In this game, students create a peaceful community by individuals who catch the spirit of peace from a peaceful leader. The game models the influence of peaceful social leaders—Ghandi, Thich Nhat Hahn, Peace Pilgrim, or Martin Luther King for example. Before the game starts, secretly designate one of your students the Peace Leader. Now, call the group together and explain that the game consists of everyone walking around the room and greeting one another by looking each other in their eyes, shaking hands, and saying ‘Peace be with you.” The only exception is that the Peace Leader will wink when he or she shakes someone’s hand. The person who has been winked at will greet two more people in the usual way then sit down in a calm position with eyes closed, exemplifying peace. As the Peace Leader completes the journey around the room, more and more people will quietly be seated, and the room will gradually manifest the quality of peace.
History’s Heros
Students stand in a circle. Moving clockwise around the circle, students state their own name and the name of someone from history that they admire. If you are studying a particular historical period, you can ask students to pick their heroes from that period. This is a memory game so each player has to name the players before him and their heroes in order. Helping is allowed when players get stuck. In the next round, every player has a chance to share what they admire about their hero.