Decision-making board games can be helpful in teaching a child about the right and wrong way to make a decision. "Sink or Swim" is a board game designed for children with special needs but can be used with children on any developmental level. Children will roll a die and swim that many spaces. Landing on a "drowning" space requires the child to select a decision card with a poor decision written on it, such as copying a friend's homework or stealing a friend's lunch money. Telling what you would do to change the situation will get the child a "life saver" and he can move onto his next turn. The player with the most life savers at the end of the game is declared the winner.
Role plays are a way to help children understand the real-life impact their decisions can have. Select groups of children to act out scenarios where a decision needs to be made, such as choosing to pick on the new kid at school or following along with an activity that is illegal, such as drinking or using drugs. Let the children role play both the right and the wrong decision to see how the situation would pan out. Lead the class in a discussion about the decision after the role play is finished to help clarify any misunderstandings or to make the point hit home.
Provide each child with a set number of tokens or fake money. Put out items the children can "purchase" with their money, such as pencils, tablets or extra time at recess. Assign a price to each item and allow the children to "shop" in the classroom. Talk to the children about how they will decide what they want and how to weigh the options for each choice. For example, a pencil is worth one token and extra recess time is worth five tokens, so what is more important to the child? Helping the child learn to how to weigh his options will assist him when it comes time to make more important decisions, such as where to go to college.
Show children a video clip of a popular cartoon or show in which the main character needs assistance and has to make a decision. Stop the show at various points and let the children talk about what type of decision the character should make a why. Write down the choices on a piece of paper or the chalkboard to see if the children picked the same choice as the character. Talk about the impact of the decision, whether it was good or bad and how the character could have responded differently.