Angry Birds Truth Bomb is a free PDF download game to help kids challenge negative self-talk by using cognitive behavioral therapy skills. Kids get to build towers, attack with pigs, and learn some vital skills while having a great time! My experience with playing this game with kids was getting 2 thumbs-up reviews from almost all the kids. They loved it!
CBT skills can be hard to teach to kids. Most options I have found online come via worksheets. I see kids at school and the last thing they want to do is another worksheet! I am always looking for ways to use physical objects to use as examples of what goes on inside a child's brain. Angry Birds provide the perfect analogy. The pigs represent negative self-talk and the angry birds are truth bombs to blow up the negative statements.
Related Blog Post: Counseling Interventions to Teach about the Brain
The goal is to make kids aware that not all of the thoughts in their heads are true or healthy. They can modify self-talk by speaking the truth or affirmations to themselves. These new thoughts will replace the unhealthy thought patterns that were resulting in anger, anxiety, or negative self-concept.
The game comes with 72 game cards and a cover sheet with a description of the game and instructions for how to play. If you are not familiar with cognitive behavioral therapy skills, you may want to visit my CBT 101 blog post for more information.
This game was inspired by a blog post I did a while back about how to use the Angry Birds Knock on Wood game. You can find it here. It contains a video with additional information.
Other Helpful Resources:
