Social Skill Super-Boosters

4 Games that will Boost Your Youngster’s Team Playing and Social Skills
Looking to give your child’s social skills a super boost? The following games foster important skills like cooperation and communication and can be adapted to suit children of any age. Try these out at your child’s next play date or even at a birthday party.

Find Someone Who

Required Materials: paper, pencils
Make a list of categories that apply to some of the kids in your play group, adjusting for age and how well the kids know each other (for example, “has traveled to Canada”, “likes dinosaurs”, “has a dog”). Read one category aloud at a time so, as a group, the children can “find someone who” fits each category. Players can raise their hands to indicate they have found that person. This game is a gentle to way to lure even the shyest out of their shells.

Don’t Say a Word

Required Materials: sticky notes
Challenge the group to solve a simple problem in complete silence. For example, instruct the players to sequence themselves according to height without saying a word! Or, have each child wear a sticky note that bears a letter, and they can arrange themselves next to a fellow player whose name starts with that letter. For older children, boost the challenge up a notch. Assign each child a sticky note with a state’s name, and watch as they silently arrange themselves alphabetically…according to the state capitals. This game requires lots of teamwork and coordination.

That’s How I Roll

Required Materials: small ball, pieces of cardboard, paper towel tubes, plastic tubs
Assemble a few tubes and vessels from whatever materials you have handy: paper towel rolls, plastic tubs, even pieces of rolled up carpet. Line up the children, distribute the tubes, and watch the fun begin! The object of this game is for players to roll the ball from one player to the next without touching the ball with their hands. The children will have to strategize with the next player to transport the ball without dropping or touching it. To pump up the fun, create a fun story about the ball. For instance, the ball is a delicate glass egg from a magical bird and the players must transport it back to the nest without breaking it!

Lighthouse

Required Materials: stuffed animals, towels, pillows
This is a challenging game for older kids that requires many levels of teamwork and communication! Using a large room or lawn, create an “ocean” of various soft objects like plush toys, towels and pillows. Blindfold one player and have her stand on the far shore. The rest of the players, shore folk, will be stationed on the near shore. Finally, choose one player to be the “lighthouse”, and be sure they are facing the shore folk but not the ocean. Here’s the real challenge: The shore folk have lost their voices! They must now communicate to the lighthouse using only gestures, and the lighthouse will have to guide the blindfolded player across the ocean without touching any of the obstacles!

No comments so far

read more about animal scramble