The School of Play Curriculum
Primary School Foundation - Grade Two
Week Eight offers students a dynamic blend of physical movement, gratitude, kindness, and imaginative play. High-energy games like Left, Right, Up, or Down and The Amazing Bank Robbery keep students active through fast-paced movement challenges that build coordination, quick decision-making, and teamwork. These activities blend fitness with fun storytelling, helping students stay energised while engaging their imaginations and working cooperatively with peers. Alongside these physical tasks, the week also encourages reflection on kindness and gratitude through calm, meaningful experiences.
Emotional and social development is strengthened through Kindness Starts with Me and 5 Senses of Gratitude, which help students recognise their emotions, reflect on what they appreciate, and express themselves creatively. Students explore the impact of kind behaviour, practise empathy, and express gratitude through art and discussion, building a stronger sense of connection within the group. Together, the week’s activities promote a balance of fitness, cooperation, creativity, and emotional well-being, creating an environment where students feel active, thoughtful, and connected.
Weekly Lessons
Left, Right, Up, or Down
Left, Right, Up, or Down is a fast, energetic partner game that blends sharp thinking with quick physical reactions. Students must listen carefully, respond instantly, and match (or mis-match!) their partner’s directional cues by moving their head or pointing a finger. Each round is short, lively, and unpredictable, keeping both players engaged as they swap roles, respond to sudden directions, and complete fun exercise challenges along the way. The game encourages physical movement, boosts coordination, and gives students plenty of chances to laugh, reset, and try again.
This activity also strengthens social skills, as students cheer each other on, practise good sportsmanship, and enjoy friendly competition in a safe, supportive environment. Whether played in place or with a 10-metre run-up, the simple mechanics make it easy to adapt for different ages and energy levels. Left, Right, Up, or Down is perfect as a warm-up, movement break, or end-of-session energiser, promoting teamwork, active participation, and a big dose of playful fun.
Respectful Relationships
Communication, Listening & Following Directions
Left, Right, Up, or Down helps students to:
- Practise active listening, responding quickly and accurately to a partner’s instructions.
- Develop body awareness, matching movements to verbal cues with increasing confidence.
- Improve focus and attention, especially under fast-paced and playful conditions.
Cooperation, Teamwork & Positive Peer Interaction
This game supports students to:
- Work respectfully with a partner, taking turns fairly and responding kindly to each other’s efforts.
- Encourage and support their partner, building positive social connections through play.
- Understand friendly competition, learning how to win and lose with kindness and good sportsmanship.
Respect, Fair Play & Shared Rules
Through this activity, students learn to:
- Stick to agreed rules, ensuring fairness and safety while playing.
- Show respect during gameplay, including honest participation and encouraging language.
- Create a fun, inclusive atmosphere, where everyone feels welcome to join and try their best.
Self-Regulation, Confidence & Managing Quick Decisions
Left, Right, Up, or Down encourages students to:
- Stay calm and think quickly, managing the excitement and speed of the game.
- Bounce back after mistakes, practising resilience in a low-stakes, playful setting.
- Build confidence, celebrating small successes and enjoying the physical challenges.
Movement, Physical Well-Being & Active Engagement
This activity helps students to:
- Stay physically active, moving their bodies through jumping, running, spinning, and direction changes.
- Improve coordination and reflexes, responding to rapid movement cues.
- Experience joy through movement, linking fitness with fun, connection, and laughter.
Kindness Starts with Me
Kindness Starts with Me is a simple but powerful reflective activity that helps students identify the small, everyday actions they can take to show kindness. Whether writing or drawing their ideas, students explore how they can help, encourage, or support someone in their life. The activity invites them to think intentionally about what kindness looks like in action, sharing, helping, complimenting, including others, and to recognise that even one small choice can positively impact someone’s day.
Students then reflect on how their kindness will make others feel, as well as how being kind makes them feel. This builds empathy, emotional awareness, and a sense of agency. Through optional sharing or class discussions, students learn that kindness comes in many forms and that everyone has the power to contribute to a caring community. Kindness Starts with Me is a warm, reflective activity that strengthens relationships, boosts confidence, and encourages students to make kindness a daily habit.
Respectful Relationships
Emotional Literacy & Understanding Feelings
Kindness Starts with Me supports students to:
- Recognise how their actions can make others feel, building awareness of positive and caring emotions.
- Learn to name and describe feelings connected to kindness, such as happiness, pride, or gratitude.
- Understand the emotional impact kindness has on themselves and others, strengthening empathy.
Communication, Kind Words & Positive Expression
This activity encourages students to:
- Use kind words or drawings to express thoughtful intentions toward others.
- Share their ideas confidently, explaining how they plan to be kind and why it matters.
- Practise positive communication that helps others feel valued, included, and supported.
Cooperation, Relationships & Social Awareness
Kindness Starts with Me helps students to:
- Notice opportunities to help, support, or uplift others in everyday situations.
- Build stronger relationships by thinking about what others need and how they can contribute positively.
- Understand that small acts of kindness help create a caring, connected classroom community.
Respect, Fairness & Valuing Others
Through this activity, students learn to:
- Treat others with kindness, understanding, and fairness through their chosen actions.
- Consider how their behaviour affects peers, and choose actions that make others feel safe and respected.
- Celebrate diversity by recognising that kindness looks different for everyone and can be shown in many ways.
Self-Regulation, Confidence & Emotional Well-Being
Kindness Starts with Me encourages students to:
- Reflect on how being kind makes them feel, building self-awareness and emotional resilience.
