About Game on

 The ‘Game On’ kids initiative is a fantastic and well-rounded approach to helping children grow in social, emotional, and cognitive areas. It’s great that the program uses therapeutic board and card games, which can be such an effective and engaging way for kids to develop essential life skills. By encouraging kids to make decisions, interact with their peers, and work through challenges (like winning or losing), you’re fostering both personal growth and social learning.

I love that the program takes a Person-Centered approach, focusing on building strong relationships between the children. That individualized attention can be so impactful in helping kids feel seen, heard, and supported. I’m sure the group dynamic offers a unique opportunity for them to learn from one another as well.

Social skills are behaviour’s that help children interact with others and build relationships. Some examples of social skills include: 

• Sharing: A necessary part of daily social interactions 
• Listening: An important skill that involves actively listening to others 
• Following  directions: Involves listening to instructions, understanding expectations, and acting on them 
• Empathy: Understanding and sharing the feelings of others 
• Using manners: Saying "please" and "thank you" and  asking politely 
• Conflict resolution: Recognizing emotions, identifying the source of a problem,  and brainstorming solutions 
• Patience: Controlling  emotions and responses to challenging situations 
• Eye contact: Showing that you are listening and engaged in a social situation 
• Communication skills: Creating a comfortable conversational atmosphere and      building rapport 

During games stories are often shared while creating great open discussion points to help your child’s development in many ways. Children tend to learn more from each other by interacting and engaging with children their own age. 

Board games can help children develop a variety of skills, including: 

1. Social skills

Board games can help children develop a sense of community and closeness, whether they're competing or working together. 

2. Cognitive skills

Board games can help children develop strategic thinking, problem-solving, critical reasoning, and logical deduction. 

3. Language development

Board games with reading components can help children expand their vocabulary, reading comprehension, and language skills. 

4. Fine and gross motor skills

Board games can help children develop hand-eye coordination and dexterity, which are important for handwriting, typing, sewing, and science experiments. 

5. Critical thinking

Board games can help children develop critical thinking skills, especially when combined with metacognition. 

6. Learning

Board games can make learning fun and help children learn numbers, shapes, colors, and words. 

7. Creativity and imagination

Some board games can stimulate creativity and imaginative thinking through storytelling. 

8. Self-esteem

Board games can help children boost their self-esteem

Do you have a favourite game or type of game that seems to work especially well in helping children connect and develop these skills? Or are there particular skills that often emerge as being especially important for the kids in the program?