Teaching Emotional Intelligence: 5 Fun Games That Help Kids Express Feelings

Emotional intelligence isn’t just a buzzword; it’s an essential life skill every child will benefit from. Learning to identify, express, and manage their emotions is just as crucial as learning to tie their shoes or count to ten. But here’s the kicker: Children don’t learn emotional literacy through lectures; they learn best through unstructured free play. Play allows children the experience of feeling emotions and the practice of tolerating them to develop self-control.

As nannies, tutors, or caregivers, we’re in the unique position to guide emotional growth through games that are engaging, age-appropriate, and powerfully effective. When you create space for emotional expression in a fun, safe environment, children begin to develop empathy, resilience, and self-awareness. These are all tools they’ll benefit from for life.

In this post, we’ll explore 5 games that help kids explore feelings while strengthening the bond between child and caregiver.

Want to encourage independence too? Don’t miss How to Encourage Independent Play for a great balance of emotional and solo development.

1. The Feelings Face Game

Objective: Learn to identify and name emotions

How to play:
Print or draw a series of faces showing different emotions like happy, sad, scared, frustrated, excited, etc. Hold them up one by one and ask the child to name the emotion. Then ask, “When do you feel like this?”

Why it works:
Kids often struggle with naming feelings. This game turns it into a visual, interactive experience, which is perfect for toddlers and preschoolers learning vocabulary.

Real-life tip: One nanny working with twin 4-year-olds used laminated emoji-style cards on the fridge. Each morning, the kids would choose a card to reflect how they were feeling and explain why, creating a natural moment for reflection before breakfast.

2. Emotion Charades

Objective: Practice recognising emotions in others

How to play:
Write different emotions on small cards. Players take turns acting them out without using words, while others guess the feeling. Mix in more complex ones like “embarrassed,” “proud,” or “nervous” for older children.

Why it works:
This game teaches empathy by encouraging kids to notice non-verbal cues like body language, facial expressions, and tone.

Real-life tip: A mannie tried this after watching a kids’ movie together. He picked characters and let the children act out their emotions from key scenes: “Show me how Elsa felt when she ran away!”

3. “Inside Out” Puppet Show

Objective: Explore complex feelings through storytelling

How to play:
Use soft toys, paper bag puppets, or figurines to create a puppet show where each character represents a different emotion. Encourage the child to help create a story where perhaps Sadness and Anger are arguing, and Joy has to help them find a solution.

Why it works:
Role-play creates psychological distance, which is a safe way for children to explore tricky emotions without feeling exposed. It also helps them connect events to emotional outcomes.

Real-life tip: A London governess introduced using finger puppets to a shy 6-year-old girl who didn’t like talking about school. Through using the puppet characters, she slowly started opening up about friendship issues without feeling criticized or judged.

Looking for more creative play? Try Easy & Fun Imaginary Playspace Ideas.

4. Feelings Scavenger Hunt

Objective: Connect emotions to everyday environments

How to play:
Hide cards or objects around the room, each linked to a feeling (e.g., a red feather = anger, a blue marble = calm). Each time a child finds one, ask them to name the emotion and describe a time they felt that way.

Why it works:
This game links physical movement with reflection, which is perfect for children who find it hard to sit still. It also reinforces emotional memory recall.

Real-life tip: One after-school nanny adapted this by hiding photos from the child’s life and asking, “What were you feeling in this picture?” It became a regular weekly ritual.

5. The “What If?” Game 

Objective: Practice emotional reasoning and regulation

How to play:
Pose hypothetical scenarios like:

• “What if your best friend didn’t want to play with you today?”

• “What if you lost your favourite toy?”

• “What if your baby brother got all the attention?”

Ask the child how they’d feel and what they might do.

Why it works:
This introduces the idea that emotions are normal, manageable, and don't need to define behaviour. It also helps with problem-solving and emotional forecasting, which is a handy executive function skill.

Real-life tip: This was a go-to for a bilingual governess during school runs. She’d use the car ride to play "What If?", incorporating both languages! It doubled as language practice and emotional education.

Bonus read: Dealing with Challenging Behaviour offers more on helping kids cope when emotions spill over.

Final Thoughts

Feelings First, Learning Follows

Children experience emotions quickly and intensely! Joy, frustration, sadness, or jealousy can all be wrapped into a single day. Teaching emotional intelligence isn’t about muting those feelings. It’s about helping children understand what they’re feeling, why, and what to do about it.

Playing games like these is not just about passing time. They lay the groundwork for resilient and emotionally fluent young people. They teach children to name their emotions, notice them in others, and respond with compassion and confidence.

For caregivers, it’s also a reminder that when you sit on the floor and make silly faces or ask, “What if your dragon got left out of a party?”, you’re doing more than just playing. You’re helping a child learn how to be human.

And that’s a skill worth practicing!

Looking for kid-friendly stories that are educational and fun? Click here to see the top 5 books every nanny should read to their children.

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