The School of Play Curriculum
Primary School Foundation - Grade Two
Week Twenty-Four brings together teamwork, empathy, creativity, and movement in a series of playful, meaningful activities. Students begin with Human Alphabet, a fun challenge that requires cooperation, communication, and problem-solving as they work together to form letters and words using their bodies. Tag with a Twist adds fast-paced excitement, helping students build agility, resilience, and cardiovascular fitness through physical challenges that keep the whole group active and engaged. These activities encourage students to think creatively, work unitedly, and support one another as they collaborate and move.
The week also highlights kindness, self-reflection, and empathy through tasks designed to nurture emotional awareness and positive social behaviours. My Friendship Pledge invites students to reflect on the qualities of a good friend and make personal commitments to kindness and support. Empathy Heart Tags gives students a chance to express acts of kindness and compassion, creating a visual celebration of empathy across the classroom. Together, these activities build an environment where students feel connected, valued, and motivated to be considerate peers, while also strengthening their communication, emotional intelligence, and sense of community.
Weekly Lessons
Human Alphabet
Human Alphabet is a lively blend of movement, teamwork, and literacy, giving students the chance to use their whole bodies to learn and create together. By forming letters and words physically, students strengthen their letter recognition while also practising cooperation and problem-solving. As they twist, stretch, and balance to make different shapes, they naturally build communication skills, figuring out how to position themselves, adjust their movements, and support one another. Beginning with simple individual letters and progressing to whole-group word formations allows every student to experience success while also rising to new challenges.
As the activity develops into forming longer words, phrases, or even full sentences, students discover the power of teamwork and collective creativity. They learn to negotiate roles, listen to ideas, and coordinate movements with their peers, all while staying active and engaged. The shared sense of accomplishment that comes from completing more complex formations reinforces the value of collaboration. Human Alphabet turns literacy into a physical adventure, fun, energising, and deeply connected to social learning, making it an excellent warm-up, team-building task, or playful learning activity for any classroom.
Respectful Relationships
Communication, Listening & Following Directions
Human Alphabet helps students to:
- Listen carefully to instructions and respond quickly to form letters and words.
- Communicate clearly with peers to decide on positioning, spacing, and movement.
- Practise giving and receiving helpful directions in a supportive way while staying focused on the shared task.
Cooperation, Teamwork & Positive Peer Interaction
This game supports students to:
- Work respectfully with others to physically form letters and words, relying on cooperation and shared responsibility.
- Encourage peers, solve problems together, and celebrate each group's success.
- Build trust and connection as students negotiate roles, positions, and actions required to complete each challenge.
Respect, Inclusiveness & Shared Rules
Through this activity, students learn to:
- Include all peers by ensuring every person has a meaningful role when forming letters or words.
- Follow shared expectations for safe, respectful body movement and group organisation.
- Create an environment where everyone feels valued and supported during teamwork tasks.
Self-Regulation, Confidence & Managing Challenges
Human Alphabet encourages students to:
- Stay calm, patient, and adaptable when working through physically and mentally challenging tasks.
- Build confidence by expressing creativity and contributing unique ideas to the group.
- Bounce back from mistakes, try again with new strategies, and enjoy the playful challenge without pressure.
Movement, Physical Well-Being & Active Engagement
This activity helps students to:
- Move their bodies in fun and imaginative ways while building coordination, balance, and spatial awareness.
- Experience joy through active participation, creative problem-solving, and playful exploration.
- Engage in a dynamic group task that connects physical movement with literacy in an energising, screen-free format.
My Friendship Tree
My Friendship Tree invites students to reflect on the qualities that make friendships meaningful while celebrating the people who bring joy, support, and laughter into their lives. By listing friends from different parts of their world, school, sports teams, neighbourhoods, or family, they begin to see how unique each friendship is. As they draw their Friendship Tree and place their friends on branches, students think about the traits that make each person special, whether it’s kindness, honesty, humour, or empathy. This creative process not only reinforces positive friendship qualities but also encourages students to appreciate the diversity and strengths of the people around them.
Through writing and drawing, students express their own understanding of what it means to be a good friend and reflect on how they can show kindness, support, and care in their daily interactions. Sharing their trees with classmates opens the door to meaningful conversations about empathy, respect, and belonging. My Friendship Tree becomes more than an art activity, it acts as a gentle guide for building stronger, more thoughtful connections, helping students recognise the importance of nurturing friendships with kindness and intentionality.
Respectful Relationships
Understanding Positive Relationships & Friendship Skills
This activity helps students to:
- Identify the qualities that make a positive, supportive friendship (e.g., kindness, honesty, empathy, fun, trust).
- Recognise the behaviours that strengthen friendships, including listening, sharing, helping, and including others.
- Reflect on what makes each of their friendships unique and meaningful.
Empathy, Kindness & Caring for Others
Through the Friendship Tree, students learn to:
- Think about how their actions affect their friends emotionally and socially.
- Describe ways they can show kindness and support to the people they care about.
- Appreciate the different strengths, personalities, and positive qualities their friends bring into their lives.
Identity, Self-Worth & Respect for Self and Others
This activity supports students to:
- Reflect on themselves as good friends by recognising the qualities they bring to relationships.
- Build self-awareness by identifying the values and behaviours they believe are important in friendships.
- Understand that respecting others begins with understanding and respecting their own feelings and expectations in relationships.
Communication, Collaboration & Sharing Experiences
"My Friendship Tree" encourages students to:
- Engage in discussions about friendship qualities and respectful behaviours during the class brainstorm.
- Share their Friendship Trees with peers, practising confidence, communication, and respectful listening.
