HOW TO USE THE EQJOY WORLD CARDS
The EQJOY World Cards are designed to help 11+ year olds explore, understand, and navigate emotions in a fun and meaningful way—whether alone or with others. Here are 10 powerful ways you can use the cards, divided into “With Others” and “Alone” categories.
HOW TO USE THE CARDS WITH OTHERS
1. Play Acting or Drawing for Fun🎭 – A fast-paced game for family or friends
Objective: Guess which emotion is being expressed
What you need: Emotion Cards, a pen & paper (optional for drawing).
How to Play:
- Decide how emotions will be expressed—acting, describing, drawing, making sounds, or a mix!
- Shuffle the deck and place it face down. Choose who goes first.
- On your turn: Pick the top card without showing it, then express the emotion in the chosen way—but don’t say the word!
- The other players guess the emotion being expressed.
- Once the emotion is correctly guessed (or the guessers give up), flip the card over and reveal the answer.
- The next player picks a new card, and the game continues!
💡 Tip: Try switching up the expression style each round for extra fun!
2. Play Acting or Drawing to Win 🏆 – A competitive team-based version
Objective: Compete in teams to guess the most emotions!
What you need: Emotion Cards, a timer, and a pen & paper.
How to Play:
- Form two or more teams.
- Decide how emotions will be expressed—acting, describing, drawing, making sounds, or a mix!
- Decide how many rounds will be played. Set a time limit (e.g., 30 seconds per turn).
- The first player picks a card and expresses the emotion without showing it or saying its name
- Teammates guess within the time limit.
✅Correct guess? 30 points! ❌ Wrong guess? -5 points.
When the correct answer is given, or the time is up a player from the next team picks a card and expresses the emotion without saying its name.
The teams take turns until the agreed number of rounds is complete. The team with the highest score at the end wins!
💡 Tip: Want a challenge? Try acting without speaking!
3. Play Acting or Drawing to Educate 🧠 – A guided activity to help children explore emotions with an adult
Objective: Explore emotions and deepen emotional intelligence!
What you need: Emotion Cards, Prompt Cards, and access to eqjoymasters.com.
How to Play:
- Choose Free-Choice (act, draw, describe, or use sounds) or Pre-Choice (stick to one method).
- Take turns picking an Emotion Card without showing it to others.
Express the emotion—but don’t say the word!
The other players or the adult guess the emotion.
Once the correct emotion is guessed (or the guesser gives up), the adult uses the Prompt Cards or the Emotion Explorer Guide to talk about the feeling.
Keep going until you’ve explored as many emotions as you like!
💡 Tip: Use the Emotion Explorer Guide on eqjoyworld.com whenever an emotion needs to be better understood and regulated.
4. Emotional Storytelling Circle 📚💬 - Create stories that evolve with different emotions
Objective: Create stories that evolve with different emotions!
What you need: Emotion Cards.
How to play:
- One player starts a story based on an Emotion Card.
- The next player continues the story—but must draw a new Emotion Card and shift the story’s mood accordingly.
- Keep going until a full emotional journey unfolds!
- At the end, reflect on how different emotions influenced the story.
💡 Tip: Great for creative writing, group bonding, and exploring emotional narratives!
5. Relationship Check-In ❤️👨👩👧👦 -Strengthen relationships through emotional awareness
Objective: Strengthen relationships through emotional awareness!
What you need: Emotion Cards.
How to Use the Cards:
- Each person picks an Emotion Card and shares how it relates to their relationship.
- Discuss: Have we seen this emotion in our interactions recently?
- Explore ways to strengthen positive emotions and navigate difficult ones.
- Consider setting an intention for improving emotional interactions moving forward.
💡Tip: Perfect for couples, families, and friendships!
You can also create your own versions! Try playing in pairs, using the cards to talk about your day, or inventing new rules to make it even more fun.
