The School of Play Curriculum
Primary School Foundation - Grade Two
Key Focus for Year 1–2 Teachers:
At this level, students begin to explore their relationships with themselves and others. They learn to understand their own emotions better, develop empathy, manage problems, and practise fairness and inclusion in real-life situations.
Core Learning Objectives:
- Emotional Literacy
- Enhance students' ability to identify a broader range of emotions.
- Teach how emotions feel in the body and how they change in different situations.
- Help students recognise emotions in others.
- Personal Strengths
- Support students to identify their strengths and those of their classmates.
- Use language that boosts self-confidence and encourages positive self-talk.
- Positive Coping
- Introduce a variety of coping strategies (e.g. deep breathing, going for a walk, talking it out).
- Help students recognise which strategies work best for them.
- Problem-Solving
- Teach step-by-step approaches to resolve social conflicts (e.g. stop, think, choose).
- Encourage role-playing with standard classroom and playground problems.
- Stress Management
- Support students to understand what stress feels like and how to reduce it.
- Use calming techniques as daily classroom routines (e.g. mindfulness, quiet corner).
- Gender and Identity
- Continue to challenge gender stereotypes and promote inclusive behaviours.
- Reinforce that everyone can do anything, no matter their gender.
- Positive Relationships
- Deepen understanding of friendship qualities like kindness, fairness, and honesty.
- Help students learn how to make and repair friendships.
- Help-Seeking
- Practice how to ask for help from adults and peers in a range of scenarios.
- Build confidence in recognising when and how to seek support.
Tips for Teaching at Years 1–2 Level:
- Keep it concrete and playful: Use stories, puppets, games, and visuals to support learning.
- Model healthy relationships: Consistently demonstrate respectful communication and fairness.
- Practice daily: Integrate emotion check-ins, kindness moments, and partner sharing into your routine.
- Name strengths often: Use character strength language in feedback ("That showed persistence!").
- Celebrate differences: Regularly affirm that every student is unique, meaningful, and included.
- Empower with language: Give students the words to name feelings and ask for what they need.
Years 1–2 is all about:
- Understanding emotions
- Celebrating strengths
- Solving problems
- Being a kind friend
- Knowing when to ask for help
Weekly Lessons
Friendship Feelings Dice
Friendship Feelings Dice is a simple, engaging activity that helps students recognise, name, and talk about a wide range of emotions in a safe and supportive way. By rolling the dice and reflecting on different feelings, students build emotional vocabulary and develop a clearer understanding of how emotions influence thoughts, actions, and behaviour in friendships. The shared discussion encourages honesty, self-awareness, and normalises the idea that everyone experiences big feelings at different times.
Through guided sharing and supportive responses, students practise empathy by thinking about how they can help a friend who is feeling a particular emotion. The activity creates space for kindness, perspective-taking, and compassionate problem-solving, strengthening positive relationships within the group. Friendship Feelings Dice supports emotional literacy while reinforcing the importance of noticing others’ feelings and responding with care, making it a powerful tool for building respectful, connected classrooms.
Respectful Relationships
Emotional Awareness & Vocabulary
This activity supports students to:
- Recognise and name a wide range of emotions.
- Build a shared language for talking about feelings.
- Increase self-awareness through emotional reflection.
Understanding Emotions in Relationships
Students are supported to:
- Explore how emotions influence behaviour and actions.
- Recognise that feelings affect how friendships work.
- Understand that emotions are a normal part of social interactions.
Empathy & Perspective-Taking
Through guided discussion, students learn to:
- Consider how a friend might feel in different situations.
- Recognise that others may experience similar emotions differently.
- Develop empathy by listening to peers’ experiences.
Kindness & Supportive Responses
This activity encourages students to:
- Think of caring and helpful ways to support friends.
- Practise offering kindness during emotional moments.
- Develop strategies for being a supportive friend.
Respectful Listening & Turn-Taking
Students practise:
- Taking turns when sharing personal experiences.
- Listening attentively without interrupting.
- Responding thoughtfully and respectfully to others.
Emotional Regulation & Coping
The game helps students to:
- Reflect on what helps them manage strong emotions.
- Share calming or helpful strategies with peers.
- Learn that emotions can be supported and regulated.
Positive Friendship Skills
Students develop skills to:
- Strengthen friendships through understanding and care.
- Build trust by sharing feelings in a safe space.
- Encourage positive, supportive peer interactions.
Safe & Supportive Classroom Culture
“Friendship Feelings Dice” helps create:
- A classroom environment where feelings are openly discussed.
- Emotional safety when sharing personal experiences.
- A culture of empathy, kindness, and mutual respect.
Strengths Superheroes
Strengths Superheroes is a creative, confidence-building activity that helps students recognise what they’re good at and see themselves as capable, valuable contributors to their community. By identifying a personal strength and turning it into a superhero power, students engage in positive self-reflection and begin to understand how their strengths show up in real-life situations to help themselves and others.
Working in small teams, students also learn to notice, name, and appreciate the strengths of their peers. Through collaborative comic-strip storytelling, they discover that problems are best solved when different strengths work together. This reinforces empathy, inclusion, and teamwork, while sending a powerful message: everyone has something important to offer. Strengths: Superheroes builds self-belief, celebrates diversity, and helps students see that kindness, courage, creativity, and care are real-life superpowers worth sharing.
Respectful Relationships
Strengths Awareness & Identity
This activity supports students to:
- Identify and name their own personal strengths.
- Develop a positive sense of self and identity.
- Build confidence through recognising what they do well.
Valuing Diversity & Difference
Students are supported to:
- Notice that everyone has different strengths.
- Appreciate that strengths can look different in different people.
- Understand that diversity strengthens groups and friendships.
