The School of Play Curriculum
Kindergarten
Week Eighteen invites students to explore the powerful life skill of empathy, imagining how others feel, responding with care, and connecting through compassion. The week begins with Walk in Their Space Boots, a playful role-play activity where students step into someone else’s shoes and practise listening, kindness, and perspective-taking. Students then create their own Heart Glasses, decorating wearable symbols that remind them to “see with kindness” and notice when others might need support, comfort, or friendship.
The week continues with Mirror Me, a calm, focused movement game that helps students practise non-verbal empathy by watching closely, responding gently, and moving in sync with a partner. To finish, students express their compassion creatively through Caring Boots, tracing and decorating their own “empathy footprints” and filling them with the kind actions they want to take in their daily lives. Together, these activities help children understand that empathy is about listening with the heart, noticing others’ feelings, and taking caring steps forward. Week Eighteen, guided by Neptune’s emotional depth, reminds students that when we look deeper and act gently, we help calm storms, both in ourselves and in the people we care about.
Weekly Lessons
Walk in Their Space Boots
Walk in Their Space Boots invites students to practise empathy in a playful, imaginative way by literally stepping into someone else’s “space boots.” Through role-play, students explore different feelings, situations, and perspectives, helping them understand that everyone experiences emotions in unique ways. By pretending to be someone else, even just for a moment, students connect with the life skill of empathy, encouraged by Neptune’s message that emotions can be deep and powerful, and understanding them helps us care for one another.
The activity also strengthens kindness, communication, and emotional safety within the group. Students not only share how a character might feel but also practise responding with compassion, supportive words, and gentle understanding. As they switch roles, listen to peers, and talk about feelings, they build social awareness and emotional connection. Walk in Their Space Boots shows children that when we pause, imagine, and listen deeply, we become better friends, teammates, and helpers, just like astronauts supporting each other through the waves of Neptune.
Heart Glasses Craft
Heart Glasses Craft is a creative and meaningful activity that helps students explore empathy by making and decorating their own “heart glasses.” These colourful, heart-shaped glasses become a playful symbol of looking at the world with care, kindness, and understanding. As students design their glasses, they are encouraged to think about what empathy looks like, sharing, helping, listening, and being gentle with others, allowing big emotional concepts to become visible and tangible through art.
Once the glasses are complete, students wear them and participate in imaginative role-play, pretending to see the classroom through “kindness lenses.” They practise noticing others’ feelings, offering help, giving compliments, and thinking about how their actions impact their peers. This activity reinforces perspective-taking in a fun, memorable way and reminds students, just like Neptune teaches in The Playful Astronauts, that empathy grows when we choose to look deeper and see with our hearts.
Mirror Me
Mirror Me builds empathy through movement and shared attention as students take turns leading and copying gentle motions with a partner. By focusing closely on each other's actions, students practise non-verbal communication, compassion, and emotional tuning-in, skills that help them better understand how others feel. The slow, deliberate pace of the mirroring encourages calmness, connection, and mindful listening with the body.
As partners switch roles, students experience what it feels like to guide someone gently and what it feels like to be carefully followed, reinforcing mutual respect and kindness. This activity reminds learners that empathy isn’t just about words, it’s also about noticing, matching energy, and being fully present with another person. Inspired by Neptune’s soft, swirling calm, “Mirror Me” helps students understand that when we slow down and pay attention, we can better understand each other’s emotions and build stronger, more caring relationships.
Caring Boots
Caring Boots is a gentle creative activity that helps students explore empathy by imagining what it feels like to “walk in someone else’s shoes.” Through tracing and decorating their own boots, children reflect on ways they can help, support, and care for others. The activity encourages emotional expression, imagination, and kindness, inviting students to think deeply about how their actions can make others feel safe, valued, and understood. Inspired by Neptune’s emotional depth, the task helps young learners connect the idea of empathy with the everyday steps they take.
As students fill their boot outlines with drawings or words that show caring actions, like helping a friend, listening, sharing, or offering comforting words, they begin to understand how small choices can create big moments of connection. Sharing their “caring boots” with the class reinforces community and gratitude, reminding everyone that empathy isn’t just a feeling; it’s something we carry with us wherever we go.
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