Lesson Plan
Fruit Salad Recipe
Students will learn and practice key social skills—listening, sharing, kindness, and empathy—by treating each skill as a “fruit,” combining them through collaborative activities and personal reflection to build healthy friendships.
Second graders often need concrete, engaging ways to understand and use social skills. This fun, metaphor-based session helps them recognize important friendship-building behaviors and practice them in a safe, supportive environment.
Audience
2nd Grade Group
Time
35 minutes
Approach
Hands-on fruit metaphor, group game & personal reflection
Materials
- Marker Pens, - Large Mixing Bowl, - Skill Fruits Slide Deck, - Mix & Match Friendship Game, - My Friendship Recipe Worksheet, and - Tasting & Talk Conversation Cards
Prep
Prepare Materials & Space
5 minutes
- Print enough My Friendship Recipe Worksheet and Tasting & Talk Conversation Cards for each student
- Gather marker pens and place them near a large mixing bowl at center
- Lay out Skill Fruits Slide Deck on interactive whiteboard or laptop
- Arrange student seating in a circle around the bowl
Step 1
Introduction
5 minutes
- Invite students to sit in a circle around the bowl of “Friendship Fruit Salad.”
- Explain that each fruit represents a social skill that helps friendships grow.
- Share today’s goal: learn, practice, and mix skills to make our friendship salad tasty!
Step 2
Fruit Metaphor Explanation
7 minutes
- Use the Skill Fruits Slide Deck to introduce each skill-fruit (e.g., Listening Lime, Sharing Strawberry, Kindness Kiwi, Empathy Peach).
- For each fruit, define the skill and model an example.
- Ask students to give real-life examples of when they’ve used each skill.
Step 3
Mix & Match Game
10 minutes
- Split students into pairs or triads.
- Give each group a set of skill-fruit cards from the Mix & Match Friendship Game.
- Groups draw two random cards and role-play a scenario showing both skills in action.
- After each role-play, have groups share which skills they used and how it helped the friendship.
Step 4
My Friendship Recipe Worksheet
8 minutes
- Distribute the My Friendship Recipe Worksheet.
- Ask students to choose three skill-fruits to include in their personal recipe.
- Have them draw or write one way they’ll use each skill to strengthen friendships.
- Circulate and support with prompting questions as needed.
Step 5
Tasting & Talk Cool-Down
5 minutes
- Reconvene in the circle and place the mixing bowl in the center.
- Shuffle and draw a card from the Tasting & Talk Conversation Cards.
- Read the prompt aloud (e.g., “Which fruit-skill was your favorite today and why?”).
- Go around the circle, letting each student share a brief response.
- Conclude by praising their “recipes” for friendship and reminding them to mix these skills daily.
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Slide Deck
Skill Fruits: Friendship Fruit Salad
Each fruit represents a social skill we need to build and keep good friendships. Let’s learn about our fruits!
Welcome, everyone! Today, we’re going to explore our “Skill Fruits” that help friendships grow. Point to each bright fruit as you introduce them.
Listening Lime
• Pay attention with your eyes and ears
• Nod, smile, and say “uh-huh”
• Ask questions: “What happened next?”
Hold up the Listening Lime image. Say: “When we listen, we give our full attention, face the speaker, and show we care.” Invite two volunteers to model listening.
Sharing Strawberry
• Offer to share toys or snacks
• Take turns in games and conversations
• Say “your turn” and “my turn” politely
Show the Sharing Strawberry. Explain that sharing means giving and taking turns. Ask: “What’s something you like to share with friends?”
Kindness Kiwi
• Use kind words (please, thank you, great job)
• Do thoughtful actions (help pick up supplies)
• Smile and include others
Display the Kindness Kiwi. Tell students that kindness is doing something nice without expecting anything back. Invite examples: holding a door, complimenting a friend.
