Want To Get Year 7 Students Happier At School?

TRUTH, DARE, OR SHARE is a board game that encourages discussion and prompts positive actions that aim to improve students’ ability to cope with the transition from primary to secondary school.

It has been designed in response to a growing concern that the quality of the experience children have during this critical period is a significant contributor to the early onset of mental ill health. According to the UK Office of National Statistics, 10% of children between the ages of five and 16 years of age will develop a diagnosable mental health disorder. (ONS, 2004)

Building on the success of the original Do-It-Yourself Happiness game (see Want to Start People Talking about Well-being?). TRUTH, DARE OR SHARE was co-designed by 239 students and 9 tutors at Malet Lambert School in Hull, Harris Boys’ Academy in London and Tendring Technology College in Essex, in collaboration with strategic design consultancy, uscreates.

As part of the development of the game, students and staff at the three schools contributed an amazing 1,171 happiness tips, which underpin a series of Truth, Dare, Share and Double-Dare challenges.

Based on positive peer-to-peer competition, teams compete to win points for completing these challenges, each of which focuses on one element of the wheel of well-being.

For example: a ‘People: Connect -Dare’ challenges the player to plan a day out with friends or family that costs nothing. A ‘Mind: Keep Learning-Truth’ asks the player to tell fellow players who their favourite role model is and why. A ‘Body: Be Active-Double-Dare’ dares the player to some stretching between classes for a whole week. Truth, Dare, or Share is flexible enough to be played during PSHE lessons throughout the entire school year, at an after-school club or as a one-off activity. Students who piloted the game said that it made them feel happy and excited. They reported that the game helped them express how they feel about things, that it boosted their confidence and that it taught them how to work better in teams.

Truth Dare or Share is available from the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH).  To order a copy click here.