- Celebrate the diversity of friendships within the group, building a stronger, more connected classroom community.
Emotional Literacy, Reflection & Positive Relationship Habits
Through this activity, students are guided to:
- Reflect on the emotions connected to friendship, joy, safety, trust, and belonging.
- Articulate how they will continue to show kindness, support, and respect in their friendships.
- Build lifelong habits of gratitude, appreciation, and positive relationship maintenance.
Tag with a Twist
Tag with a Twist turns a classic playground favourite into a high-energy fitness game that builds speed, agility, resilience, and social connection. Students sprint, dodge, and weave to avoid being tagged by “it,” keeping their heart rate up and working on quick reflexes and coordination. When tagged, they don’t sit out, instead, they complete a short physical challenge (like star jumps, push-ups, or hopping on one foot), give a positive compliment to a peer, and jump straight back into the action. This keeps everyone constantly moving while reinforcing positive attitudes, persistence, and confidence.
As the game progresses, new twists, extra “it” players, harder exercises, or temporary safe zones, keep students thinking strategically and moving creatively. Players practise bouncing back after setbacks, working together to keep the game fun, and celebrating one another through active encouragement and compliments. Tag with a Twist turns fitness into play, helping students build stamina, teamwork, and resilience, all while having a blast.
Respectful Relationships
Understanding Positive Relationships & Social Awareness
This activity helps students to:
- Recognise how their behaviour impacts others during play, including fairness, encouragement, and positive sportsmanship.
- Understand the importance of working together to create a safe, fun, and respectful play environment.
- Build awareness of group dynamics and how their actions (e.g., compliments, teamwork) can uplift others.
Emotional Literacy, Resilience & Help-Seeking
Through Tag with a Twist, students learn to:
- Develop resilience by re-entering the game positively after being tagged, practising emotional regulation and persistence.
- Understand that setbacks (like being tagged) are temporary and manageable, reinforcing coping skills and a growth mindset.
- Offer and receive positive emotional support by giving compliments before rejoining the game, building confidence and classroom morale.
Social Skills: Respect, Kindness, Inclusion & Positive Interactions
This activity teaches students to:
- Interact kindly by giving a high five and a compliment each time they return to the game, reinforcing respectful and uplifting communication.
- Include others in the game by encouraging fair play and ensuring everyone feels valued and safe.
- Practise collaborative responsibility by helping create a fun, positive environment through encouraging peers and following shared rules.
Teamwork, Cooperation & Relationship Building
Students strengthen their relationships by:
- Working as a group to maintain an energetic but safe play environment.
- Supporting each other through the game's physical and social challenges.
- Communicating effectively with peers, whether chasing, being chased, or rejoining the game, promoting cooperative play and shared enjoyment.
Self-Awareness, Body Awareness & Personal Responsibility
Tag with a Twist guides students to:
- Make responsible choices about how they move, keep themselves safe, and respect other people’s space.
- Recognise their physical and emotional responses during fast-paced play and reflect on their strategies.
- Build awareness of their strengths, perseverance, and ability to regulate emotions under energetic conditions.
Empathy Heart Tags
Empathy Heart Tags gives students a gentle, feel-good way to recognise the kindness they’ve already shown and to see the impact of empathy within their classroom community. By reflecting on a thoughtful action they’ve taken, whether it’s helping a friend, offering a kind word, or supporting someone who needed it, students turn their positive behaviour into a heart-shaped tag that represents care in action. As they decorate their tags, they’re not just crafting something colourful; they’re creating a personal symbol of empathy and the difference they make in the lives of others.
Once all the hearts are displayed on an “Empathy Wall,” the classroom transforms into a visual celebration of kindness. Students can walk past and see how empathy shapes the atmosphere they share, building a sense of belonging and emotional warmth. Whether they create a heart about something they’ve done or exchange one with a partner to recognise kindness they’ve received, the activity strengthens connection and encourages students to extend empathy beyond the task. Empathy Heart Tags becomes both a moment of reflection and a reminder that small, caring actions help create a classroom where everyone feels supported and valued.
Respectful Relationships
Understanding Positive Relationships & Social Awareness
This activity helps students to:
- Recognise how empathy strengthens relationships and contributes to a warm, supportive classroom environment.
- Understand the emotional impact their kind actions can have on others.
- Build awareness of the social and emotional needs of peers by reflecting on how they show care.
Emotional Literacy, Empathy & Personal Reflection
Through Empathy Heart Tags, students learn to:
- Reflect on real moments where they acted with kindness or understanding, developing self-awareness and emotional insight.
- Express these emotions creatively, reinforcing the internal connection between feelings, actions, and empathy.
- Consider how small gestures make others feel seen, valued, and supported.
Social Skills: Respect, Kindness, Inclusion & Positive Interactions
This activity teaches students to:
- Share their affirming and caring behaviours in a respectful, positive way.
- Strengthen social bonds by acknowledging kindness, both given and received.
- Practise speaking kindly about themselves and others, fostering a culture of appreciation and inclusion.
Community Building, Connection & Relationship Strengthening
Students strengthen their relationships by:
- Contributing to a collective Empathy Wall that visually represents kindness across the classroom.
- Celebrating each other’s acts of care, which deepens trust and connection among the group.
- Participating in a class environment where empathy is recognised, valued, and practised regularly.
Self-Awareness, Identity & Positive Behaviour Choices
Empathy Heart Tags helps students to:
- Identify the kinds of behaviours they value in themselves and want to show more often.
- Recognise their ability to bring kindness into relationships through everyday choices.
- Take pride in their empathic actions, supporting the development of a positive self-identity grounded in kindness and care.
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