Session 1: Self-Esteem Group Orientation

Purpose: The goals of this session will be to allow group members to start forming a rapport
with each other and increasing the comfort level with their group members. Rules will be
reviewed, the group contract will be signed, and students will be introduced to the purpose of the
group and allowed to create realistic goals for their participation in the group.
Rather than allocating a large portion of time for group activities, emphasis will be placed on
processing the needs of the group members while acknowledging that their needs may change as
sessions progress. Misconceptions about curing self-esteem issues will also be addressed.
Opening: Simple Introduction: Students will start out with a round of introductions where they
state their name and one fact about themselves they dont think other members would know,
processing being focused around what brings each member to the group.
Session Body:

Group leader will pass out the Group Contract (See Appendix) and briefly summarize
each bullet point. Time will be allowed for questions and clarification.
After each student has signed the contract, the Group Leader will write the term selfesteem on the board.
o Members will be asked to define the term, and list areas of their life they feel are
affected by their self-esteem or vice versa.
o As areas are suggested, they will be written on the board by the group leader.
o At this point, the leader will initiate processing with the group about their
experiences with low self-esteem.
Processing Questions:
1. Which do you feel has more of an impact on the other: self-esteem or your
performance/perception of your life story?
2. In your experience, what have been the costs of low self-esteem?
a. Are there any benefits to having low self-esteem?
3. What would you like to be different regarding your self-esteem?
Group leader will pass out Goal Sheet (Appendix) and group members will be given
approximately 5-10 minutes to think about what they want or need from the group and
write them down. Group leader will collect these at the end of the session and use his or
her discretion about when to check in during following sessions and allow students to
make modifications to their goals.

Closing: Students will be thanked for their honesty and time will be given for any questions or
clarification about the group procedures. Students will be asked to do a round where they each
state one positive trait they like about themselves before everyone is dismissed.
Session 2: Self-Esteem

Purpose: The goal of this session will be to facilitate processing around the concept of selfacceptance. Many times, people mistakenly believe that the opposite of low self-esteem is
high self-esteem or good self-esteem. This creates a scale of success based on value
judgments instead of acceptance.
Opening: (3-4 minutes) - Check in with group members. Ask how their day/week has been
going and if there are any important crises/issues that need addressed.
Main Activity: (5-10 minutes) Students will be paired into dyads. The group leader will write
three terms on the board: High Self-Esteem, Self-Acceptance, and Low Self-Esteem.
Students will be asked in their pairs to create a list of synonyms for these terms, or words they
feel represent those ideas. They can also think about what each of those terms would look like
and feel like and describe that on their papers.
Materials: Paper and pencils.
Processing Questions:
1. Lets talk about low self-esteem first. What were some terms you used to describe low
self-esteem? (These same processing questions can be used for the other 2 categories as
well).
a. Has anyone ever used any of these words to describe you?
i. How did that make you feel?
b. Have you ever used any of these words to describe yourself?
i. How does that make you feel?
2. Which of these categories do you feel most closely aligns with the goals you set for
yourself during the first session?
3. Which category do you feel most closely represents how you currently feel about
yourself?
a. How satisfied are you with your category?
4. If you could be in any category, which one would you choose?
a. What do you feel is most appealing about that category?
i. What would that look like and feel like for you?
Closing: Summarize the session. What will you take away from today? How has your
understanding of self-esteem changed?

Session 3: Self-Esteem and Interpersonal Relationships

Purpose: Goal: To explore self-esteem in relation to peer and family relationships. By exploring
peer/family relationships, members will be able to see discrepancies in self-esteem and possible
origins of self-esteem.
Opening: (3-4 minutes) - Check-in with group members. Ask how their day/week has been
going and any important crises/issues to address.
Main Activity:
Materials- Sentence Completion Worksheet (See Appendix)
Pens/pencils
Directions- Hand out sentence completion worksheet to each group member and have
them complete it (ask for members to write down at least two answers to each question).
(5 minutes). Ask members to share their answers. Use rounds to help facilitate discussion
and common themes that arise with members.
Processing Questions:
1. What were the differences you noticed in how others see you vs. how you see
yourself?
2. How does what others think of us effect how we feel about ourselves?
3. What feelings came up for you personally while doing this activity?
4. What was difficult about completing each sentence?
5. If we could change what others think of us, what would that look like?
Closing: (5 minutes) - Summarize todays session. Ask members: What will you take away from
todays session?

