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Reach Out Now

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Lesson Plan

Reach Out Now Facilitator Guide

Students will identify key members of their personal support networks and practice reaching out through mapping, peer brainstorming, and role-play to reinforce proactive help-seeking skills.

Many adolescents hesitate to seek help when facing challenges. By visualizing their support networks and rehearsing outreach strategies, learners build confidence, reduce isolation, and foster emotional resilience.

Audience

8th Grade Students

Time

30 minutes

Approach

Interactive mapping, peer share, and role-play

Materials

Network Mapping Presentation, Support Map Template, Buddy Brainstorming Session, Reflection Prompt: My Safety Net, Chart Paper, Sticky Notes, and Colored Markers

Prep

Prepare Materials

10 minutes

Step 1

Introduction

5 minutes

  • Welcome students and introduce the session’s purpose: understanding and using personal support networks.
  • Share the objectives: map supports, brainstorm additions, and practice outreach.
  • Establish ground rules: confidentiality, respect, and active listening.

Step 2

Map Your Support Network

10 minutes

  • Distribute Support Map Template and sticky notes.
  • Show an example slide from the Network Mapping Presentation.
  • Instruct students to write down at least five trusted people or resources in their lives.
  • Encourage a mix of family, friends, teachers, and community supports.

Step 3

Buddy Brainstorm

7 minutes

  • Pair students and instruct them to share their support maps.
  • Use guidelines in Buddy Brainstorming Session to prompt discussion.
  • Each buddy suggests additional people or resources the partner might consider.
  • Remind students to give constructive, nonjudgmental feedback.

Step 4

Outreach Role-Play

5 minutes

  • Model a brief outreach call or conversation using one support map example.
  • Invite volunteers to role-play reaching out to a chosen person on their map.
  • Provide prompts (e.g., "Hi, I’ve been feeling … Can we talk?") and encourage supportive responses.
  • Offer corrective feedback and praise effective communication.

Step 5

Reflection and Debrief

3 minutes

  • Pass out Reflection Prompt: My Safety Net.
  • Ask students to write: who they’d contact first, why, and one action step for the week.
  • Prompt quick share-outs: What new supports did you discover? How did it feel to ask for help?
  • Conclude by reinforcing the value of proactive outreach.
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Slide Deck

Reach Out Now: Mapping Your Support Network

Welcome! Over the next 30 minutes, you’ll:
• Identify at least five people or resources you trust.
• Get ideas from a partner on who else might support you.
• Practice reaching out through a brief role-play.

Greet students, introduce yourself, and set a warm tone. Explain that today’s session will help them chart who they can turn to when they need support.

Session Objectives

By the end of today, you will be able to:

  1. Map your personal support network.
  2. Brainstorm additional supports with a buddy.
  3. Practice a simple outreach conversation.

Read each objective aloud. Emphasize how reaching out is a strength, not a weakness.

What Is a Support Network?

A support network includes anyone or any resource that:
• Listens without judgment
• Offers help when you’re stressed
• Gives advice or just hears you out

Examples:
– Parent, guardian, or sibling
– Friend or teammate
– Teacher, counselor, or coach
– Community mentor or hotline

Clarify that a support network is any person or resource you can turn to—friends, family, teachers, coaches, counselors, or community groups.

Example Support Map

[Center: You]
First circle: Close family (e.g., Mom, older sibling)
Second circle: Friends and classmates
Third circle: Adults at school or in the community (e.g., counselor, coach)

Display a large chart paper example or projected diagram. Point out the center (“You”) and each ring of support.

Your Turn: Map Your Network

  1. Grab a copy of the Support Map Template.
  2. Write your name in the center.
  3. List at least five trusted people or resources around you.
  4. Use different colors or shapes to show how close you feel to each person.

Hand out the Support Map Template. Encourage quiet focus and creativity. Circulate to offer help.

