On today’s episode, my focus is all games. I talk about all the different social skills kids practice when they play board games and card games. Did you know that by simply playing a game, kids work on…

Inside: a list of social skills, both external (interacting with others) and internal (your inner thoughts & feelings) with playful ways to practice them.

Recently I went to a symposium on play where Stuart Brown, author of Play: How it Shapes the Mind, Opens the Imagination and Invigorates the Soul, was speaking. I took off my mom yoga pants and put on real ones, drove to the symposium and sat down at a table. I pretended that I'm not an introvert and started talking to my neighbor. After I gave her my 30 second description of Encourage Play, she said “that sounds great but what does that really mean?”

Inside: 10 fun and enjoyable social skills group activities designed to help kids learn through play. Perfect for social skills group centers or for groups at school.

What kid has ever wanted to attend a social skills group? I’ve never heard a kid say “Yes, please sign me up for a group where you point out how awkward I am and then make me talk about it.”

When was the last time your were desperate for something, then you had to wait what felt like forever for it? It happened to me two days ago. And it was all over...wait for it...an elusive cup of coffee.

You’ve just come home from a bad day at work. All you want to do is talk about what happened with someone, to get a different perspective and maybe even some advice. You start talking, but this happens:

“Mommy, you be a cop and we’ll be the robbers! We’re running away and taking your money!”

Lately, my kids have been playing cops and robbers. They’re always looking for new items to “steal”, and then they run to their robber’s fort (aka under our dining room table). My husband and I are the cops. We look for clues to track the robbers, and then we usually have a little exchange ---

Children (and people in general) have to take turns all the time. Children take turns when they play games like checkers or four square, while they participate in a class discussion, or during a conversation. Adults have to wait and take turns too - in meetings, in stores and when driving. Taking turns, and in particular, waiting for the time when it’s your turn, can be frustrating. It’s good to practice turn taking, because it happens all the time.

From the other room, you hear “MooOOOm, I can’t find anything to play with!!” Then you walk into a playroom filled with toys and a 7 year old who has their cranky pants on.

How many times have you experienced something similar? Your children have all these toys and they just don’t play with anything. It’s mind boggling, really. Let’s break it down and try to make it a little easier.

It’s a rainy fall afternoon. The children have a day off, and they’ve been busy creating, playing and arguing all morning. It’s the perfect day to put on a movie, get some popcorn (and warm coffee for the adults) and snuggle in bed.

“I want to watch this!”  says my daughter, pointing to one of the titles displayed on the screen.