1. The Caring Game. This game teaches empathy – once children know what it feels like to have their feelings hurt, they learn to treat others with respect and kindness.

How to play: Draw a series of faces with different ‘unhappy’ expressions – sad, angry, scared, sick – on pieces of card (at least  one for every child in the game). Lay the cards out, face-side down. Ask each child to choose a card, and act out the feeling shown. For example, the child who draws the card with the scared face, might pretend to shake or hide under his chair. Explain to the other players that they can make their friend feel better by asking him questions. “Why are you scared?”, “What can I do?” After he gives an explanation – “I saw a ghost in my bedroom last night” – the other kids provide solutions. They might give him a hug, suggest he leaves his nightlight on, or tell him gently that ghosts are only make believe.

2. Mother, May I? This game teaches kids to be courteous, which means they are well on their way to learning about respect.

How to play: Nominate one child as Mother. The other players line up facing her, about 10 feet away. Mother tells one player at a time to hop one step forward. If a player responds, “Mother, may I?”, Mother says, “Yes, you may,” or “No, you may not”. If Mother’s reply is yes, the player must say thank you before he moves. If any player forgets his manners or hops forward without permission, Mother sends him back to the starting line. Play the game until one player reaches Mother.

3. Honest to Goodness. This game teaches kids that it’s okay to be honest about their feelings, whether positive or negative.

How to play: Settle the players comfortably and let them know they will each be asked to finish the sentence: “I was surprised when…” To get the game in motion, start by telling your own story: “I was surprised when Sarah’s Daddy suggested that we move to Discovery Bay.” After everyone has had a turn at being ‘surprised’, continue the game substituting other emotions like ‘happy’ or ‘scared’.

4. The Balloon Game. This game teaches kids about teamwork and the value of working together towards a common goal.

How to play: Each player gets two balloons and a partner to play with. Each team of two has to keep their four balloons in the air for  a set time (start with 30 seconds). To make the game more challenging, you can rule that the children can only touch the balloons with one part of their body, such as their forehead or the palm of their hand.