Session 4: Self-Esteem and Body Image

Purpose: The goal of this session will be to discover how students self-esteem affects their body
image or vice versa. Emphasis will be placed on the media and unrealistic expectations for how
our bodies should look. Many times, the media serves the public highly airbrushed,
photoshopped images of models that serve as an ideal figure but are humanly impossible to
achieve. The literature states that there is a strong relationship between low self-esteem and poor
body image in adolescents, and process during this session will focus on discrepancies between
how students want to look versus how they think they look, and the benefits and costs to those
inconsistencies.
Opening: (3-4 minutes) - Check in with group members. Ask how their day/week has been
going and if there are any important crises/issues that need addressed.
Main Activity: (10-12 minutes, more if needed)
Materials Many different types of magazines that feature photographs of a variety of people
(Cosmopolitan, People, Time, National Geographic, etc.), construction paper, scissors, glue
sticks, Common Body Image Myths worksheet (see Appendix).
Directions Students will be given a variety of magazines, glue sticks, scissors and construction
paper. For 10 minutes, students will find images in the magazines that represent their ideal
body image. Students will cut out people or individual physical features that have physical traits
they consider ideal and past them onto their piece of construction paper. Once time is up,
students will be asked to share their collage and briefly discuss their chosen pictures or traits.
Processing Questions: Students will be given the Common Body Image Myths worksheet (see
Appendix A) and given a few minutes to read over the myths and if they choose, add any they
feel are missing.
1. What were you feeling as you were flipping through the pages of the magazines?
2. What do you feel you would gain if you were able to achieve your ideal self.
a. What would be different? What would be the same?
3. How does it feel to have your ideal self on paper? Do you feel this is achievable?
4. What are the costs of trying to achieve an impossible body type?
5. How did reading the myths make you feel? Which myths resonated with you?
6. How do you feel when you hear other students express discontent with their body image?
7. How does what we look like affect how we feel about ourselves (or vice-versa)?
a. How much is your self-esteem affected by your perception of your physical
appearance?
Closing: Summarize the session. Ask members: What will you take away from todays session?
What, if anything, has changed about the way you see yourself?
Session 5: Self-Esteem and Thought Process

Purpose: Goal: To explore how irrational thoughts affect our self-esteem. Using this session to
have members list their irrational thoughts, sources of those thoughts, and how to combat the
irrational thoughts.
Opening: (3-4 minutes) - Check-in with group members. Ask how their day/week has been
going and any important crises/issues to address.
Main Activity:
Materials - Irrational Thoughts Worksheet (see Appendix), Pens/ Pencils
Directions - Discuss with students the term irrational thoughts and ask them to define what
that means and how we know when our thoughts are rational vs. irrational.
Next, hand out the Irrational Thoughts Worksheet. Go over the directions and have them think of
one major irrational thought and have them write it down. Then, ask members to fill out the
evidence for this irrational thought as well as evidence against the irrational thought.
Next, in dyads, ask members to share their worksheet together. Have them brainstorm alternative
thoughts to their irrational thoughts and write them down on bottom of the page. Have everyone
come back to group and have each member discuss their irrational thought and alternative that
they came up with.
Worksheet adapted from Pflugerville ISD: Curriculum Framework (n.d.)
Processing Questions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

Where do our irrational thoughts come from?

How does having irrational thoughts effect how we feel about ourselves?
How do we know when we are having irrational thoughts?
How did it feel to list your irrational thoughts and see those thoughts on paper?
What can we do to improve our thinking about ourselves?
How do our irrational thoughts contribute to how we view ourselves (our self-esteem)?

Closing: (5 minutes) - Summarize todays session. Ask, What will you take away from today?

Session 6: Conclusion on Self-Esteem

Purpose: Goal: Wrap up self-esteem group and saying good-bye. This session needs to focus on
what the group members have set achieved during this group. Furthermore, a focus on how
members will go on without the group continuing and how this will impact their lives.
Opening: (3-4 minutes) - Check-in with group members. Ask how their day/week has been
going and any important crises/issues to address.
Main Activity: (5-10 minutes)
Materials:
Construction paper
Markers
Scotch tape (to put on the back of their chairs)
Directions: Hand out construction paper to each person and have them tape one piece of paper to
each of the back of their chairs. Then, have everyone move around write at least one positive
comment on each persons paper (highlighting each persons strength). After writing all the
comments, have each person take the paper off their chair and read aloud what others have said
about him or her.
Idea of activity adapted from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2003.
Processing Questions:
1. How did it feel to have others say positive statements about yourself and read those
aloud? Do you believe them or is their resistance with that belief?
2. What have you learned about yourself so far in this group?
3. How are you feeling about meeting your goals for this group? Met? Still a work in
progress?
4. What things will you need to work on to feel better about yourself? How will you get
there?
Closing: (10-15 minutes)
1. What will it be like not meeting with each other from now on?
2. Who can we talk to when we need someone to be there for us? (assess their support
system and brainstorm)
3. Have each member fill out the Goal Evaluation for this group before they leave. (see
appendix)

