Lesson Plan
Guess The Feeling Game Plan
Students will be able to identify and infer emotions from various scenarios and non-verbal cues to build social cognition and perspective-taking skills.
Understanding others' feelings helps us build stronger friendships, communicate better, and navigate social situations with kindness and confidence.
Audience
1st Grade Class
Time
30 minutes
Approach
Through an interactive game and discussion, students will practice identifying emotions.
Materials
Whiteboard or projector, Markers, What's On Their Mind Slide Deck, Empathy Bingo Game, and Optional: Small prizes or stickers for game winners
Prep
Prepare Materials
10 minutes
- Review the What's On Their Mind Slide Deck and familiarize yourself with the scenarios.
- Print or prepare the Empathy Bingo Game cards and markers (if physical).
- Ensure whiteboard/projector is ready.
- Gather any optional prizes.
Step 1
Warm Up: Mirror My Mood
5 minutes
- Begin with the Mirror My Mood Warm-Up activity.
- Instruct students to mirror your facial expressions and body language as you demonstrate different emotions (happy, sad, angry, surprised, confused, excited).
- Ask students to share a time they felt one of those emotions. (Optional: Use What's On Their Mind Slide Deck for visual cues on emotions).
Step 2
Introduction to Perspective Taking
5 minutes
- Introduce the concept of 'Mind Reader' and how we try to understand what others are thinking and feeling, even when they don't say it aloud.
- Show the first few slides of the What's On Their Mind Slide Deck to explain non-verbal cues (e.g., facial expressions, body language).
Step 3
Empathy Bingo Game
15 minutes
- Explain the rules of Empathy Bingo Game. Distribute bingo cards and markers.
- Use the remaining scenarios from the What's On Their Mind Slide Deck one by one.
- For each scenario, read it aloud and ask students to identify the feeling the person in the scenario might be experiencing.
- Students mark off the corresponding emotion on their bingo cards.
- The first student to get a Bingo wins (optional: small prize). Continue playing until several students get bingo or time runs out.
- Encourage discussion after each scenario: "Why do you think they feel that way? What clues told you?"
Step 4
Cool Down: Share a Strategy
5 minutes
- Ask students to share one strategy they learned today to help them understand how someone else might be feeling.
- Reiterate the importance of empathy and how being a 'mind reader' (in a kind way) helps us be good friends and classmates.
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Slide Deck
What's On Their Mind?
How can we guess what someone is feeling?
Welcome students and introduce the idea of thinking about others' feelings. Explain that sometimes people don't say how they feel, but we can still guess!
Faces Tell Tales!
Look closely at faces.
Are their eyebrows up or down?
Is their mouth smiling or frowning?
Are their eyes wide or squinting?
Introduce the first way we can tell how someone feels: their face! Point out different parts of the face and how they change with emotions.
Bodies Speak Too!
What does their body say?
Are their shoulders up or down?
Are their arms crossed or open?
Are they jumping or sitting still?
Introduce the second way we can tell how someone feels: their body! Demonstrate some body language examples (slumped shoulders, arms crossed, jumping up and down).
Scenario 1: New Toy!
Your friend just got a brand new, super cool toy that they really wanted! They are smiling big and jumping up and down. How do they feel?
Introduce the first scenario for Empathy Bingo. Read the scenario aloud and ask students to infer the feeling and the clues. Give them time to mark their bingo cards.
Scenario 2: Lost Puppy
A child is sitting alone on a park bench, looking down at the ground. Their shoulders are slumped, and their eyes look a little watery. They keep sighing. How do they feel?
Read the next scenario and guide students to infer the feeling and the non-verbal cues.
Scenario 3: Surprise Test
The teacher just announced a pop quiz! Your classmate's eyes got wide, and they quickly put their head in their hands. How do they feel?
Continue with the next scenario.
Scenario 4: Trip and Fall
Someone tripped on the playground and scraped their knee. They are holding their knee, and their face is crunched up. A tear rolls down their cheek. How do they feel?
Next scenario for the game.
Scenario 5: Building a Tower
Two friends are working together to build a tall block tower. They are giggling and high-fiving each other as it gets taller and taller. How do they feel?
Another scenario for practice.
Scenario 6: Sharing a Snack
You offer to share your favorite snack with a new student who looks a little shy. They give you a small smile and take a piece. How do they feel?
Final scenario for the game.
Great Job, Mind Readers!
You're getting so good at understanding how others feel! Keep practicing your empathy skills every day.
Conclude the game and reinforce the main message.
Game
Empathy Bingo
Instructions:
- Listen carefully to the scenarios your teacher reads.
- Try to figure out how the person in the story is feeling. Use clues from their face and body!
- When you hear an emotion on your Bingo card that matches what you think the person is feeling, mark it off.
- The first one to get three in a row (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) shouts "BINGO!"
Empathy Bingo Card
| FREE SPACE | Excited | Confused |
|---|---|---|
| Sad | Happy | Angry |
| Surprised | Proud | Scared |
Empathy Bingo Card
| Happy | Confused | Sad |
|:----------:|:--------:|:--------:|\n| Scared | FREE SPACE | Excited |
| Angry | Surprised| Proud |
Empathy Bingo Card
| Proud | Scared | Happy |
|---|---|---|
| Excited | Sad | FREE SPACE |
| Confused | Angry | Surprised |
(Teacher Note: Prepare enough cards for each student. You can print multiple copies of these, or create variations if preferred. The scenarios for calling out emotions are in the What's On Their Mind Slide Deck.)
Warm Up
Mirror My Mood Warm-Up
Instructions:
- Look at your teacher. Pay close attention to their face and body.
- Your teacher will show you an emotion without saying a word.
- Your job is to mirror your teacher! Make the same face and body shape you see.
- After you mirror, think: "What emotion is my teacher showing?"
Teacher Script/Prompts:
"Good morning, everyone! Today we're going to start by playing a quick game called 'Mirror My Mood.' I'm going to show you different feelings using only my face and my body, and your job is to copy me! Try to make your face and body look just like mine. Then, we'll try to guess what feeling I was showing."
(Demonstrate emotions like:)
- Happy: Big smile, bright eyes, possibly hands up in excitement.
- Sad: Downturned mouth, droopy eyes, slumped shoulders.
- Angry: Frowning, furrowed brows, tense body.
- Surprised: Wide eyes, open mouth, eyebrows raised.
- Confused: Tilted head, wrinkled forehead, slight frown.
- Excited: Big smile, jumping a little, clapping hands.
"Great job mirroring! How do you think I was feeling when my face was like this and my body was like that? What clues did you see?"
"Can anyone share a time they felt [emotion]?"
(Encourage a few students to share briefly. This activity sets the stage for understanding non-verbal cues, which is crucial for What's On Their Mind Slide Deck and Empathy Bingo Game.)