A High School Group Series on:

Skills for Transitional Periods

Brandy Espinoza
Hayden Raffety
Luna Flynn
Mia Silva
 Group Objectives
01 02
Ice Breakers What’s your future?
How to start group off right with setting Group sessions exploring feelings on
rules & getting to know each other transitioning to high school or college

03 04
Activities Advocacy
Different ideas for activities to do to Learning how to advocate for
promote self-discovery oneself and respect each other
Group Lesson Arrangement
TOPIC DESCRIPTION
What drives you?
1 & 2 Transitioning Learning how to Ask Questions

Holland Code - Career Assessment

3 Career Exploration Inventory/Career Role-Playing

4 Motivational Activities Talking Values & Two Roads

Advocate for oneself, Set Boundaries,

5 & 6 Advocacy & Self Respect one another, Asking for help
 Who Would Participate?
Since transitions occur at all stages of life, we would recommend
this particular group to either Freshman in high school to discuss
the transition from middle school, or high school seniors
transitioning to college/career paths
● Target population is a small group of up to 15
low-performing students
01 ICE BREAKER +
GROUP NORMS
At the beginning of our meetings, it is imperative
to discuss and establish a handful of group norms,
and rules in order to create a comfortable
environment for all students~

This is something we can always add to as

students become more open to group

Ice Breaker ideas:

How did you get your name?
Remember who you threw it to!
02 Group Session on: What Drives You?
Study/findings about
drive/motivation:
● “Critical consciousness
describes the process by
which oppressed and
marginalized people learn to
critically analyze their social
conditions and act to improve
them”
● “Theories on behavior and
human motivation suggest
that agency is a precursor to
behavior: unless people
believe they can produce a
desired effect by their actions,
they have little incentive to
act or persevere in the face of
challenges”
02 Group Session on: Asking Questions
Contribute to a conversation by:
❏ Making a statement
❏ Telling a story
❏ Joke
❏ Apologizing
❏ Give a compliment
❏ Saying nothing while a
conversation partner speaks
Increase liking:
❏ Affirm statements
❏ Mirror mannerism
Decrease liking:
❏ Self-satisfied talk
❏ Dominating the conversation
❏ Egocentrism

Speed dating question asking activity

 03 GROUP
ACTIVITIES
● Figuring out hypothetical careers ● Talking Values
and a career interest inventory ● Two Roads
● Career Role-Playing
 Career Exploration

Career Options
How do I figure out what
options there are and
what I want to do? Holland Code
Why is this important? Career Assessment Inventory
~Free options online!
Holland Code Career Test

Purpose of Test
➢ Sort potential careers
based on interest profile.
➢ After getting score can
search up careers
through Truity.
➢ Suppose to be fun, not
serious activity to get the
exploration juices
flowing!
 Career Role-Playing Activity
In this session students are assigned a character card with an
occupation (ex: hotel clerk, lawyer, engineer, police officer, fire
fighter, travel agent, zoo keeper). The first 10 minutes will focus
on researching career and then facilitators will give an
example of conversation. They will go around room and
conduct “professional small talk” where they introduce
themselves, talk about their career and what it consist of, and
if someone was interested in that path how would they start.
At the end each student will explain to the group all about the
individual and job of the person they talked to.
Motivational Interviewing Activities
Activities sourced from (North, 2017)
TALKING VALUES
When confronting a decision or behavior, one
must consider how closely it aligns to their
personal values and if it is in line with their goals

TWO ROADS
Similarly, confronting two different paths for life
choices can help clarify which path would be
better and to assess where one is on that journey
Examples
Images sourced from Google
 04
ADVOCACY
Why it is important
to learn how to
advocate for yourself
and others
 ADVOCATE
● How to advocate for yourself:
○ To advocate for yourself, remember to say “no”
when you need to. As well, when you do say “yes,”
make sure you are benefitting too. Follow up with
people when they try to flake.
● How to be professional and still set boundaries:
○ Set boundaries early and make sure that you
follow through with them. A handout or flyer
could be given to reinforce the boundaries.
● How to show respect, while not compromising values:
○ If someone asks you to do something that is
against your values, explain it in a
non-confrontational way. It is possible to disagree
with something but still validate their request.
● How can I ask for help:
○ Do not be afraid to ask for help and express your
own needs.
GROUP CONCLUSION

THANK
YOU!
We hope you enjoyed this presentation~
 REFERENCES
How to Advocate for Yourself as a Scholar. (2019) The Chronicle of Higher Education, 66(6), A4
https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A603979485/GRNR?u=usocal_main&sid=bookmark-GRNR&xid=d1499b08
How to use Holland codes to find the right career. Truity. (2019, June 20). Retrieved November 13, 2022, from
https://www.truity.com/page/holland-code-riasec-theory-career-choice
Huang, K., Yeomans, M., Brooks, A. W., Minson, J., & Gino, F. (2017). It doesn’t hurt to ask: Question-asking increases
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doi:https://doi-org.libproxy2.usc.edu/10.1521/jscp.2005.24.6.811
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https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-020-01343-6
North, R. A. (2017). Motivational interviewing for school counselors. Independently published.
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U.S. Department of State. (2015). Role-play party: talking about jobs. U.S. Department of State. Retrieved November 13,
2022, from https://americanenglish.state.gov/
Professional Boundaries in Nontraditional Settings. (2004) Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 35(5),
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