Have some fun today and try out a few virtual games:

Board & card games

Emoji Pictionary

Decide who will be the “Traveler” first. The traveler’s job is to describe what they want from a vacation without specifying a destination. Consider things like the weather, food, activities, nature, or distance. The guide’s job is to listen attentively to what is being said (and what is not being said) and to demonstrate their listening through their behavior.

After a few minutes of active listening, the guide should summarize the main criteria the traveler is considering when it comes to enjoying their vacation. Finally, the guide should think of a destination that would fit the description they just heard. Where would you send them?

After a quick recap on how well the guide listened, the two should switch roles and try the exercise again!

Click on the link, share your screen, and watch the video with your Little. Or, share the link with them so they can watch the video on their own screen while you wait. It’s short, the run time is 1:53. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FFLFcB9xfQ

Discuss the following questions with your Little:

-What are the differences between hard skills and soft skills?
-What are some examples of hard skills?
-What are some examples of soft skills?
-Why are both of these skills important?
-Is someone able to improve their hard and/or soft skills? How?

Tell your Little a bit about your own experience. Is there a time when your lack of hard and/or soft skills prevented you from getting a job or made your career path more challenging? If so, please share the experience. How did you overcome the disappointment and/or difficulties? What did you learn from the experience?

Ask and discuss with students the following questions. Feel free to add more depending upon where the conversation leads you!

-Where and how do you currently use hard and soft skills in your life?
-What do you think you need to improve on? How can you improve?
-Why do you think these skills are important?

Take a few minutes this week to learn a little more about yourself and one another! The Enneagram Personality Test is a popular test that helps identify individuals’ strengths, weaknesses and core motivations. Click here to take the test. Read about your results and see how accurately you feel they represent you.

Was there anything about your results that surprised you?

How can you use what you learned from your results to improve your relationships with others?

With any extra time you two have, talk about what goal setting for the rest of the school year. There are only a few short months left before the end of the year!

Ask your Little what goals they would like to set for themselves and considering suggesting some of your own.

The end of the 2020-21 school year is just around the corner! For this activity, encourage your Little to reflect on their accomplishments throughout the year. What are their top 5 accomplishments of this past year? Did they have some great things happen outside of school?

Make a list of these 5 things and then discuss the following questions:

How did each of these became a success?
How did they make you feel at the time and how do they make you feel now?
Why do you define these as successes?

Bigs - share some of your own recent successes!

Next, talk about what you both are looking forward to this summer. Do you have any goals you hope to accomplish? How can you prepare for next school year?

Many Bigs & Littles have already known each other for 1-2 years, but some have only just met. This get-to-know-you activity works for all matches, no matter how well you know each other, and helps familiarize Bigs & Littles with meeting virtually.

TREASURE HUNT, SHOW, AND TELL

1. Spend 2 minutes hunting in your space for 3 - 5 objects that mean something important to you. Bigs will hunt in their own office/room/house while Littles hunt in their own room/house. The objects could have a special memory, something you use everyday, something you think looks cool or pretty, etc.

2. After finding your treasures, take turns showing your object and explaining why you chose it and what it means to you. Don't be afraid to ask each other questions as you share!

Extra time? Give each other a mini tour of your space. Maybe Bigs are in their work or home office, and Littles will likely be at their home.

This is a BBBS staff favorite activity. You'll have fun, laugh, AND develop communication and listening skills without even realizing.

BACK-TO-BACK  SCREEN-TO-SCREEN DRAWING

Materials needed (for both Big and Little): a couple sheets of paper and a pencil/pen

1. The Big starts by thinking of a simple object that can be drawn. Some ideas: butterfly, snowman, pizza, tree, etc. Click here for more ideas. Don't tell your Little what you pick!

2. The Big has 3 minutes to describe how to draw the object while the Little draws. Don't show your paper and Littles cannot ask questions or speak--just do your best! Sample instructions: "draw a straight line", "add a circle on the left side", etc. While explaining, the Big should draw on their own sheet of paper. That way you'll have the "answer" when finished.

3. After the 3 minutes are up, compare drawings. How did you do? Do the drawings look similar at all?

4. Switch roles and try again!

Discussion:
- What was challenging about being the person describing the picture?
- What was challenging about being the person drawing the picture?
- What does this activity tell you about communicating with others?
- What did you learn about communicating effectively?

Extra time? Using what you've learned about effective communication from the activity, try it again. See if you can more successfully explain your drawings!

Click here to view the PDF detailing this activity. We encourage Bigs to share their screen so that both Big and Little can follow along together. Read through the first page together to learn about extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. Then, take turns answering the questions on the second page.

Further discussion:
- Do you notice and similarities or differences between what motivates you and your match partner?
- How can you use what you've talked about to find motivation in your everyday life?
- Describe a time when you didn't feel motivated at all. What happened? How did you find motivation again?
- Although match meetings are virtual right now, how can you support each other as Big and Little?

Activity:  Choose one country you would like to visit on a dream vacation. Go online and explore the country you chose. Sharing your screen may work best for you to explore together. Be sure to find the following things:
- A famous food in this country
- The most common forms of transportation
- A famous landmark
- Something else this country is known for

*Note: Use Google Maps or Google Earth to take a virtual walk in the country.

