This peer pressure object lesson will have lasting impact on young learners. It offers a vivid picture of what it’s like to face negative peer pressure and its influences.
For this peer pressure object lesson, you’ll need a balloon, a black Sharpie marker, and an empty water bottle.
Beforehand, blow up the balloon. Then draw a face on it with a Sharpie marker. After the ink dries, deflate the balloon. Next, insert the balloon into the empty water bottle. Pull the opening of the balloon over the mouth of the bottle. The balloon should be hanging inside the bottle.
Choose someone to help you with the demonstration. Pick someone who claims they can blow up a balloon. Give them the bottle and tell them to blow hard into the balloon so it will inflate. No matter how hard they blow, the balloon will not inflate inside the bottle.
Lessons From a Peer Pressure Object Lesson
Peers are the people around us, including friends, classmates, and family members. And pressure is when we feel as if people are forcing us to act a certain way.
Let’s say the balloon represents a person and the bottle is peer pressure. No matter how hard the person tries, when he allows himself to be surrounded by negative peer pressure—people trying to influence him to act a certain way—he can’t grow into the person God intended. The pressure stifles and chokes him. It keeps him from growing spiritually.
Now remove the balloon from the bottle and let your assistant blow it up. The face on the balloon will appear.