Friends for Life

To the Teacher

Use this story for life orientation, health, citizenship or cultural studies lessons, or as a reader in the English class.The story can be used to look at:

• bullying
• peer pressure
• social exclusion
• conflict situations
• self-management
• the value of friendship for children affected one way or another by HIV/AIDS

Friends for life also introduces the highly regarded concept of 'memory boxes' as a way of coping with the death of a loved one. The story itself is layerd with emotional aspects of friendship and love.

Young adults are more vulnerable to HIV/AIDS than anyone else. From an early age we should encourage children to develope self-respect and respect for others.

This is one of the JAWS HIV/AIDS readers developed for secondary school learners. The story conveys both the basic information about AIDS/HIV (health promotion) and the more subtle psycho-social dimensions of the pandemic affecting learners' lives (personal and social development). It can be used as a reader, or to help teachers introduce subject matter that is difficult to manage in the classroom.