01 · Check-In Questions
Go beyond “How was your week?”
Creative check-in questions, visual check-ins and quick picks for students and clients, plus a set of group check-ins for when you’re running a small group.
Explore check-in questionsMore ways to connect. Less time spent preparing.
Games and activities for counselors who work with kids, teens and young adults.
Some conversations start easily. Others need a little help getting going.
Opening Play brings interactive games, creative check-ins and guided Session Enhancements together in one place, giving counselors more ways to engage students and clients, build rapport and make the most of their time together. Whether you have 15 minutes or a full session, you can find something that fits.
14 days free. No card needed.
Resources for counselors
Ideas you can use in your next meeting.
Free question banks and activity ideas for students and clients, whether you’re meeting one-on-one or leading a small group.
02 · Icebreakers for Teens
Start with something other than a question.
Icebreakers and rapport-building activities for teens, from would-you-rather to hands-on challenges, with group icebreakers and ideas for the student who says “I don’t know.”
Explore icebreakers for teens03 · Activities for Teens
More room to explore.
Creative activities for teens and young adults that encourage participation, reflection, problem-solving and self-expression, with ideas you can use in a short meeting or a longer session.
Explore activities for teensRunning groups? The check-in and icebreaker pages each have a Group tab with rounds built for small groups.
Different settings. Different challenges.
The same need for connection.
Counseling doesn’t look the same everywhere. Sometimes you’re meeting with a student between classes. Sometimes you’re supporting a teen through a difficult season. Other times, you’re sitting across from someone who has plenty to say but doesn’t know where to begin.
Opening Play was created to give counselors more options for those moments.
Between classes
Screenshot
A quick check-in on screen
01 · School Counselors
When you have a lot of students and not a lot of time.
Your day might include scheduled appointments, unexpected visits, emotional moments and students who need support right now. You may have 15 minutes with one student and 30 with another, and you don’t always have time to prepare an activity, print worksheets or build a lesson from scratch.
Opening Play gives you quick games, check-in questions and activities that fit shorter conversations. Use them to welcome a student, explore a concern, practice a skill or simply create a comfortable starting point.
Even a short conversation deserves a thoughtful beginning.
02 · Mental Health Counselors
When building trust is part of the work.
Not every client arrives ready to explain what’s happening in their life. Some are quiet. Some are guarded. Some have already answered the same questions countless times. Others genuinely have no idea how to describe what they’re experiencing.
Opening Play gives you different ways to begin, from a lighthearted game to a creative reflection activity. Invite conversation without forcing it, follow your client’s lead and choose when to move into deeper work.
Sometimes a shared experience creates more room for conversation than another question.
03 · College and Student Support Counselors
When growing independence comes with growing pressure.
College students and young adults are navigating decisions, relationships, responsibilities and expectations, often all at once. They may be dealing with academic stress, motivation, transitions, uncertainty about the future or difficulty putting their experiences into words.
Opening Play includes activities that support conversations about priorities, choices, patterns, personal strengths and next steps. The goal isn’t to make serious topics feel childish. It’s to make reflection feel more approachable.
A little creativity can make a big conversation easier to begin.
04 · Youth and Community Counselors
When every young person brings a different story.
Whether you work in a community program, a youth organization or another support setting, you know no two young people respond to the same approach. One teen might love a competitive challenge. Another might prefer drawing, making choices or talking about something they already enjoy.
Opening Play gives you a variety of ways to meet young people where they are. Start with play. Invite a little creativity. Let them make some choices. Many games work for small groups on one shared screen, too.
Connection doesn’t have to look the same for everyone.
Sometimes you only have a few minutes
You don’t always have an hour. You can still make the moment count.
Not every counselor has weekly, uninterrupted, hour-long sessions. You might see a student once this month. A young person might stop by unexpectedly. A client might need several meetings before they feel comfortable sharing much of anything. That doesn’t mean every minute needs to be filled with questions.
Sometimes a five-minute game creates a little breathing room. A visual check-in gives someone an easier way to describe their day. A creative activity offers a starting point for a conversation that might otherwise feel hard. Opening Play helps you spend less time searching for something to do and more time being present with the person in front of you.
5 minutes
A quick game to welcome someone and ease into the conversation.
15 minutes
A check-in and a short activity to explore what’s happening.
A full session
Combine games, check-ins and Session Enhancements for a longer experience.
These are examples, not prescribed formats. You bring the relationship and professional judgment. We bring more ways to begin.
Counseling activities that fit the moment
You don’t need to turn every session into a game. You just need options.
01
Start with a game
Choose from interactive challenges, familiar games and playful activities that invite participation. Sometimes the game is simply a chance to enjoy something together. Other times, it naturally leads to a conversation.
02
Check in differently
Move beyond the same opening questions with creative prompts, customizable check-ins and different ways to explore how someone is doing.
03
Explore something deeper
Use guided Session Enhancements for reflection, decision-making, perspective-taking, self-awareness and other conversations relevant to your work.
Every game includes a practitioner Playbook with ideas for getting started, adapting the experience and inviting reflection when it fits.
Your approach, more options
More options. Less starting from scratch.
Your counseling approach is your own. Opening Play isn’t here to replace it. It’s here for the moments when you need a fresh idea, a different way to engage someone or an activity that fits the time you actually have.
You decide what fits the person, the relationship and the purpose of your time together.
- 01Use one game for five minutes.
- 02Build a longer session around an activity.
- 03Return to something a student enjoyed last time.
Works wherever you meet
In the room or over video.
Opening Play runs in a web browser, with nothing to install. Use it on a shared device in person, or pull it up over video and share your screen.
- iPad or tablet
- Laptop
- TV in your office
- Screen share over video
Your clients never need an account.
Client names and answers are never saved.
Better beginnings lead to better conversations.
You already bring the care, experience and commitment. Opening Play gives you more ways to connect. 14 days free, no card needed.