- Make thoughtful choices, even when kindness requires effort or patience.
- Boost their confidence by seeing the positive impact they have on others.
Personal Strengths, Identity & Positive Actions
This activity supports students to:
- Recognise kindness as one of their personal strengths and something they can choose every day.
- Identify simple, meaningful actions that reflect their character and values.
- Understand that kindness contributes to a positive sense of self and to the well-being of others.
The Amazing Bank Robbery
The Amazing Bank Robbery is a fast-paced, story-driven movement adventure that gets students fully immersed in an action-packed escape. As they sprint from the bank, hide behind walls, dodge lasers, and dive into icy water, students stay active through a wide range of fun exercises like high knees, lunges, squat holds, jabs, and burpees. The excitement of the chase keeps them engaged, while the narrative gives purpose to every movement, turning fitness into a thrilling game of imagination, teamwork, and quick reactions.
Throughout the adventure, students are encouraged to embrace their creativity by stepping into the role of a daring robber trying to outsmart the police. The focus is on participation, enthusiasm, and completing each challenge with energy and confidence. The Amazing Bank Robbery is perfect as a warm-up, fitness burst, or end-of-session adventure, offering a playful blend of physical activity, coordination, and storytelling that keeps students moving and smiling the whole way through.
Respectful Relationships
Communication, Listening & Following Directions
The Amazing Bank Robbery helps students to:
- Practise active listening by responding instantly to movement cues throughout the adventure.
- Follow multi-step instructions as they transition between jogging, squatting, lunging, planking, and jumping.
- Strengthen focus and body awareness while keeping track of fast-paced story changes and physical actions.
Cooperation, Teamwork & Positive Peer Interaction
This movement adventure supports students to:
- Work positively alongside peers as they move through the story together, matching pacing and actions.
- Encourage one another during more challenging movements (planks, burpees, mountain climbers), building a fun, supportive atmosphere.
- Share imaginative play respectfully, celebrating each other’s creativity and engagement in the story.
Respect, Fair Play & Shared Rules
Through this high-energy activity, students learn to:
- Follow shared rules that keep everyone safe, such as staying in personal space and transitioning smoothly between movements.
- Show respect by participating honestly, taking turns if required, and cheering on classmates.
- Create an inclusive adventure environment where all students can participate at their own pace while still feeling part of the story.
Self-Regulation, Confidence & Managing Quick Decisions
The Amazing Bank Robbery encourages students to:
- Manage excitement and regulate their energy as the story shifts between fast running, stillness, and intense exercises.
- Build confidence by completing challenging physical tasks and celebrating small successes throughout the adventure.
- Practise quick decision-making as they react to story cues such as hiding, escaping, swimming, or running.
Movement, Physical Well-Being & Active Engagement
This adventure helps students to:
- Stay physically active through a wide range of exercises, squats, lunges, burpees, mountain climbers, planks, sit-ups, and more.
- Improve coordination, endurance, and strength while engaging in imaginative movement.
- Link movement with joy and play, reinforcing that fitness can be exciting, story-driven, and fun.
5 Senses of Gratitude
5 Senses of Gratitude invites students to slow down and notice the little things that bring joy into their world. By tracing their hand and using each finger to explore one of the five senses, students reflect on the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures they love most. This simple creative task helps them tune into everyday moments, like the smell of fresh cookies, the sound of laughter, or the feel of a soft blanket, and recognise these sensory experiences as sources of comfort and happiness. It’s a gentle way to build gratitude and emotional awareness through art and imagination.
As students draw, write, and share their reflections, they naturally deepen their sense of connection, both to their own feelings and to the people they love sharing these experiences with. The handprint becomes a colourful snapshot of what makes life feel rich and meaningful, and sharing it with classmates or family turns gratitude into something social and uplifting. 5 Senses of Gratitude is a beautifully simple activity that blends mindfulness, creativity, and positive connection, helping students build a grateful mindset through the sensory joys of everyday life.
Respectful Relationships
Communication, Listening & Following Directions
5 Senses of Gratitude helps students to:
- Follow clear instructions as they trace, label, draw, and reflect within their handprint template.
- Build expressive communication by describing sensory experiences and sharing what they love.
- Listen actively when peers share their sensory moments, strengthening respectful classroom dialogue.
Cooperation, Teamwork & Positive Peer Interaction
This activity supports students to:
- Share their sensory reflections with a partner, class, or family member, building warm and meaningful social connections.
- Celebrate each other’s creations, practising positive feedback and kindness through conversation.
- Learn about others’ interests, strengthening empathy and a sense of belonging within the group.
Respect, Fair Play & Shared Rules
Through this reflective creative task, students learn to:
- Respect each person’s choices and unique sensory experiences without judgment.
- Take turns to speak, listen, and share in a calm, supportive environment.
- Honour shared expectations such as using materials appropriately and creating a safe, inclusive space for self-expression.
Self-Regulation, Confidence & Emotional Awareness
5 Senses of Gratitude encourages students to:
- Slow down and notice the positive details in their world, building mindfulness and emotional awareness.
- Recognise how sensory experiences contribute to feelings of comfort, joy, excitement, or calm.
- Feel confident sharing personal reflections, strengthening emotional expression and self-esteem.
Well-Being, Gratitude & Positive Outlook
This activity helps students to:
- Develop a gratitude mindset by identifying small, meaningful moments linked to their senses.
- Understand how noticing positive experiences can improve their mood and mental well-being.
- Create a visual reminder of what brings them joy, reinforcing positivity and appreciation in daily life.
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