Admiration Exchange

Topic
- Identity & emotions
Learning skills
- Self-awareness
- Empathy & social awareness
Activity type
- Circle group game
Materials
- Basic
Age
- 6 - 11 years
- 12 - 14 years
5 - 15 minutes
+5 players
Intermediate
Calm
Medium (classroom, square)

Contributors

Save the Children

Everything you need to play this game

Paper sheets
Pens or pencils
Tape or pins

A step-by-step guide to play the game

Begin by explaining to the players that the goal of this activity is to acknowledge and celebrate the positive qualities we see in others.

Each player thinks of someone they admire - this can be a real person or a fictional character. They then write down five qualities they admire about this person on a piece of paper.

Once everyone has listed their qualities, ask them to attach the paper to their clothing using tape or a pin.

Have the players walk around the room freely. When you call out "Stop," everyone pairs up with the nearest person.

In each pair, players take turns reading the qualities listed on their partner's paper, starting each statement with "You are..." For example, "You are strong, you are courageous, you are beautiful, you are a good friend, you are wise".

After reading the qualities on the paper, players take turns saying something positive about each other.

Encourage movement and new pairings by asking players to walk around again. Repeat the stopping and pairing several times so everyone gets the chance to hear positive affirmations from various peers.

Bring everyone together to reflect on the activity. Discuss the following:

How did it feel to hear these positive qualities about yourself?
Did you notice any similarities between the qualities you admire in others and the qualities others see in you?
How can recognizing and embracing these qualities in ourselves help us in our daily lives?

Variations

To add some extra movement to the game, incorporate a 'follow the leader' concept where you or a chosen player leads the group in various simple, quick movements (like jumping, clapping, spinning) as they move around the room. When you say "Stop", they must quickly find a partner and share their qualities.
Play music as the players walk around the room. When the music stops, players pair up with the person nearest to them.
Participants act out the qualities of their admired character and others guess the qualities and/or character based on the performance.
Arrange the players to form a circle and have one player stand in the center, holding a hat or box. Each player writes a positive affirmation or quality about the person in the center on a small piece of paper, folds it, and places it in the hat. The player in the middle collects all the folded papers, receiving them as a personal gift of positive thoughts from the group. Each player takes a turn in the middle to receive their "gifts" of affirmations.

Specific learning objectives

Reflect on positive qualities in others and yourself

What people said about this game

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