Free Printable Gratitude Skittles Game

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Gratitude Game Skittles Edition

One of the things I’ve found the most difficult with a 6-year-old is to help him understand more deep concepts like emotions and gratitude. In the past we tried this gratitude game (and it worked that year) for teaching gratitude, and we’ve also tried this card game for recognizing memories and emotions. They’ve kind of worked, but I’m still not sure he really gets the concept of gratitude. So this year we’re trying a different tactic – combining a gratitude game with Skittles and calling it the Gratitude Skittles Game. We played it this past weekend, and he loved it and not just because he got to eat the Skittles when the game was over. You can play this game with any age – kids to adults – and with any size group. I’ve included instructions for playing both with individuals (e.g., your kids) as well as larger groups.

Gratitude Skittles Game Supplies

This game really just needs four things and if your house is anything like mine, you probably already have them at home!

Gratitude Game printable PDF (download it at the bottom of this post) Pens – one per person Skittles – you can either get a big bag or if you’re playing with an individual, get individual packs like the ones that come in this pack Plastic cup or bowl (just make sure it’s not see-through) – I just used these cups

How to Play This Gratitude Skittles Game

I mentioned it above, but there are two different ways you can play this game. If you want to do it with your kids at home or even for a classroom Thanksgiving feast or something where individuals will be playing on their own, follow the instructions for the individual game. But if you are looking more for Thanksgiving games to play on Thanksgiving day – you can do this with a large group as well. Those instructions are below under big group instructions.

How to Play this Gratitude Game Video

Regardless of which version you play, it works pretty much the same. You can watch the video below to see how easy it is and how it works. Have more questions? Leave me a comment, and I’ll do my best to answer!

How to Play with Individuals

This is a great after school activity or Thanksgiving week activity to do with your kiddos. You could also put it into this gratitude game punch box and do it when you pull out this activity. Kids will love it, especially since it comes with a treat! 1 – Print out the Gratitude Game PDF from the bottom of this post. You’ll need one copy of the entire PDF and then a copy of the blank thankful for page for every person playing. So if you are doing it with three kids, print out one full PDF and then two additional copies of the thankful for page. Give everyone their individual blank thankful for sheet and a pen. Put the Gratitude Skittles Game key in the middle of the table or somewhere that everyone can see it. Maybe even tape it up so everyone can see it, kind of like I did with this dice gift exchange game. 2 – Give everyone a fun size pack of Skittles. Remind the these are for the game and not to be eaten. Not yet anyway. 3 – Have everyone dump out a Skittle from their pack. Make sure they dump it out without looking rather than hand-picking what color they want. 4 – Write down something their grateful for the blank thankful for page that matches the color Skittle they got. So for instance if they dumped out a red, they would write a person they are grateful for on the line next to the red dot.

5 – Repeat with the next Skittle. If they get a color they already have filled out, you can choose. Either let them eat it or set it aside until the end of the game. Keep going until they’ve dumped out all five Skittle colors and filled out their entire thankful page. 6 – Go around the group and talk about what you’re grateful for. Start with red and go around and have everyone say the person they are grateful for. Then move onto orange and talk about an experience they’re grateful. Keep going through all the colors and let people be as quick or long-winded as possible. The goal is just to get people thinking about things in their life they are grateful for.

How to Play with Groups

Playing with a group is very similar except instead of writing down what you’re grateful for, you say it out loud. And instead of everyone doing in on their own, you play as a group. Here’s a quick step by step. This works best if everyone is either sitting in a circle or sitting around a table – perfect for the Thanksgiving dinner table! 1 – Print out the Gratitude Game PDF at the bottom of this post. For the group, you’ll just need to print out the Gratitude Skittles Game card key and skip the blank thankful for pages. It’s especially important to hang up the key card (or print out a couple and spread them throughout the room) when you’re playing with a large group so everyone knows what they’re doing. 2 – Dump an entire bag of Skittles into a cup or bowl. Make sure you’re using regular Skittles and not tropical or another flavor. The colors on the key card match regular Skittles!

3 – Pass the cup and key card to the first person to play. That person closes their eyes and picks out a Skittle randomly from the cup. 4 – Say what they’re grateful for according to whatever Skittle they pulled and the key card. 5 – Keep going around the circle. Let everyone have at least one turn – keep going around again if you’d like. And of course – feel free to share any Skittles with everyone once the game is over!

Download the Gratitude Skittles Game Here

Enter your first name and email address below to get a PDF of the Gratitude Game. The PDF will come with:

Gratitude Game sign instructions key page (what each Skittle means) Blank thankful for page

Once you’ve submitted the form below, you’ll be immediately taken to the PDF and receive a copy emailed to your inbox as well. If you do not see the form below, click here to get to it.