Emotional Regulation for Kids: How to Get Back in Control
This session includes emotional regulation activities for kids, helping students notice strong feelings early and choose a strategy to get back in control. Through a short video, a discussion about spotting body clues, and a quick game where they pick the strategy they would try first, students build a set of calming tools they can reach for on their own.
Extension activity
- Skill
- Self-Regulation
- Goal
- Managing Stress
- Grade level
- Elementary School
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 lessonHow to Get Back in Control
In this video, we go over different strategies that can help us get back in control. We can take deep breaths, take a walk, get a drink of water, or ask our teachers for help. If we take some time to think about how we're feeling, it can help us figure out what to do.
- Extension activity
Calming Snowflakes
Trace the outside of snowflakes to practice deep breathing so students can self-regulate emotions and physical stress.
Plus everything you need to teach them
Warm-up
- Video: Hot Cocoa Breathing2:05
- Video: Daily Intention2:59
- Video: Body Squeeze2:12
Session Opener
Guiding Question: How can a person get back in control of strong feelings?
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 how to notice what their bodies were telling them, like feeling hungry, tired, or full of energy, so they could figure out what they needed. They practiced strategies for feeling ready again, such as taking deep breaths or asking an adult for help.
Key Terms
- Calming Strategies
- Things you do to help your body feel calm when you are worried, like taking deep breaths or thinking of one good thing. They keep your worry the right size so your thinking stays clear.
- Body Clues
- Body clues are signals you notice inside your body, like a fast heartbeat, a hot face, or tense muscles, that tell you a feeling is starting. Noticing them early can help you figure out what your body needs.
Sample IEP Goal This Session Supports
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Managing Stress
Learner will recognize signs of stress in their own body or thinking (e.g., tight chest, racing thoughts, feeling overwhelmed) and apply a self-selected strategy (e.g., deep breathing, positive self-talk, taking a break) to manage the feeling in 4 out of 5 opportunities independently/given X prompt(s).
Send this tip home to support generalization
At home or in the classroom, when a student seems restless or frustrated, try asking how their body feels right now. Naming the feeling first can help them pick a strategy that fits.
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More Self-Regulation Activities
Frequently asked questions
Is this intervention free?
Yes, this ready-to-teach session on How to Get Back in Control 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 elementary school students.
What's included?
You'll get access to your choice of warm-up videos, a session opener, a core material on How to Get Back in Control, three practice prompts, and an extension activity, Calming Snowflakes.
What skill does this intervention teach?
This ready-to-teach session is on self-regulation - more specifically, managing stress.
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