Activity 1.2.5 Paper Bag Boundaries

Purpose
To encourage positive views of oneself and others
Materials
Medium-sized paper lunch bags, magazines, coloured markers, small sticky note pads or 3″ × 5″ pieces of paper, tape or glue, scissors
Time
2–3 hrs
Method
  1. Ask participants to cut out pictures they like from various magazines. Give each participant a lunch bag.
  2. The pictures they selected can be taped to the inside and the outside of the lunch bag. Note: coloured markers can be used to replace or add value to the magazine pictures.
  3. Tell participants the inside pictures reflect how they see themselves and the outside pictures reflect what they believe they show to the world. You may want to give participants a few moments to relate to this idea and discuss informally.
  4. Next, give each participant sticky notes or pieces of 3″ × 5″ papers to write a positive statement about each person in their group. Note: it is recommended to have about 4–6 people in a group.
  5. The notes should be folded and put into the appropriate person’s lunch bag. Ask participants not to look at the notes at this time.
  6. Ask for volunteers to speak about their paper bag art. Then ask them to read the notes that were put inside.
  7. At the end of this activity ask participants to talk about their discoveries and what they have learned about themselves. Were they surprised by some of the comments they received?
  8. It is also recommended that a follow-up group discussion be added with suggested topics of: