It’s nighttime and the stars are waking up, some happier than others. Place all the foam stars face down in the middle of the play area and spin to see if you turn over one or two stars. It’s the player’s job to recognize the emotion on the face of her star(s) and tell a story about when she felt that way–happy, laugh, sad, mad, dislike, scared. “I laugh when Mommy is silly,” or “I’m sad when I have to eat beans.” When the spinner lands on Tibbar the bunny, players place the star in front of him and tell a story about when HE would feel that emotion expressed on the star. “Tibbar would be sad if he didn’t have grass to run in.” Kids are learning to recognize, name and associate emotions with experiences in their life as well as others. They are building vocabulary of emotions that will help them regulate their feelings as well as recognize them in others and build empathy. Currently there is an increased emphasis on helping children build their EQ, Emotional Quotient, to be able to more easily navigate life and understand and help others.

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