Key Messages
- People sometimes have different ideas about what will drive a relationship forward or backward.
- Any activity or behaviour within a relationship can have consequences. Consequences might be social or legal.
Learning Intention
This activity is an ice breaker for the topic of sex and consent. Students will think about behaviours within relationships that they see as positive or negative.
Time
15 minutes
40 minutes (with extension)
Required Resources
- Provided SHV pre filled snakes and ladders board
- Provided SHV blank snakes and ladders board
- One die per group or online dice roller such as https://www.classtools.net/dice/
Teaching Notes
As this activity asks students to discuss sexual behaviour, it is important to begin this activity with content warning including ways of exiting the class if necessary and avenues to find more support.
SHV recommends that wellbeing staff are aware that sexual content is being explicitly discussed and to be prepared for disclosures after the session.
Students can also be referred to Kids Help Line and Sexual Assault Services Victoria.
Reminders will also need to be given about making sure that personal or private information is not shared within the class. Students will be asked to think of example of positive and negative behaviours within relationships. They should take care to not provide identifiable examples about themselves or their peers.
Procedure
This process could be done as a whole class activity or in small groups.
1. Each group has a quick game of snakes and ladders using the pre filled game board provided by SHV.
2. Lead discussion around the scenarios provided on the game board. Suggestions for questioning below.
3. Extension activity – Each group can use the blank game board to write their own snakes and ladders game.
4. Instruct students to add in a positive experience to send the player up a ladder and a negative experience which would send a player down a snake.
5. Positive examples could be around asking for consent, interactions on social media, support for diversity, interest in pleasure, shared experiences. Negative example might be around shame, negative online exchanges, pressure, manipulation.
6. Lead discussion around the examples provided by the students.
Questioning
1. Were the provided examples clearly recognisable as positive and negative behaviours.
2. Are any of the behaviours highlighted illegal?
3. Was there discussion about if the punishment or reward was enough? Was the snake long enough? Did the ladder go high enough?
4. In a real life situation would these things be a set back or an end to a relationship?
5. What is the end goal of the relationship? What should the board end with?
Summary
Relationships are supposed to make people feel good about themselves and their partners.
Some behaviours highlighted are illegal behaviours. Such as removing a condom or sharing nudes without consent. The consequences of illegal behaviour can be greater than setting back a relationship. They may lead to legal consequences.
It can be helpful feel like partners are working toward the same goals as each other and have an understanding of what is going to contribute positively to a relationship and what is going to set it back.