Appendix: Materials for each session

SESSION 1: Group Contract/Informed Consent
All members will treat any material discussed in group with complete confidentiality.
Care will be taken to avoid discussing stories, names, and content outside the group
setting.
o In circumstances of violence or abuse toward self or others, the group leader may
be ethically obligated to breach confidentiality
All members will arrive on time and stay for the duration of the group session. If an
absence is unavoidable, members will make every attempt to contact the group leader in
advance.
At any time, group members are allowed to terminate if they no longer feel the group is a
good fit. If termination is unavoidable, group members will attend one last session in
order to say goodbye to group members and have a chance to process their experience
in the group.
In order to obtain maximum benefit from the group experience, it is expected that group
members form goals and actively work toward attaining them through group discussion,
self-disclosure, and honest feedback. The level of self-disclosure is up to personal
discretion.
In order for the group to remain a safe place for growth, members agree to always respect
others personal space and emotional well-being.
I agree to the conditions of group membership and commit to preserving the groups integrity.
Group member: __________________________________________ Date: _____________

Permission to Participate in Group

Counseling Services

Name of Student: ______________________________ Date:_______________

Your child has been referred by his/her teacher to participate in a self- esteem group. This group
will last for 6 sessions, meet for 50 minutes per session, and will help your child learn about:

Exploring and identifying sources of self-esteem

How self-esteem effects peer and family relationships
How self-esteem effects our body image
How self-esteem effects school relationships
Allowing students to create individual goals in increasing self-esteem

I do give my permission for my child to participate in this group.

Signature of parent or guardian________________________________ Date: __________

I do not give my permission for my child to participate in this group.

Signature of parent or guardian________________________________ Date: __________

If you have any questions, please call the School Counselor.

Goal Sheet
Name: __________________________________________
Self-Esteem:
How a person prizes, values, approves, or likes him or herself (Frost and McKelvie, 2004).

Goals for Group Sessions:

1. When I think of myself, I would like to feel:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. When I think of my body, I would like to feel:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
3. When I think of myself in relation to my peers/family, I would like to feel:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
4. When I think of myself in relation to school and my relationship with my teachers, I
would like to feel:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

SESSION 3: Sentence Completion Worksheet

My closest friend truly thinks I am...

______________________________________________________________________________
My classmates think I am...
______________________________________________________________________________
My teachers think I am
______________________________________________________________________________
My parents honestly think I am...
______________________________________________________________________________
My siblings think I am
______________________________________________________________________________
A strangers first impression of me might include...
______________________________________________________________________________
I honestly think I am
______________________________________________________________________________

Worksheet Adapted From MENTOR: National Mentoring Partnership, 2013.

SESSION 5: Examining the Evidence for Irrational Thoughts Worksheet

Instructions:
1. Identify a negative or troubling irrational thought.
2. Then list all the evidence that you can find that either supports (evidence for) or disproves
(evidence against) the irrational thought.
3. After trying to find cognitive errors in the evidence for column, you can write revised or
alternative thoughts at the bottom of the page.
Automatic thought:

Evidence for automatic thought:

Evidence against automatic thought:

1.

1.

2.

2.

3.

3.

4.

4.

5.

5.

Alternative Thoughts:

SESSION 4: Common Body Image Myths

(Adapted from Cash, 1997)
1. Physically attractive people have it all.
2. The first thing people notice about me are the flaws in my appearance
3. Outward appearance is a sign of the worth of the person.
4. If I could just change ___________________, I would be happier with my life.
5. By controlling my appearance, I can control my self-esteem/social life/emotions.
6. My appearance has affected my previous life experiences.
7. It is my duty to always look my best.
8. I can never be satisfied with my looks when I compare myself to images in the media.
9. I can like my looks only if I change them.
Additional Personal myths: ____________________________________________

FINAL SESSION: Self-Esteem Group Evaluation

Please circle the number that you agree with most, with 5-Strongly Agree, 4-Agree, 3-Neutral,
2-Disagree, or 1-Strongly Disagree.
1. I felt like my goals were worked on during this group.

2. I felt like I was able to meet my goals from this group. 1

3. My counselor treated me with respect.

4. I felt comfortable with other group members.

5. My group experience was a positive experience.

6. I would participate in another group experience.

Please answer the following questions:

What did you enjoy MOST about this group?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
What did you enjoy LEAST about this group?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Other Comments:
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________