The School of Play Curriculum
Primary School Foundation - Grade Two
Week Thirteen focuses on developing students’ creativity, teamwork, emotional intelligence, and spatial awareness through a diverse range of playful, interactive activities. Students work together to solve problems, express themselves positively, and participate in calming mindfulness experiences. The week encourages them to think creatively, collaborate to overcome challenges, and use reflective practices to understand their emotions and how positive language can shape their mindset. Through guided meditation and collaborative building tasks, students strengthen their ability to focus, communicate, and work harmoniously with classmates.
The activities also highlight the importance of empathy, respect, and recognising personal boundaries. Students explore the power of words in shaping their emotional world, practise mindfulness to build calm and resilience, and learn to respect each other’s physical space to create healthier social interactions. By combining movement, creativity, reflection, and social awareness, Week Thirteen supports students in building essential social-emotional skills while fostering strong, supportive connections within the group.
Weekly Lessons
Tallest Tower
Tallest Tower is a fast, fun teamwork challenge where students work together to design and build the tallest freestanding structure they can using everyday materials. As they experiment with balance, height, and stability, students practise creative problem-solving and learn how to adapt their ideas as the tower grows. The activity encourages flexible thinking, resourcefulness, and strategic decision-making as groups figure out how to best use what they have.
While building, students also develop key collaboration skills, sharing ideas, negotiating plans, and listening to one another to keep the tower standing tall. The short time limit adds excitement and requires teams to stay focused, communicate clearly, and support each other under pressure. Tallest Tower is a brilliant blend of creativity, engineering thinking, and teamwork, leaving students feeling energised, connected, and proud of what they built together.
Respectful Relationships
Communication, Listening & Sharing Ideas
Tallest Tower helps students to:
- Practise clear and respectful communication as they share ideas about how the tower should be built.
- Listen actively to their teammates’ suggestions and consider multiple viewpoints before making decisions.
- Express their own thinking confidently while valuing the contributions of others, strengthening group dialogue.
Cooperation, Teamwork & Positive Peer Interaction
This activity supports students to:
- Work collaboratively toward a shared goal, recognising that success depends on everyone contributing.
- Encourage and support one another, especially when the tower becomes unstable or the group faces challenges.
- Demonstrate positive teamwork behaviours such as compromise, encouragement, turn-taking, and collective problem-solving.
Respect, Fair Play & Shared Responsibility
Through Tallest Tower, students learn to:
- Treat materials, teammates, and space with care, showing respect for shared resources.
- Share roles and responsibilities fairly, ensuring that everyone has the chance to participate meaningfully.
- Celebrate effort and creativity rather than focusing solely on winning, promoting a fair and inclusive environment.
Problem-Solving, Critical Thinking & Managing Challenges
The activity encourages students to:
- Think critically about balance, stability, and structure as they build their tower.
- Persist when their tower wobbles or falls, practising resilience in a low-pressure, playful challenge.
- Stay calm during problem-solving moments, managing frustration and regrouping as a team to try new strategies.
Positive Classroom Climate, Confidence & Creativity
Tallest Tower helps students to:
- Build confidence as they see their ideas come to life in a physical structure.
- Enjoy a sense of achievement through teamwork and creativity, strengthening group morale.
- Create a fun and energetic learning environment where play, experimentation, and shared success are celebrated.
Positive Power Words
Positive Power Words encourages students to explore the uplifting impact of language by identifying words that make them feel happy, strong, or inspired. By choosing five meaningful words and reflecting on why they matter, students begin to recognise the connection between language and emotions. This gentle activity helps them develop emotional awareness as they think about the words that have supported them, encouraged them, or made them feel proud.
Through writing, sharing, and discussing their chosen words, students deepen their understanding of the power of positive language and how it shapes their mindset. Positive Power Words fosters self-esteem, empathy, and reflective thinking, helping students appreciate how simple, encouraging words can brighten their day and influence how they interact with others. It’s a thoughtful, confidence-building activity that strengthens emotional literacy and promotes a positive classroom culture.
Respectful Relationships
Understanding Emotions, Self-Awareness & Personal Identity
Positive Power Words helps students to:
- Recognise how different words influence their emotions, building awareness of what makes them feel calm, confident, or happy.
- Develop a deeper understanding of their own identity by choosing words that reflect their values, strengths, and personal experiences.
- Build emotional literacy as they learn to name and describe positive feelings connected to empowering language.
Communication, Positive Language & Respectful Expression
Through this activity, students learn to:
- Use language in uplifting ways, understanding how positive words can support themselves and others.
- Communicate respectfully by expressing why certain words matter to them, strengthening their ability to share feelings clearly.
- Practise giving and receiving positive expression, contributing to a kind and encouraging classroom culture.
Empathy, Appreciation & Positive Peer Interaction
This activity encourages students to:
- Appreciate that different words hold meaning for different people, building empathy and understanding of diverse experiences.
- Respond positively to peers when they share their chosen words, strengthening social connection and emotional safety.
- Notice the impact that positive language can have on relationships and group well-being.
Confidence, Emotional Regulation & Positive Mindset
Positive Power Words supports students to:
- Build confidence as they identify the words that make them feel strong, capable, or valued.
- Use positive language as a self-regulation strategy, drawing on uplifting words during challenging moments.
- Develop a growth-oriented mindset, focusing on strengths, optimism, and self-belief.
