What games teach self-control?

Red Light Green Light helps build self-control and also helps with gross motor movement. Simon Says helps practice body control, focusing, and listening skills. Freeze Dance helps teach body control, skills around impulsivity, and listening skills. Jenga helps teach fine motor skills, moving slowly, and taking their time, and builds awareness to be in control of their body so the tower doesn’t fall during someone else’s turn. Don’t Break the Ice teaches self-control and planning ahead skills by being careful of which ice cube you pick. The goals and intentions of these games and activities is to promote the developmental skills of being in control for the appropriate context.

1 – Balloon Tap All you need for this fun game are balloons and an open space. Arrange students in a circle and assign alternating students to 2 teams. Fill the circle with balloons. Call “Team 1!” Only students on team 1 should tap the balloons. Switch to Team 2, and only students on Team 2 should tap the balloons. Continue switching on a 20-30 second interval. Students will really have to listen for the auditory cue to signify that it’s their team’s turn to tap. 2 – Jenga The slow, controlled movements needed for Jenga are great for practicing self control! Move too fast the tower will topple. Forget to pay attention to balance and the tower will come crashing down! Students will have to slow down and focus on the task to play. 3 – Don’t Break the Ice Much like Jenga, students have to be very mindful of their movements and practice body control in Don’t Break the Ice. Using too much force can cause all of the ice to break! 4 – Freeze Dance No materials needed for this game! In an open space, play music. Students will dance while the music plays, and when the music stops, students will freeze! If you want to add a layer of difficulty, when students freeze, have them strike a yoga pose. 5 – Red Light Green Light This is another game that doesn’t require any materials! All students stand on one side of the space. The counselor or leader stands on the other side of the space. When the counselor says, “Green light,” students may begin moving forward toward the counseling. When the counselor says, “Red light,” students must freeze. 6 – Garage Band For this activity, you’ll need instruments for each student. Students will take turns being the garage band leader. The leader will set the beat, and the other students will follow the beat. Students will really have to tune and listen and then activate body control to follow the beat. 7 – Simon Says I like to call this activity Counselor Says, but the rules are the same! The counselor gives an instruction like, “Touch your nose,” but students only follow the directive if the directive begins with, “Counselor says.” 8 – Clap Pattern This is a fun activity for a group warm up or closing out a session. The counselor starts a clapping pattern. All students follow the pattern, and then one student adds to the pattern. Students must follow the pattern with the new additions. 9 – Statue For this game, the counselor stands on one side of the room and the students stand on the other. The counselor turns their back to the students. The students begin silently moving toward the counselor. The counselor can then turn around, but when the counselor turns around, all students must freeze in a statue position and hold it until the counselor turns around again! 10 – Mirror Pair students up for this activity. One student will be the person and one will be the mirror. The student that is the mirror should mimic the other student’s movements, facial expressions, etc. just as if they were a mirror. They’ll really have to pay close attention and be aware of their body movements!

Any game or activity that involves controlling impulses and movements can help with self-regulation. There are lots of fun activities and games you can play with children to help them with self-regulation. Any game or activity that requires children to control impulses and movements can help them increase their control over their own thoughts, emotions, and actions. Simon Says is a great activity to help children develop self-regulation, they learn to listen and act accordingly. Duck, Duck, Goose teaches children to concentrate and helps them to develop self-regulation by making them sit quietly and wait their turn during the game. Musical Statues is a great way to increase focus in children, and it also helps them with self-regulation as they have to control their movements and impulses. Rhythm Claps helps children to focus on what they are doing and helps to improve self-regulation as they need to copy the rhythm rather than doing their own thing.