Buddy Brainstorm

  1. Pair up with a partner.
  2. Share your support maps for 3 minutes each.
  3. Use the prompts from the Buddy Brainstorming Session:
    • Who else do you know I could add?
    • What resources did I miss?
  4. Offer suggestions kindly and listen actively.

Explain that this is not a test—just a chance to get ideas. Remind students of confidentiality and respect.

Outreach Role-Play

  1. Pick one person from your map you’d like to contact this week.
  2. Use a simple opener:
    “Hi ___, I’ve been feeling ___. Could we talk?”
  3. Role-play with your partner: one reaches out, one responds supportively.
  4. Swap roles and repeat.

Model one quick example with a volunteer before opening to pairs. Offer sentence starters to build confidence.

Reflection & Next Steps

  1. Complete the Reflection Prompt: My Safety Net:
    • Who will you contact first?
    • Why that person?
    • One action step for the week.
  2. Quick share-out: What new support did you discover?
  3. Remember: Reaching out early can make challenges easier to handle.

Reinforce that small steps build habits. Encourage students to keep their action step visible at home or in their planner.

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Worksheet

Support Map Template

Your Name: ________________________________

Step 1: Draw Your Support Map

Draw three concentric circles below, with yourself in the center. Then place the names of people or resources around you based on how close you feel to them:

  • Center: You
  • 1st Ring: Closest supports (family, best friends)
  • 2nd Ring: Helpful supports (teachers, coaches)
  • 3rd Ring: Other resources (community groups, hotlines)












Step 2: List Your Supports

1st Ring (Closest People)

  1. ________________________________
    2. ________________________________
    3. ________________________________
    4. ________________________________
    5. ________________________________

2nd Ring (Helpful Supports)

  1. ________________________________
    2. ________________________________
    3. ________________________________
    4. ________________________________
    5. ________________________________

3rd Ring (Other Resources)

  1. ________________________________
    2. ________________________________
    3. ________________________________
    4. ________________________________
    5. ________________________________
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Activity

Buddy Brainstorming Session

Purpose: Students will share their support maps with a partner, use guided prompts to suggest additional resources, and practice giving respectful, constructive feedback.

Time: 7 minutes
Group Size: Pairs
Materials: Support Map Template, pens or pencils

Steps

  1. Pair Up and Share (3 minutes)

    • Find a partner and sit facing each other.
    • Speaker A spends 1.5 minutes explaining their support map.
    • Listener B takes notes on potential gaps or additions.

  2. Brainstorm Additions (3 minutes)

    • Using the prompts below, Listener B suggests new people or resources Speaker A might consider adding.
    • After 1.5 minutes, swap roles: Speaker B shares, Listener A brainstorms.

  3. Synthesize (1 minute)

    • Each student chooses one new support they’ll actually add to their map this week and briefly shares it with their buddy.

Prompts for Constructive Brainstorming

• Who else do you know who might help you when you’re stressed?
• What school-based or community resources did you miss?
• Is there someone in your network you haven’t considered who listens well?

Etiquette and Tips

  • Listen without interrupting.
  • Offer suggestions respectfully and without judgment.
  • Keep feedback positive and focused on expanding options.
  • If you’re stuck, ask: “What’s one person you trust but haven’t added yet?”
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Journal

Reflection Prompt: My Safety Net

  1. Which person on your support map will you reach out to first?
    Why do you feel comfortable contacting them right now?




  2. What qualities or actions make this person a trusted support?
    Describe how they have helped you in the past or why you believe they will listen without judgment.





  3. Draft your conversation starter or message.
    Write what you might say or text to open up the conversation.






  4. When you think about asking for help, what feelings or thoughts come up?
    Are there any worries or barriers? How could you overcome them?









  5. Identify one specific action step you will take this week to practice proactive outreach.
    (Be as concrete as possible: e.g., “Text Alex on Wednesday after school to ask for a chat.”)




  6. How has mapping your support network and planning an outreach changed the way you view your safety net?
    Write one sentence that captures your new understanding or commitment.



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Reach Out Now • Lenny Learning