HOW TO USE THE CARDS ON YOUR OWN
HOW TO USE THE PROMPT CARDS
1. Emotion Mindfulness Practice 🧘♀️🌿
Objective: Cultivate mindfulness by focusing on emotions.
What you need: Emotion Cards, quiet space.
How to Use the Cards:
- Pick an Emotion Card and sit quietly for a few minutes.
- Reflect: How does this emotion feel in your body?
Practice breathing, meditation, or gratitude related to that emotion.
Consider how this emotion influences your daily life. Journal your insights if desired.
💡A wonderful practice for stress management and self-awareness!
2. Emotion Reflection Journal 📖✍️
Objective: Deepen self-awareness through writing.
What you need: Emotion Cards, journal, pen.
How to Use the Cards:
- Draw a random Emotion Card each day.
- Write about a time you experienced that emotion.
- Reflect: How did you handle it? Would you respond differently now?
- Consider how you might intentionally engage with this emotion in the future.
💡 Ideal for personal growth and emotional intelligence development!
3. Emotional Trends Analysis (Self-Discovery Over Time) 📊🗓️
Objective: Track and analyze emotions over time.
What you need: Emotion Cards, EQJOY World booklet, journal, and a quiet space.
How to Use the Cards:
- Keep a weekly emotion log using the cards.
- Track which emotions show up most often.
- Identify patterns: Are certain emotions linked to specific activities or relationships?
- Adjust habits based on emotional trends.
💡 Great for emotional awareness and self-improvement!
4. Daily Check-In 🗓️🌡️
Objective: Develop emotional awareness and cultivate a daily habit of reflection and intentionality.
What you need: Emotion Cards, EQJOY World booklet, journal, and a quiet space.
How to Use the Cards:
- In the morning, shuffle and pick a card.
- Take a moment to read the pages in the booklet, or visit the website for additional insights, prompts, and exercises related to that emotion.
- Reflect on how the emotion is showing up in your life? Use the prompt cards for guidance.
- Set the intention to be conscious of that emotion if and when it shows up that day and/or to proactively use that emotion. When it does show up, appreciate it and then use the EQJOY World tools to embody, feel, amplify, and transmute as desired.
- In the evening, reflect on how the emotion showed up that day and how you dealt with it.
- Did it arise as expected, or in an unexpected way?
- How did you respond? Did your reaction align with your morning intention?
- What insights did you gain about yourself?
- Record your thoughts in your journal.
💡 Tip: Regularly practicing this check-in helps you identify and transform emotional patterns.
5. For Guidance (Similar to an Oracle Card) 🔮✨
Objective: Gain emotional insight and intuitive guidance on personal questions.
What you need: Emotion Cards, EQJOY World booklet, and a journal.
How to Use the Cards:
- Ask yourself a question. Be as specific as possible.
- Shuffle and pick one or more cards.
- Take a moment to read the pages in the booklet, or visit the website for additional content related to those cards.
- Reflect on how the emotion applies to the question you asked:
- What message is it telling me and why?
- How can it be useful?
- How could it be harmful?
- What do you have to watch out for?
- What actions am I being encouraged to take?
- Use the prompt cards for guidance.
- Reflect on what actions you can take in advance to prepare yourself for dealing with this question and this / these emotions?
Use the EQJOY World tools to train yourself in understanding, embodying, feeling, amplifying, and transmuting the emotion as desired/needed.
Record your thoughts in your journal.
💡 Tip: Regularly using this method can help deepen self-awareness, improve decision-making, and enhance emotional clarity.
- Use them to help describe emotions during the game.
- Use them for self-reflection
- Use them to start meaningful conversations with others about emotions.
- Visit eqjoyworld.com/top-tips/ for even more suggestions!
BECOME A MASTER OF EQ!
Access the Emotion Explorer Guide and learn more about each emotion: Learn different ways to navigate the emotion and discover fun facts, music and much more, all designed to help you better understand, regulate and transmute your emotions and develop your Emotional Intelligence skills.