To help teenagers discuss their feelings about divorce.

OVERVIEW

Children of divorce suffer both emotionally and psychologically, and these effects flow into adult relationships. Teenagers need to discuss their deepest hurts, so that they might face the pain before it emerges unexpectedly in the future.

LEADER PREPARATION

• Conduct a survey of thirty or more teenagers, with at least one half being from broken homes. Ask questions pertaining to home life, peer relations, spirituality, emotional stability, dating, and sex.
• Copy video clips from popular movies or TV shows that have divorce, single parenting, and blended families as themes.
• Study current rock songs and prepare copies of the words and short clips of the music as discussion starters.
• Produce your own video interviews with teenagers on the topic of divorce.
• From the survey, develop discussion questions for small groups. These questions should relate directly to the video clips as well as to the survey. They should reveal how the kids perceive their parents’ relationship and the "option" of divorce. It should also communicate how divorce has affected them (if their parents divorced) or how kids from intact families perceive the effects of divorce on their friends.
• Since the topic is rather heavy, begin with a humorous group building exercise. Consider the game "Psychiatrist" as described in the group building segment.

GROUP BUILDING

• Play "Psychiatrist," a humorous game in which one person—the doctor—leaves the room and the rest of the group chooses a collective problem such as scratching one’s head before answering the questions. The doctor then comes in and asks simple questions to determine the group’s collective illness.
• Play the game for 15 minutes. If they like it, play it again at the end if time allows.

GROUP PRESENTATION

• Present the results of the survey.
• Show a 5-minute clip of the video presentation with alternating shots of movies and shows. Show your own video. As an alternative, use rock song lyrics and music.
• Break up into small groups depending on size of the group.
• Encourage the groups to discuss the clips that they read, viewed, and heard.
• Limit time in small groups to 15-20 minutes.

GROUP DISCUSSION

• Share small group findings with large group.
• Each group should select a spokesperson to share what was discussed.
• Limit time of this sharing to 15 minutes.

WRAP-UP

• Present your own findings and impressions of the results of the survey and video clips only after the kids have come to some conclusions themselves.
• Encourage further dialogue with you, their peers, and especially their parents.