Most children between the ages of 4 to 5 have very developed imaginations, often more developed than their cognitive or reading skills. Instruct your students to stand up and imagine that each classmate has a bubble around him. Explain that the bubble extends to the edge of his fingertips when he has his arms extended. Give your students some time to imagine their bubbles, dance in place and move around the room. Instruct them to keep their bubbles intact by not bumping into other students' bubbles. This is an imaginative exercise, teaching your students how they can envision their own personal space, and how to avoid infringing on other students' personal spaces.
By age 5 or 6, children develop a sense of appropriate boundaries, but they benefit from a visual reference about the differences in levels of boundaries. The relationship circle is a simple art project that your students can use to understand the difference in relationship types. Instruct each student to draw a circle in the middle of her page, and to color in the circle with her favorite color. Use a different colored marker to write the words "family in this circle." Instruct each child to draw three rings around the circle, forming a bullseye on her page. Instruct your students to color in these rings with other familiar colors, labeling them, from the inside ring to outside, as "best friend," "friend" and "person you know." Have them color the outside area in a color they do not like, labeling it "stranger." This helps your students visualize the different levels of personal relationships with an artistic exercise.
Very young children have difficulty understanding what personal space means; they may require a visual display to demonstrate appropriate distance. Cut out colored circles; each circle should be 2 to 3 feet wide. Place these circles on your classroom floor, making sure that no two circles are overlapping. Explain to your students that each circle is your student's personal space. Tell your students not to step into other students' personal circles. The circles give your students visual keys to envision what their personal spaces look like, and how to respect them around others.
Children of age 5 or 6 develop a strong sense of wrongness when someone violates their personal spaces, but they may not understand how to communicate this feeling. Use role player exercises in your classroom to demonstrate the different ways that your students should react to people. Start with some easy examples, such as asking one student to play the role of a brother and another to play the role of his sister. Let your students show you how they think brothers and sisters should interact. Use other roles, such as friends, best friends, teachers or strangers to practice other social situations. Correct your students when you witness inappropriate contact, such as a student running up to and hugging a "stranger" character.