Helping young learners develop the capacity to stay calm in emotionally charged situations is a foundational skill for lifelong self-regulation. Students in Pre-K and Kindergarten are just beginning to identify their feelings, understand their bodies’ signals, and discover effective ways to manage big emotions. Supporting these early learners requires structured experiences and tools that make abstract concepts tangible. The ‘My Calming Toolbox’ PDF from Everyday Speech offers a practical and engaging approach for teaching calming strategies to children in this age group, delivering structured support for emotional growth within the school environment.

What Is Staying Calm?

Staying calm refers to the ability to manage strong feelings, such as frustration, anger, excitement, anxiety, or disappointment, and return to a state where clear thinking and positive behaviors are possible. For young children, staying calm involves recognizing when their bodies and minds feel out of control and knowing what to do to regain composure. This process depends on self-awareness, understanding of emotional triggers, and knowledge of calming strategies. In early childhood, these skills are just emerging, so they need to be explicitly taught, modeled, and practiced through repeated, supportive experiences.

Staying calm is a core aspect of self-regulation, which encompasses monitoring one’s emotions, behaviors, and impulses. As children learn to notice when their emotional states are changing, they can choose helpful strategies to bring themselves back to a manageable level of arousal. Calmness allows children to participate fully in classroom activities, listen to instructions, solve problems, and interact positively with peers and adults.

Why Teach Staying Calm?

Helping children build the foundation for staying calm has benefits that reach far beyond the classroom. Here are key reasons why it is critical to focus on this skill in Pre-K and Kindergarten:

• Supports self-regulation development by providing concrete, age-appropriate tools for managing emotions
• Reduces challenging behaviors such as tantrums, aggression, withdrawal, or persistent crying
• Fosters a positive classroom climate where children feel safe, accepted, and able to take risks in learning
• Enhances participation and focus during learning activities by promoting emotional readiness
• Builds resilience, helping children handle setbacks or transitions with greater ease
• Encourages empathy as children recognize and respect others’ needs for calm
• Sets the stage for future skills such as problem-solving, conflict resolution, and friendship-building

By systematically teaching strategies to stay calm, educators empower students with essential tools that can be used across settings and throughout their lives.

Lesson Plan: Using My Calming Toolbox

The ‘My Calming Toolbox’ PDF (downloadable at: this link) provides a no-prep, printable tool for introducing calming strategies to young children. Designed specifically with early childhood in mind, this resource offers visual supports and interactive elements to help children engage in self-regulation.

Step 1: Introduce the Concept of Calming Tools

Begin by gathering students in a circle or small group setting. Talk about big feelings and how everyone experiences them sometimes. Use language appropriate to the students’ age and development. For example, say, “Sometimes we feel so mad or so excited that our bodies feel out of control. When that happens, we can use calming tools to help us feel better.”

Show the students the cover page of ‘My Calming Toolbox.’ Emphasize that a toolbox helps fix things, and in this case, the toolbox will help them fix their feelings when they get too strong. Engage the whole class by asking if anyone has ever felt so upset or excited that they did not know what to do. Reinforce the idea that everyone needs help calming down sometimes.

Step 2: Explore the Calming Strategies

Open the printed PDF and review each page of calming tools together. The toolbox includes visual icons and simple descriptions for popular calming strategies, such as:

• Take deep breaths
• Squeeze a stress ball
• Hug a stuffed animal
• Count to ten
• Take a drink of water
• Ask for a break
• Listen to music

Show each tool visually and, where possible, model the strategy for the group. For example, guide the children through slow, deep breaths. Pass around a toy or represent a stress ball (if available) and allow students to mimic the squeezing motion. Encourage group practice of counting to ten or pretending to listen to calming music.

It can be helpful to connect these strategies to familiar moments in the classroom. For example, say, “When we feel angry because playtime is over, taking deep breaths can help us calm down.” This scaffolded language helps children understand practical uses for the tools.

Step 3: Personalize the Toolbox

Each student receives their own blank ‘My Calming Toolbox’ page from the resource. Allow students to select their favorite tools from the illustrated options and glue or color them onto their toolbox. Depending on the group’s needs, offer pre-cut icons or allow children to practice fine motor skills by cutting out the shapes. This hands-on approach increases engagement and ownership over the strategies.

As the children personalize their toolboxes, circulate the room and engage in brief conversations about their choices. Affirm their selections and prompt them to explain when they might use each tool. For example, ask, “When you feel frustrated, which tool do you want to try?” or “Which calming tool do you like to use when you are excited?”

Step 4: Role-Play and Practice

Once the toolboxes are finished, bring the group together for guided practice. Present short role-play scenarios—either verbally or with simple puppets. For example, describe a puppet who is having trouble sitting still or is upset because a friend took their toy. Ask the children to choose a tool from their toolbox to help the puppet calm down.

Allow children to practice the strategies in a fun, low-pressure environment. Emphasize that there are many ways to calm down and that it is okay to try different tools in different situations. Practicing in a supported setting helps children move from understanding the concept to independent application.

Step 5: Reinforce and Display

Encourage ongoing practice by displaying the toolbox visuals in the calm-down area or on a classroom wall. Refer to these throughout the school day. When a child is starting to escalate emotionally, prompt them to choose a tool from their toolbox. Gentle reminders, such as, “Let’s look at your toolbox and pick a calming tool,” provide essential scaffolding as children build independence with these strategies.

It is important to recognize and praise the use of calming tools. When a student successfully uses a strategy, note it aloud, for example, “I see you using your deep breaths from your toolbox when you were feeling upset.” Positive reinforcement builds confidence and increases the likelihood of continued use.

Supporting Staying Calm After the Activity

Teaching the skill of staying calm does not end with a single activity. Ongoing support and reinforcement are critical for deepening and generalizing this skill. Here are several ways to encourage growth after the initial lesson:

• Maintain consistency by incorporating calming tools into daily routines, such as transitions and downtime
• Model use of calming strategies as adults during classroom challenges and talk aloud about how it helps
• Embed opportunities for choice, allowing children to pick their calming strategy when needed
• Foster peer support by celebrating individuals who use calming tools and encouraging recognition among students
• Communicate regularly with families. Sending home the toolbox allows for practice and reinforcement in multiple settings
• Continuously revisit and refresh the language of calming tools. Use stories, puppet play, or videos to keep strategies relevant and engaging
• Adjust and expand toolboxes as students’ preferences and needs grow throughout the year

Wrapping Up: Building Calm, Resilient Foundations

Starting emotional regulation instruction early sets children on the path to lifelong well-being. The ‘My Calming Toolbox’ PDF creates a meaningful opportunity for young learners to build a personalized bank of calming strategies, supporting their development of staying calm across the school day. Through modeling, practice, and consistent reinforcement, educators can nurture confidence and independence in emotion management.

Access the ‘My Calming Toolbox’ no-prep resource by downloading it here and start building calm, resilient foundations with your youngest learners today.