Buddy Bonding

Jen Heinze

Tier 1

Lesson Plan

Buddy Bonding Lesson Plan

Students will practice active listening, recognize and express emotions, and collaborate through role-play and a cooperative block-building game to build empathy and friendship skills.

Developing social-emotional skills early fosters positive peer relationships, supports classroom community, and helps children understand and respect each other’s feelings.

Audience

Kindergarten to 2nd Grade Students

Time

60 minutes

Approach

Interactive role-play and collaborative games.

Materials

Role-Play Scenario Cards, - Emotion Flashcards, - Teamwork Tower Blocks, - Feeling Faces Chart, - Timer, and - Discussion Prompt Cards

Prep

Prepare Materials

15 minutes

Print and cut out Role-Play Scenario Cards.
Print and laminate Emotion Flashcards.
Set up the Teamwork Tower Blocks in the center of the room.
Hang the Feeling Faces Chart where all students can see it.
Print and place Discussion Prompt Cards in a container.
Review each scenario and prompt to familiarize yourself with the activities.

Step 1

Opening Heartbeat

5 minutes

Gather students in a circle on the rug.
Explain today’s focus: making friends by understanding feelings and helping each other.
Model active listening: turn toward the speaker, eyes on speaker, quiet bodies.

Step 2

Emotion Check-In

10 minutes

Show an Emotion Flashcard and ask, “What feeling do you see?”
Invite volunteers to name the emotion and show it on their own face.
Discuss: “When might you feel this way?”
Point to the Feeling Faces Chart to reinforce vocabulary.

Step 3

Role-Play Pair-Up

15 minutes

Shuffle Role-Play Scenario Cards and let each pair draw one.
Give pairs 2 minutes to read and plan their short skit showing how they handle the situation with kindness.
Encourage active listening and taking turns.
Have each pair perform their skit; the class guesses the emotion and praises empathy shown.

Step 4

Collaborative Game: Teamwork Tower

15 minutes

Divide students into small teams of 4–5.
Each team builds a block tower using the Teamwork Tower Blocks.
Rule: Only one person speaks at a time and all must agree before placing a block.
Use the Timer for 5 minutes of building; celebrate each team’s tower and cooperative effort.

Step 5

Group Discussion

10 minutes

Pull one Discussion Prompt Card and read it aloud (e.g., “How did you help your friend today?”).
Invite 3–4 students to share answers, focusing on feelings and positive actions.
Affirm responses and connect back to empathy vocabulary on the chart.

Step 6

Reflection and Share

5 minutes

Ask students to pair-share one new thing they learned about kindness.
Invite a few volunteers to share with the whole group.
Close by reinforcing: “When we understand feelings and work together, we’re great friends!”

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Game

Teamwork Tower

Objective: Students will work together to build the tallest free-standing block tower while practicing active listening, taking turns, and making group decisions.

Grade Level: K–2
Time: 15 minutes

Materials:

Teamwork Tower Blocks (per team of 4–5 students)
Timer

Setup:

Divide students into teams of 4–5.
Give each team an equal set of blocks.
Clear a workspace on the floor or a low table for each team’s tower.

Rules:

Only one student may speak at a time while making a group decision.
The team must reach consensus before placing each block.
If the group can’t agree within 30 seconds, they choose one person (by quiet vote or volunteer) to decide.
Everyone must take at least one turn placing a block.

Gameplay Steps:

Set the timer for 5 minutes.
Teams begin building their towers, following the rules above.
Teacher circulates, offering prompts such as “Tell your partner why you chose that block” or “How can you make sure everyone’s idea is heard?”
When time is up, pause building and compare tower heights.

Reflection & Discussion:
After building, gather students to share:

“How did your team decide which block to place next?”
“What did you do when someone had a different idea?”
“How did you show you were listening to your teammates?”

Extension:
Challenge teams to rebuild their towers in a different shape (e.g., a wide pyramid) while still following all teamwork rules.

Discussion

Buddy Bonding Discussion

Purpose: Reflect on our role-play and teamwork activities to deepen empathy, active listening, and positive peer interactions.

Gathering (2 minutes)

Have children sit in a circle.
Remind them: “Today, we practiced kindness and teamwork. Let’s talk about how it felt!”

Whole-Group Discussion Prompts

How did you show kindness to a friend today?
- What did your friend feel when you helped them?
- How did it make you feel to help someone?
What did you do when someone in your team had a different idea?
- Did you listen quietly and say, “I like your idea because...?”
- How do you think your friend felt when you listened?
Which emotion from our Feeling Faces Chart did you notice during Teamwork Tower?
- How did your classmates show that feeling?
- What can we do to help someone who feels that way?
When you felt excited, surprised, or even frustrated, what helped you calm down and keep trying?
- Who helped you? What words did they use?
- How did that help you feel better?
How did working together on the Teamwork Tower make building more fun?
- What was your favorite part of building with your team?
- What made it hard sometimes, and how did you solve it?

Pair-Share (3 minutes)

Turn to your neighbor and finish this sentence:
“One new thing I learned about listening today is….”
Listen quietly while your partner shares, then switch.

Closing Reflection (2 minutes)

Invite 2–3 volunteers to finish this sentence aloud:
“Tomorrow, I will show kindness by…”
Reinforce: “When we understand feelings and work together, we are great friends!”