The game guide · Gratitude
How to play Name What Mattered
A classmate quietly helped you understand a difficult exercise. Which message acknowledges the actual help? Read the scenario and consider three replies. Choose a considerate response without guessing somebody’s private feelings.
Your starting point
A classmate quietly helped you understand a difficult exercise. Which message acknowledges the actual help?
The rules
Read the scenario and all the possible replies. Choose the response that respects the person’s stated needs and choices. Review the feedback and reflect on the wording.
A helpful approach
Use only the information in the scenario. Look for a response that asks, listens or explains clearly without assuming what another person secretly thinks. Think of one concrete helpful action, even if the rest of the day was difficult.
After the game
What made one response leave more room for the other person’s own choice? What small detail would make your thank-you recognisable to the person who receives it?
There is no need to turn a small moment into a perfect performance. Play again if you want to explore it, or leave it here and take the thought into your day.
The feeling behind it
A thoughtful thank-you can name what mattered without pretending everything is easy. Find the small acts that made today possible.
Matariki includes remembrance, celebrating the present and looking ahead. It is not simply the Māori word for gratitude.
Read our gratitude story, inspired by Matariki in Aotearoa New Zealand. The Mānawatia a Matariki: About Matariki provides the source context.
Share the invitation
I noticed what you did. Thank you. Try Name What Mattered with me, if you fancy a little gratitude today.
If someone comes to mind, send them a game they might enjoy. Add your own words, let them choose whether to play, and keep private details out of a public link.