Well-being, Gratitude & Personal Empowerment
This activity helps students to:
- Recognise that positive language contributes to emotional well-being and a hopeful outlook.
- Practise gratitude by reflecting on the words that inspire or support them.
- Feel empowered through intentional use of words that reinforce their strengths and sense of identity.
Reaching for the Clouds Meditation
Reaching for the Clouds Meditation invites students into a calming, imaginative journey designed to help them slow down, breathe deeply, and reconnect with a sense of peace. As they follow the guided story, stepping into a secret garden, greeting colourful balloons, and exploring magical surprises, they learn to anchor their attention in the present moment. Each visualisation encourages gentle relaxation, allowing students to let go of tension while tapping into creativity and wonder. The experience becomes a soothing escape where breaths grow slower, bodies soften, and minds find stillness.
As the meditation unfolds, students picture joyful moments with friends, playful adventures, and lightness as they drift among the clouds. These positive images help cultivate emotional awareness and spark feelings of happiness and connection. After returning to the room, students reflect on what they felt, noticed, and enjoyed, strengthening their understanding of how mindfulness supports calmness and well-being. Reaching for the Clouds Meditation offers a peaceful reset, helping students feel energised, centred, and ready to re-engage with their day.
Respectful Relationships
Emotional Awareness, Mindfulness & Self-Regulation
Reaching for the Clouds Meditation helps students to:
- Calm their minds and bodies through guided breathing and mindfulness practices.
- Notice how different emotions feel in their bodies and begin to identify strategies that help them feel grounded and peaceful.
- Develop self-regulation by practising slow breathing, stillness, and returning their attention to the meditation imagery.
Imagination, Positive Thinking & Well-being
Through this activity, students learn to:
- Use visualisation as a positive coping tool, creating calming or joyful mental images to support emotional well-being.
- Engage their imagination to build inner worlds that feel safe, peaceful, and energising.
- Strengthen a positive mindset by focusing on happy moments, positive emotions, and uplifting experiences.
Social Connection, Empathy & Shared Emotional Experiences
This meditation encourages students to:
- Imagine joyful shared moments with friends, building an emotional sense of connection and belonging.
- Recognise that others may have different calming or happy images, fostering empathy and understanding.
- Share reflections respectfully, listening to peers’ experiences and acknowledging their feelings.
Confidence, Inner Strength & Emotional Resilience
Reaching for the Clouds supports students to:
- Build confidence in their ability to calm themselves during stressful or overwhelming moments.
- Strengthen resilience as they practise returning to peaceful thoughts and images when emotions feel big.
- Feel empowered by realising they can create positive mental spaces anytime they need.
Calm Bodies, Healthy Minds & Emotional Safety
This calming experience helps students to:
- Develop routines that support emotional well-being, such as deep breathing and guided relaxation.
- Feel physically and emotionally safe within a quiet, mindful environment.
- Experience the benefits of slowing down, relaxing their bodies, and noticing how good it feels to rest.
Lucky Roll Swap
Lucky Roll Swap is a fast, friendly dice game that blends chance, kindness, and social connection. As students roll and swap dice, they practise turn-taking, fair play, and the ability to follow rules, all while learning that luck can change at any moment. The game creates a warm atmosphere where every dice roll prompts something positive, such as giving compliments, sharing things they love, expressing gratitude, or naming moments that make them laugh. These simple kindness prompts help students build confidence in using positive language and celebrating others, turning each round into a feel-good moment.
Throughout the game, students learn to stay resilient when luck doesn’t go their way, recognising that some things are out of their control while their attitude and words are not. As they pass dice, swap stories, and cheer each other on, students strengthen their social awareness and emotional skills. Lucky Roll Swap becomes more than a game, it’s a playful way to build community, practise kindness, and enjoy the fun unpredictability of chance.
Respectful Relationships
Communication, Kind Language & Positive Interactions
Lucky Roll Swap helps students to:
- Practise using positive, kind, and encouraging language every time they pass a die.
- Express compliments, gratitude, and shared interests, strengthening communication skills.
- Build confidence in speaking kindly to peers and responding positively to others’ words.
Cooperation, Turn-Taking & Fair Play
This game supports students to:
- Take turns respectfully, follow shared rules, and show patience throughout the game.
- Celebrate others’ success and demonstrate good sportsmanship, even when luck changes the game.
- Engage in a playful social environment where fairness and inclusion guide the experience.
Understanding Emotions, Gratitude & Social Awareness
Through this activity, students learn to:
- Share emotional reflections such as what makes them happy, proud, excited, or grateful.
- Recognise and appreciate supportive actions or kind words from others.
- Develop empathy by hearing meaningful things their peers love, value, or feel thankful for.
Resilience, Managing Uncertainty & Flexible Thinking
Lucky Roll Swap encourages students to:
- Experience chance and unpredictability in a safe, fun setting, building resilience.
- Learn that they cannot control every outcome, but they can choose positive reactions.
- Practise bouncing back from unexpected dice rolls and enjoy the game regardless of outcomes.
Social Connection, Belonging & Group Enjoyment
This activity helps students to:
- Strengthen friendships by sharing joyful, funny, or meaningful personal insights.
- Feel included and valued through positive exchanges during each dice roll.
- Build a happy, connected group culture where kindness is woven naturally into gameplay.
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