Empathy & Strength Recognition in Others
Through sharing and discussion, students learn to:
- Recognise and name strengths in their peers.
- Show appreciation for others’ abilities and qualities.
- Build empathy by seeing classmates in a positive light.
Collaboration & Teamwork
This activity encourages students to:
- Work together toward a shared creative goal.
- Combine different strengths to solve problems.
- Practise cooperation and shared decision-making.
Problem-Solving in Relationships
Students develop skills to:
- Apply strengths to real-life peer and relationship scenarios.
- Explore positive ways to resolve conflict or exclusion.
- Understand how teamwork leads to respectful solutions.
Respectful Communication
Students practise:
- Speaking confidently about themselves in a supportive space.
- Listening respectfully when others share their strengths.
- Using positive language when giving feedback to peers.
Kindness & Prosocial Behaviour
The activity promotes:
- Using strengths to help others.
- Understanding how kindness and care improve relationships.
- Seeing strengths as tools for positive social impact.
Positive Classroom Culture & Belonging
“Strengths Superheroes” helps create:
- A classroom culture that celebrates individual and collective strengths.
- Increased feelings of belonging and inclusion.
- A safe environment where students feel valued and recognised.
Empathy Charades
Empathy Charades is a playful, movement-based activity that helps students tune into how others might be feeling in everyday situations. By acting out emotions using only body language and facial expressions, students learn to recognise emotional cues and practise perspective-taking in a safe, engaging way. This builds emotional awareness and helps students understand that feelings can be communicated without words.
The real power of the activity comes in the discussion that follows. As students talk about what the person in the scenario might need and how they could help, they practise naming kind, respectful, and supportive responses. Empathy Charades encourages students to slow down, notice others, and think before they act, laying strong foundations for empathy, positive relationships, and a caring classroom culture.
Respectful Relationships
Empathy & Perspective-Taking
This activity supports students to:
- Recognise how others may feel in different situations.
- Practise seeing situations from another person’s point of view.
- Develop an understanding that emotions can differ between people.
Emotional Awareness & Literacy
Students are supported to:
- Identify and name a range of emotions.
- Use body language and facial expressions to communicate feelings.
- Build vocabulary to talk about emotions clearly and safely.
Non-Verbal Communication Skills
Through charades, students learn to:
- Interpret emotions without spoken language.
- Notice cues such as posture, movement, and facial expression.
- Understand that feelings are often shown through actions, not words.
Compassionate & Supportive Responses
This activity encourages students to:
- Think about what someone might need when they feel a certain way.
- Suggest kind, respectful ways to support others.
- Link empathy with positive, caring actions.
Respectful Discussion & Listening
Students practise:
- Listening attentively to others’ ideas and perspectives.
- Waiting their turn and responding respectfully.
- Sharing thoughts in a safe, supportive group environment.
Social Problem-Solving
Students develop skills to:
- Reflect on everyday peer and school scenarios.
- Explore solutions that promote care and inclusion.
- Understand how empathy can prevent conflict and exclusion.
Inclusion & Belonging
The activity promotes:
- Awareness of how actions impact others’ feelings.
- A sense of shared responsibility for classmates’ well-being.
- Inclusive behaviours that help everyone feel seen and valued.
Positive Classroom Culture
“Empathy Charades” helps create:
- A classroom environment where emotions are recognised and respected.
- Increased confidence in expressing and discussing feelings.
- Stronger peer relationships are built on understanding and kindness.
The Problem-Solving Playground
The Problem-Solving Playground gives students a safe, playful space to explore the kinds of social challenges they commonly experience at school. By identifying everyday problems and acting them out, students learn to clearly name what’s happening, recognise how others might feel, and see that problems can be approached in more than one way. This builds confidence in talking about tricky moments rather than avoiding them.
Through collaboration and role-play, students practise listening to different ideas, using respectful language, and choosing fair, kind actions to resolve conflict. Replaying scenarios with positive solutions helps students rehearse real-life skills they can use in the playground and classroom. The Problem-Solving Playground strengthens empathy, communication, and teamwork, supporting students to become thoughtful, capable problem-solvers in their everyday interactions.
Respectful Relationships
Problem Identification & Awareness
This activity supports students to:
- Recognise common playground and classroom social problems.
- Clearly describe what is happening in a given situation.
- Develop awareness that everyday challenges can be solved respectfully.
Collaborative Problem-Solving
Students are supported to:
- Work together to generate possible solutions.
- Listen to and build on others’ ideas.
- Understand that shared thinking leads to fairer outcomes.
Respectful Communication
Through role-play and discussion, students learn to:
- Use kind, calm, and respectful language.
- Practise sentence starters that support positive communication.
- Express needs and ideas without blaming or escalating conflict.
Empathy & Perspective-Taking
This activity encourages students to:
- Consider how different people might feel in the same situation.
- Reflect on the impact of actions on others.
- Choose responses that show care and understanding.
Fairness & Turn-Taking
Students develop an understanding of:
- The importance of sharing, waiting, and taking turns.
- How fairness helps everyone feel safe and included.
- Making compromises when there are competing needs.
Positive Behaviour Choices
Students are guided to:
- Explore alternatives to unkind or impulsive actions.
- Practise calm responses during moments of conflict.
- Rehearse behaviours they can use in real-life situations.
Confidence in Social Situations
The activity supports students to:
- Feel more confident handling social challenges.
- Practise speaking up in a safe, supported environment.
- Build trust in their ability to resolve problems respectfully.
Classroom & Playground Culture
“The Problem-Solving Playground” helps create:
- A shared language for resolving conflicts.
- A culture where problems are seen as solvable.
- Stronger peer relationships are built on respect, empathy, and cooperation.
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