Empathy Peach
• Notice how others feel (happy, sad, frustrated)
• Say “I understand” or “I’m sorry you feel that way”
• Imagine yourself in their shoes
Bring up the Empathy Peach. Explain empathy as understanding someone’s feelings. Read a quick story and ask: “How would you feel if that happened?”
Recap: Mix Your Fruits
• Listening Lime • Sharing Strawberry
• Kindness Kiwi • Empathy Peach
Pick two fruits and practice today!
Recap each skill-fruit. Challenge students: “Tomorrow, choose one fruit to practice with a classmate and share how it went!”
Activity
Mix & Match Friendship Game Activity
Overview:
In this card-based role-play game, small groups draw two “Skill Fruit” cards and one “Scenario” card. Students act out a friendship scenario showing how they use both skills together.
Materials Needed
- Sets of Skill Fruit Cards (1 card per fruit: Listening Lime, Sharing Strawberry, Kindness Kiwi, Empathy Peach)
- Scenario Cards (examples below)
- Small containers or envelopes to hold each deck
- Timer or stopwatch
- Skill Fruits Slide Deck (for review)
Prep (5 minutes)
- Print and cut out Skill Fruit Cards and Scenario Cards.
- Shuffle each deck separately and place in labeled containers/envelopes.
- Arrange students in pairs or triads at tables or on the floor.
Instructions (10 minutes)
- Review Skills: Briefly show the Skill Fruits Slide Deck reminder slide.
- Draw Cards: In each group, students draw two fruit cards and one scenario card.
- Plan Your Role-Play (1 minute): Groups discuss how they’ll show each skill in the scenario.
- Act It Out (2 minutes): Groups perform their short skit for the class or another group.
- Reflect (1 minute): After each skit, groups share:
- Which two skills they used
- How those skills helped solve the scenario or make a friend feel better
- Rotate & Repeat: Shuffle cards and play another round if time allows.
Sample Scenario Cards
• Your friend feels sad because they dropped their ice cream.
• A new student wants to join your game but seems shy.
• Two friends both want the same toy at recess.
• Your friend forgot how to play a new classroom game.
• You see a classmate sitting alone at lunch.
Teacher Tips
- Encourage students to name the fruit-skill during their skit (e.g., “I’m using my Kindness Kiwi!”).
- Model one quick skit to demonstrate combining two skills.
- Praise creative role-plays and remind students there’s no single “right” way to mix fruits.
Ready to blend your fruits and build stronger friendships!
Worksheet
My Friendship Recipe Worksheet
Name: _______________________
Date: _______________________
Instructions:
Today you get to create your own friendship recipe!
-
Choose three skill-fruits from our Skill Fruits Slide Deck:
- Listening Lime
- Sharing Strawberry
- Kindness Kiwi
- Empathy Peach
-
For each fruit:
a. Write its name in the blank.
b. Draw the fruit in the box.
c. Write one way you will use that skill to be a good friend.
1. My First Fruit (Skill): ____________________
Draw Your Fruit Here:
How I will use this skill to strengthen friendships:
2. My Second Fruit (Skill): ____________________
Draw Your Fruit Here:
How I will use this skill to strengthen friendships:
3. My Third Fruit (Skill): ____________________
Draw Your Fruit Here:
How I will use this skill to strengthen friendships:
Reflection
Which fruit-skill will you practice most this week and why?
Cool Down
Tasting & Talk Conversation Cards
Use these discussion prompts for your cool-down. Shuffle the cards and have each student draw one to share with the group.
- Which fruit-skill was your favorite today and why?
- How did using Listening Lime help you understand a friend?
- Tell us about a time you used Sharing Strawberry today or this week.
- Who did you show Kindness Kiwi to, and what did you do?
- How can Empathy Peach help when a friend feels sad?
- Describe two fruits you mixed together in the Mix & Match Game and how they worked.
- If you could add a new fruit-skill to our salad, what would it be and why?
- Which fruit-skill will you practice tomorrow at school, and how will you use it?