cooperation Quilt Template
Promote cooperative behavior amongst your students by engaging them in creating a collaborative Cooperation Quilt project.