Games or Activities to Teach Empathy

Empathy is the understanding of and identification with others' feelings, motives and situations. An individual who empathizes with others has the ability to put herself in someone else's place and notice when that individual is hurting or sad. While empathy is generally an innate quality, parents and teachers can encourage empathy in children through various games and activities.

  1. Simon Says "Who Are You?"

    • To play "Simon Says" with a twist, take a classroom of students or group of children, and line them up, facing each other. Explain that the children should only respond to the command if the command relates to them. Instruct the children to pay attention because at the end of the game you will ask questions about their classmates. Lead the game by giving commands such as ̶0;everyone who has a dog, stand on one foot,̶1; or ̶0;everyone who has brown eyes, jump up and down.̶1; After completing the game, have the students sit in a circle and ask each student to name one thing he or she has in common with another student.

    Name That Feeling

    • To play "Name That Feeling," sit with the child and name and explain certain feelings such as sad, happy, surprised and mad. After the child understands how to identify feelings from words, begin to make expressions of certain feelings, such as a smile for happy or a frown for sad, and ask the child to name the feeling. Expand the activity by creating flashcards of ̶0;feeling faces̶1; and ask the child to name the feeling that coincides with the facial expression.

    Talking Stick

    • To play talking stick, create and decorate a ̶0;talking stick.̶1; Explain to the children that some Native American tribes use these sticks to allow each person to share his opinions, ideas and feelings with the group. Explain the rules of the talking stick, the person holding the stick speaks and everyone else listens respectfully. He or she then passes the talking stick to the next person. Take turns holding the talking stick and sharing your feelings about your day or about any conflict the child is experiencing.

    Bullying Survey

    • Give an anonymous survey about bullying to a classroom of students. Include questions on the survey that explore the way being bullied or being made fun of makes the students feel. After the students fill out the surveys, collect the surveys, evaluate the results and hold a discussion. Encourage the students to imagine how being bullied feels to gain perspective on the children who experience bullying or teasing.

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