Reflection Questions: 
- What did you learn about the country and its culture?
- What is something that is similar to your own country? Different?
- What would you do if you got the chance to go to this country for a week?

Directions:
Take up to 3 minutes to individually write down 3 things you like about yourself and 3 things you like about your Little/Big. Take turns sharing the things you wrote.

Reflection Questions:
1. What was it like receiving a compliment from your Big or your Little?
2. What was the best compliment you received during this activity? How about ever in your life? Why do those “best compliments” stand out to you?
3. What do you do when you receive a compliment? Do you say "thank you?" Do you deny it? Do you return it with another compliment?
4. What is your favorite thing about yourself?
5. Why are these qualities so important to you?

Extra time?
Think of a person you plan to see in the next day or two, either in-person or virtually. It could be a parent, a sibling, a coworker, a classmate, a teacher, etc. Write down something you admire about them. Give that person the compliment the next time you see them! Be sure to share how it goes at your next Big/Little meeting.

Taking a moment to think about others’ perspective can have a big impact on how you perceive conversations and form opinions. Use the following questions to start a discussion about how to better understand others.

Little:
- What do you wish adults remembered about being a young person?
- What you want to remember about being a young person when you’re an adult?
- What life experiences have influenced your perception of school?

Big:
- What do you know as an adult that would have been helpful for you to know when you were growing up?
- What is something that you disliked hearing from adults when you were a young person?
- What life experiences have influenced your perception of your career?

Understanding Your Perspective Discussion Questions
- What did you learn about each other?
- What do you feel like was helpful to hear from the other person?

Extra time?
- Who is someone in your life that often has a different perspective than you? Maybe they are a different age, have had different life experiences, are from a different culture, think differently than you, etc.
- Where do you think their perspective comes from? Where does yours come from?
- Did your different perspectives ever cause conflict between you and that person? How did you get through it?
- Together, brainstorm some ways you can better understand and learn about the perspectives of those around you.

First, take two minutes to think of a word that best represents how you want to feel, act, or be in 2021 and share it with each other. Why did you choose this word?

Now take some time to brainstorm aloud, what are some goals you each want to set for yourselves in 2021?

Try to think of at least one goal within each of these categories:

1) Something you want to try this year

2) Something you think you need to learn

3) Something you can share with others (volunteer your time to help others, share a skill with a friend, tutor a sibling etc.)

4) Something you want to succeed at

Tired of forgetting homework assignments? Or last-minute late night study sessions for a big test? Talk to your Big about how they stay organized at work or in their home life.

Ideas:

- Utilize a physical planner
This is a great tool for visual learners and those who like to see the “bigger picture”.

- Utilize the calendar app on your phone
Great for those who are always on the go – you will never be without your schedule.

- Use a “reminders” app on your phone
Forgetful? Say no more. Do not underestimate this lifesaving resource.

- Try using a notebook or binder with multiple segments.
This allows for your work to stay together and makes it easy to reference your notes or homework quickly.

Which of the organization methods you discussed, if any, have you tried in the past and how did it go? Do you use any of these methods currently or how could you implement one this week?

Finding a way to best manage your time can be a tricky task. Before you talk about the tools you can use for time management, take a moment to discuss the questions below:

- What are your top three priorities on a day-to-day basis? How do you decide this?

- How much time do you spend “giving back” to others (including your family, school, or community)?  Do you think you spend too much, too little or just the right amount of time caring for others? If you don’t feel like you spend enough time caring for others, how might you spend more time?

- When/how do you practice self-care? Is this enough time? Too little? Too much?

- If you could do anything with your time, what would it be?

Now that you’ve thought a little more about your own life, check out the suggestions below and think about which of these time management tools may be a good resource for you.

-  Eisenhower Box - Click here to learn more.

- Check your devices settings to see what apps or websites you spend the most time on. Being aware of your usage is the first step in deciding what or if anything needs to change! Click here to visit a website that will explain how to find this info.

- Think ahead. If you have some spare time at the end of the day and you know you have a crazy schedule ahead of you tomorrow, try and make life a little easier for yourself. Do you need to pack a lunch? Do you know what you’re going to wear? Brainstorm tomorrow’s top priorities.

- Eliminate distractions.

- Silence your phone and find a quiet space to work!

- Set goals for yourself throughout the day and write them down.

No matter how big or small, accomplishing goals and checking things off the list can be incredibly motivating!

Don’t underestimate the power of a positive mindset! This week take a moment to talk about positivity and perseverance as a match. What challenges have you each had to overcome to get you to where you are today? How did you find the strength and motivation to do so? What did you learn about yourself on that journey?

Littles – let’s take a closer look at your current mindset. Click here for a short quiz and discuss how you feel about your results with your Big.

Check out these articles if you have time:
15 Highly Successful People Who Failed on Their Way to Success
7 Practical Tips to Achieve a Positive Mindset

Everyone’s path in life looks a little different, and that’s why possibilities are endless! Use this questionnaire to learn a little more about your Big and their professional journey.

Click here to check it out.