Spirit Games: 300 Fun Activities That Bring Children Comfort and Joy [Paperback]

Barbara Sher (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2002

300 quick, Simple Ways to Make Every Day a Happier Day!

Spirit games make children feel brighter and more confident. By tapping into children's natural delight, spirit games restore the sparkle to their eyes. By sharing the upbeat activities in Spirit Games, you can encourage your child's self-esteem and provide a lasting foundation for happiness.

Developed by Barbara Sher over the course of thirty years as a parent, teacher, and play-therapy specialist, this collection of 300 wise and nurturing ideas fosters parent-child interaction and requires no special preparation or equipment. Play these games with your family-or any children you cherish-to increase the level of joy in their lives.

SPECIAL SECTIONS HIGHLIGHT:
* Creating joy every day
* Getting past anger and self-doubt
* Learning compassion and sharing wonder
* Healing sadness and overcoming fear
* Nurturing your own spirit, too!

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

300 quick, Simple Ways to Make Every Day a Happier Day!

Spirit games make children feel brighter and more confident. By tapping into children’s natural delight, spirit games restore the sparkle to their eyes. By sharing the upbeat activities in Spirit Games, you can encourage your child’s self-esteem and provide a lasting foundation for happiness.

Developed by Barbara Sher over the course of thirty years as a parent, teacher, and play-therapy specialist, this collection of 300 wise and nurturing ideas fosters parent-child interaction and requires no special preparation or equipment. Play these games with your family–or any children you cherish–to increase the level of joy in their lives.

SPECIAL SECTIONS HIGHLIGHT:

• Creating joy every day
• Getting past anger and self-doubt
• Learning compassion and sharing wonder
• Healing sadness and overcoming fear
• Nurturing your own spirit, too!

About the Author

BARBARA SHER, an occupational therapist with an extensive background in child development, conducts workshops for parents, teachers, and children around the world. A mother herself, she is the author of Extraordinary Play with Ordinary Things, Popular Games for Positive Play, Smart Moves: Inclusive Games for Academic Gains, and Self-esteem Games: 300 Fun Activities That Make Children Feel Good about Themselves (Wiley).

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; 1 edition (February 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471406783
• ISBN-13: 978-0471406785
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #989,864 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Much more than just games, May 16, 2002

By 

Ehren Paul Olson (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Spirit Games: 300 Fun Activities That Bring Children Comfort and Joy (Paperback)

We just got this book and we are already playing these games all of the time! The design of the book makes each game simple to understand, most of them don't need any special set up or props, and the activities are divided into age groups (2-7, 8-12, 13-15, 16+ and adult) But the book is about much more than fun activities, it is about a whole way of approaching life to find the joy in everyday situation (she includes activities to deal with getting dumped by a teenage boyfriend, on how to make important carrer choices, and on how to avoid the blues, even when they are the result of something very sad). One game I especially like is for ages 2-7, called "young ones" in the book. It is called Grouchy Food. The game is for when your child is grouchy or sad or in some other unplesant mood you say to them "Hmm, you look like you are in a grouchy mood today, I better adjust the lunch menu so you can eat what grouchy people eat. What do grouchy people eat, anyway? Worms, probably." Then you make spagehetti (we added food die until it was brown). The author notes that sad people sometimes need a little blue food coloring in their eggs, "lots of water to drink so they have extra for their tears," and "gental" pudding for dessert. How could any kid stay upset after that?! According to Barbara Sher laughter is an "organic, free, all-natural blues buster" and you and your kids will find plenty to laugh about with this book on hand.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Editorial Review that was in the Chinaberry catalog:, February 10, 2010

By 

barbara sher (saipan, northern mariana islands) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Spirit Games: 300 Fun Activities That Bring Children Comfort and Joy (Paperback)

"Imagine a book that you can take down from the shelf whenever your nerves are fried, your six-year-old is angrily pushing the toddler down the stairs, and your teen is holed up in his room with a broken heart. One book, small and unassuming, holds such a wealth of wisdom, with games/activities/ritual to cultivate joy and well-being, no matter what is happening. The first chapter offers ways to nurture your own spirit so that you can be present and more joyful in facing the day with your children. then the spirit games begin, all to create more fun and smiles every day; " doing a 360 circle" together of appreciation, time races to handle resistance, getting out the door, writing yourself letters to receive days later if you are blue, "Mom Gone Nuts" and 'Finding the Grumpy Bug". One of my favorites is the "Emergency Relief Box" filled with photos and memories of joyful times, to pull out on gloomy days. There are games/activities for healing sadness, anger, and fear, for building confidence and trust, and for learning compassion and new ways of responding the the situations life brings us. "All shall be well" is the wisdom woven into these pages, especially if you are having fun along the way! Best of all, these wise ways include toddlers to teens, so that this book will be a trusted and wise companion through all the growing-up years. I can't recommend it enough."

Spirit Games: 300 Fun Activities That Bring Children Comfort and Joy[[ASIN:0471736546 Attention Games: 101 Fun, Easy Games That Help Kids Learn To FocusSmart Play : 101 Fun, Easy Games That Enhance IntelligenceSelf-Esteem Games: 300 Fun Activities That Make Children Feel Good about ThemselvesHome-Grown Baby (Homegrown)Extraordinary Play with Ordinary Things (Homegrown)PLAYFUL MOMENTS

5.0 out of 5 stars Barbara Sher is a parenting genius!!!!!!, January 26, 2011

By 

E. Blackburn "Best loved dogs and cats" (Ithaca, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Spirit Games: 300 Fun Activities That Bring Children Comfort and Joy (Paperback)

I'm a foster/adoptive mom (to be clear, I need a lot of ideas to keep the joy flowing through our house) and this book IS AMAZING. I LOVE IT. Best part: first chapter dedicated to nurturing self. Simple ideas. Easy to implement. Want to buy this for all of the foster/adoptive moms I know but would go broke doing so.