Coping Strategies for Preschool: Asking for Help
This session teaches coping strategies for kids, helping young students practice asking a trusted adult for help when big feelings show up. Set in everyday moments like a stuck coat zipper or a book on a high shelf, students watch a short video, talk about how to ask a friend or teacher for help, and finish a story game by naming what they could do next. The takeaway is that asking for help is a friendly choice.
Extension activity
- Skill
- Emotional Recognition
- Goal
- Changing the Channel on Feelings
- Grade level
- Pre-K & K
Get everything you need to teach the skill
These materials are part of a no-prep session designed by our clinical team, with all the structure, scaffolding, and support you need to teach included.
Engaging materials
Video modeling lessonAsking for Help
Learners review the concept of Changing the Channel to stay calm and ask for help, even when they feel upset.
- Extension activity
Interactive Worksheet: Who Do I Ask for Help?
In this role-play activity, learners will act out a calming strategy that would help them stay calm in the given situation.
Plus everything you need to teach them
Warm-up
- Video: Lion and Cat Breathing3:12
- Video: Our Senses Calming Break2:27
- Video: Yoga Pose Library
Session Opener
Guiding Question: Why would someone ask for help when they feel upset?
Practice
- Discussion Question
- Role-Play Activity
- Mini Game
How to use it with your students
- 1Watch Play the video modeling lesson so students see the skill in action.
- 2Practice Try the skill together with a discussion prompt, role-play, or mini game.
- 3Extend Use the extension activity to help students carry the skill further.
What's Covered
In this lesson, students learned that big, frustrated feelings are normal and that there are ways to feel steadier before asking for help. They practiced noticing when frustration was building and trying a calming strategy, like belly breathing, to help their bodies feel ready. They also talked about who they could turn to when they needed help, such as a trusted adult or a friend.
Key Terms
- Change the Channel
- Change the Channel means noticing when your body is having a big feeling and helping yourself feel more calm. You can name your feeling and choose something that helps your body, like taking deep breaths or using a coping strategy.
- Ask for Help
- Asking for help means telling a teacher, adult, or friend that you need help or have a problem.
Sample IEP Goal This Session Supports
-
Changing the Channel on Feelings
When experiencing strong emotions such as jealousy, disappointment, frustration, or embarrassment, learner will use a self-selected coping strategy (e.g., taking a break, positive self-talk, deep breaths) to manage the feeling and return to the task or interaction in 4 out of 5 opportunities independently/given X prompt(s).
Send this tip home to support generalization
At home or at school, when a student starts to feel overwhelmed, try naming what you notice first, like "Looks like that felt frustrating," before asking if they need help.
Ready to teach Asking for Help?
Get the video, activity and discussion materials with zero prep.
Get These Materials Free
More Emotional Recognition Activities
Frequently asked questions
Is this intervention free?
Yes, this ready-to-teach session on Asking for Help is free. You can access this intervention free for 14 days through the Everyday Speech Session Library. Every user gets three free sessions, but you can get more or extend your access by sharing the Session Library with friends and colleagues.
What ages is this for?
These materials are designed for PreK and kindergarten students.
What's included?
You'll get access to your choice of warm-up videos, a session opener, a core material on Asking for Help, three practice prompts, and an extension activity, Interactive Worksheet: Who Do I Ask for Help?.
What skill does this intervention teach?
This ready-to-teach session is on emotional recognition - more specifically, changing the channel on feelings.
Get access to the full curriculum
A no-prep social skills curriculum with a full scope and sequence that builds student skills over time. MTSS-aligned across every tier, with 400+ whole class lessons and 800+ ready-to-teach sessions.
Start a 30-Day Free Trial
