Assertiveness and Self Advocacy Small Group Counseling Curriculum
This 12-session counseling curriculum helps students develop assertive communication, self-advocacy skills, and confidence using their voice across school, peer, and home settings. These engaging, hands-on counseling lessons support students as they learn to identify feelings and needs, set boundaries, speak up respectfully, and advocate for themselves without shutting down or escalating conflict. Students will engage in interactive games, role plays, discussion activities, calming strategies, and real-world practice tools woven throughout each session. Every lesson provides structured opportunities for students to practice new skills in safe, supportive, and meaningful ways.
Lessons cover assertive communication styles, I-statements, self-advocacy with peers and adults, boundary-setting, conflict communication, group-work assertiveness, calming strategies, and personal advocacy planning. This curriculum is ideal for students in grades 3–6 who struggle with passive or avoidant communication, difficulty speaking up, people-pleasing, fear of getting in trouble, or discomfort advocating for their needs.
What’s Included:
- Pre/post screening tools (observer and student self-assessment)
- Caregiver consent form
- Counselor passes
- 12 highly detailed, fully scripted lesson plans that are easy to use
(each lesson includes measurable objectives, scripted outlines, instruction points, group activities, debrief questions, individual practice tasks, materials lists, and ASCA-aligned standards) - Interactive games, role-play scenarios, comic-strip activities, and hands-on tools to build real, transferable communication skills
- Visual aids and anchor charts to support student understanding
- Family letters for each session explaining what students learned and how caregivers can reinforce skills at home
- Teacher summary notes for each session
- Student journal pages for between-session reflection and practice
- Personal Advocacy Plan templates
- Group completion certificates (counselor, social worker, psychologist, and blank options)
- Color and black/white printing options
Skills Students Will Learn:
- What assertive communication is and how it differs from passive, avoidant, aggressive, and passive-aggressive communication
- How to identify feelings, needs, and barriers to speaking up
- How to use calming strategies before advocating
- How to use I-statements to express needs clearly and respectfully
- How to set boundaries with peers
- How to speak up during conflict without escalating situations
- How to advocate for themselves with adults at school and at home
- How to speak up during group work and team activities
- How to create and use a personal self-advocacy plan
- How to apply assertiveness skills across school, home, peer, and group settings
This curriculum is designed for school counselors, social workers, psychologists, and small group facilitators looking for a structured, developmentally appropriate, ready-to-use program to support students who need help finding their voice and advocating for themselves with confidence.
Please note: this is a digitally downloadable curriculum. You will not receive anything in the mail.