There tends to be a lot of conflict or “drama” in the lives of today’s youth, particularly with middle school girls {although no grade level or gender is truly exempt}. An important task to me as a school counselor is teaching effective conflict resolution skills to my students so they are better equipped to handle problems that may arise between them and their peers. To aid in my mission to squash the drama, I created a board game titled, Driving Through the Drama.

 

Driving Through the Drama Board Game

I have been working on this game for A LONG time, so I am thrilled to finally be able to share it with the world! In today’s post, I will give you an overview of the game and its rules, explain how to assemble the game printables sold in my TPT store, and offer ideas of how to incorporate this game into your school counseling program.

 

Game Overview & Rules

I designed this game to be a fun way for my middle school girls {who are most prone to drama in my school} to learn how to resolve conflicts peacefully and to understand the importance of effective communication.

Players begin by rolling dice to determine the number of spaces they will move. Players could land on 6 different types of spaces, and 4 of those spaces indicate that the player should draw a card from that category. These are the different types of cards:

 

The other 2 spaces players could land on are “Detours” {meaning the player will move ahead 1 space} and “Pit Stops” {meaning the player will skip a turn}.

The game continues until the first player crosses the finish line.

 

Game Assembly

The game board will be in a pdf file that looks like this:

 

For my game board, I printed out 3 of the main road pages {for a total of 6 pieces} and 4 of the corner pieces. You can print more of the road pages to make your game board bigger.

Once I cut out the pieces, I used double sided tape to attach them to a poster board. I added the game title and logo in the center of the board (which are included in the pdf file). I also added a Start/Finish line where I wanted it to be.

 

 

I chose to make my game board a little smaller to allow for a short game, but if I wanted to make the game last longer, I would simply tell the players they have to make it around the game board twice before the game is over.

Once your game board is assembled, print the different game cards double sided so that the text is on one side, and the color is on the other. When you cut out the cards, the back should be the corresponding color.

 

 

Print the game pieces {cars}, and then cut out.

Finally, laminate the game board, game cards, and game pieces. Add a die and some players, and you’re ready to start the game!

 

How I Use This Game

I use this game primarily with my Lunch Bunch groups {read this post for more info on how I run Lunch Bunch}, but I also have it available to use with small groups of students who routinely struggle with peer conflict.

The students seem to enjoy this game, and I’ve seen more of my kiddos step up and implement the conflict resolution skills we discussed during the game.

Head over to my TPT Store to purchase the game! It will be on sale for 4 days following this blog post, so make sure you get it before that deal ends!

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