In this adapted version of the postman game, children “deliver” emotional messages to each other. The messages contain emotional situations, and the receiver must guess and react to the emotion, helping the group learn to name, interpret, and empathize with various feelings.
Skill focus/goal(s):
The primary development focus is:
Complementary/Secondary Skill Focus:
How to play – The proposed step-by-step implementation of the game
1. Preparation: the teacher prepares a set of small cards, each containing a short emotional scenario (e.g., “You’ve lost your favorite toy”, “Your friend gave you a surprise gift”, “You have to speak in front of the class”). These are folded and placed in a bag or envelope.
2. Form the group: children sit in a circle. One child is selected to be the Postman and stands in the middle holding the envelope or bag with the emotion scenario cards.
3. Delivering the letter: the Postman walks around the circle, stops at a random child, and says: “A letter for you!” They hand the child one card from the bag.
4. Reading and acting: the selected child reads the card silently, thinks about how the character might feel, and then acts out the emotion without saying the emotion’s name. They can use:
- facial expressions
- gestures or posture
- a short phrase (e.g., “Why did this happen to me?”)
5. Guessing the emotion: the rest of the group watches carefully and tries to guess:
- What emotion is being expressed?
- What might have caused it?
6. Confirmation and reflection: once the correct emotion is guessed, the child confirms it and may choose to add a comment like:
“Yes, I was nervous because everyone was looking at me.”
7. New round: a new Postman is selected, and the game continues with another delivery.
8. Extension (optional): As the game progresses, the teacher can:
- introduce more complex or mixed emotions
- encourage brief group reflections on how emotions are expressed and recognised