Eight 5^th graders girls at McNabb Elementary agreed to join the McNabb Self Esteem club. The club met bi-weekly at the school for 7 months, and focused on the following topic: Self Worth, Body Image, and Friendships. The area of concentration for this report will be Friendships. In February, all 8 girls traveled to Paducah Tilghman High School, where there teamed up with a group of mentors called BABES. They all made floral arrangements, and the younger girls kept the arrangements to serve as a reminder of their mentor. This activity sparked the concept of “cultivating friendships”, and the leader and I began planning a cultivating activity. We explored the importance of cultivating friendships, and how certain “nutrients” need to be present for them to grow. “Friendship nutrients” such as commitment, understanding, communications, and confidentiality were discussed at each meeting. To demonstrate friendships, and how they need to be cultivated, we introduced the “Cultivating Friendships” activity. This is where each participant planted a seed, and took the necessary steps to foster growth in their individual plant. This activity demonstrated the importance of nurturing friendships in a hands on manner. Plants were kept in the guidance counselor’s office, and group members watered their plants each day they were in school. The plants began to grow. Club members were excited about the growth, and became very attentive to the growth of their individual plants. Unfortunately, the plants died. The club leader, and myself, had them list reasons why they thought the plants died. The top two reasons the listed were not enough sunlight, and the room was too cold. The Family Resource Center coordinator planted a plant at the same time, and her plant didn’t die. The position and warmer temperature of her room suggested these two reasons were valid. We then explained to the girls that just like the planting process: you can sometimes do what you feel is right, and the friendship may not last. After discussing what went wrong, we challenged them to try again. We began the process all over again, and made the necessary adjustments as an attempts to have different outcomes than before. This was to illustrate that just because it didn’t work the first time, doesn’t mean it won’t work a second. We discussed the importance of making sure the growing conditions were right, and they replanted. The plants are still in seed form, and they can’t wait to see how this batch will turn out.