I wanted to try a game that I'd read about, which gets children thinking about different emotions. You take turns wearing different hats, each of which corresponds to a different emotion, and try to express that emotion. My boys were a bit resistant to wearing any hats at all, so I adapted it with Post-it notes.Taking turns, each person chooses a Post-it with the name of an emotion written on it, and sticks it onto their chest. They have the floor and may not be interrupted while speaking. We did this for quite some time, along the lines of "Something that makes me feel happy/sad/angry/scared etc is...".
The reason I wanted to try the game was that jj had been scaring our cat, and I was trying to think of a way to get him to put himself in the cat's shoes (or paws). I think it was really effective; I learned quite a few things about the boys, and it was a great way to practice turn-taking and listening skills. It can easily be added to/adapted over time, and takes up very little space! We will definitely be playing this one again.
