The Emoji Game

Topic
- Identity & emotions
Learning skills
- Self-awareness
- Empathy & social awareness
- Relationship skills
- Critical & reflective thinking
- Communication & expression
Activity type
- Group discussion
- Physical distancing
Materials
- Printable downloads
- Self-made
Age
- 0 - 5 years
- 6 - 11 years
- 12 - 14 years
5 - 15 minutes
2 - 4 players
Easy
Calm
Small (office, pavement)

Contributors

Joke

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Want to see this game in action? Watch the video

Everything you need to play this game

Emoji game board (DIY SOCIETY #1a) Download emoji.pdf (13.3mb)
Characters game board (DIY SOCIETY #1b) Download characters.pdf (16.8mb)
A piece of cardboard
A pair of scissors
Two split pins

Make it yourself

Step 1

Print out the game boards

Print out the Emoji and Characters game boards. If you want the game boards to be more durable, you can glue them onto pieces of cardboard.

Step 2

Create two arrows

Cut out two arrows from the piece of cardboard.

Step 3

Make them spin!

Punch a hole in both arrows and in the middle of the two game boards, using a pair of scissors. Attach an arrow to both game boards with the split pins and make sure the arrows can spin well.

Good job!

A step-by-step guide to play the game

The first player spins the arrow of the Emoji game board and identifies the emotion the arrow points to.

Now, the player tries to give an example of a situation in which he felt that way and explains why he felt that way in that particular situation.

The game leader can ask additional questions: How did you act? Why? What else could you have done or said? ... He can also ask the other players to come up with additional examples.

Then, the second player spins the arrow of the Emoji game board, identifies the emotion the arrow points to and gives an example.

Then, it's the third player's turn, and so on.

When all emotions have been identified and discussed, you can start combining the Emoji game board with the Characters game board.

The first player now spins the arrows of the Emoji and the Characters game board and tries to link the emotion with the character. Let's say the arrow points to "surprised" and "police officer". The player then tries to think of a situation in which a police offer made him feel surprised. Again, additional questions and examples can be asked by the game leader.

The second player now spins the arrows of both game boards and tries to link the emotion with the character, and so on.

Extra game information

Leave the interpretation of the characters up to the players. The man depicted on the panel can be a brother, a father, an uncle, a friend, a neighbour,... depending on the interpretation of the player.
This game was created during the European Mobile School Exchange in 2017. The game was co-created by Mobile School partners Asociación Navarra Nuevo Futuro, ARSIS, PRAKSIS, Fundacja Ukryte Skrzydla and CME - GPU Uno.

Variations

Act it out: You can ask the players to enact the emotions, the characters or even the situations the arrows point to. You could, for example, ask two players to spin or choose one emotion and two characters of the game boards and to perform a small role play for the other players, who then have to guess which emotion and which characters were enacted.

What people said about this game

Sander Degeling

Partnership Coordinator Africa & Asia StreetwiZe • Mobile School BE

25 November, 2019

(1)

Easy and interactive way to start a discussion about different emotions, suitable for all ages. A StreetSmart Play classic in the making!

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