Understanding our own feelings is an essential skill for students to learn. When children can recognize and manage their emotions, they can better cope with challenging situations and establish positive relationships with others. In this blog post, we will explore an activity that helps kindergarten students understand their feelings and learn strategies to calm down when they feel stressed or angry. Let’s begin!

Introduction

Children need to learn how to recognize their emotions and manage them effectively. When they feel stressed or angry, they may experience physical sensations such as getting hot or upset in their stomach. By teaching them to identify these feelings, we can help them learn strategies to calm down and avoid losing control.

No-Prep Activity: The Feeling Thermometer

This simple, no-prep activity will help kindergarten students recognize their emotions and learn how to manage them effectively. Here’s how it works:

1. Ask the students to sit in a circle, and explain that you will be discussing feelings.
2. Explain that when we feel stressed or angry, our bodies might feel hot, like a thermometer that’s rising. Tell them that they can use an imaginary thermometer to check in on their feelings.
3. Ask the students to close their eyes and imagine a thermometer in their minds. Tell them that the thermometer will rise when they feel stressed or angry and go back down when they feel calm and relaxed.
4. Have the students practice raising and lowering their imaginary thermometer by guiding them through different scenarios. For example, you might say, “Imagine you’re trying to finish a difficult worksheet, and you’re starting to feel stressed. What happens to your thermometer?” Encourage them to visualize the thermometer rising as they feel more stressed.
5. Discuss strategies for lowering their thermometer when they feel stressed or angry, such as taking deep breaths, counting to 10, or asking for a break.

By using the Feeling Thermometer activity, students can learn to recognize their emotions and implement strategies to calm themselves down when they feel overwhelmed.

Discussion Questions

• How do you know when you are feeling stressed or angry? What physical sensations do you experience?
• What are some strategies you can use to calm down when you feel stressed or angry?
• How do our actions and emotions affect the people around us?
• Why is it important to learn how to manage our feelings effectively?
• Can you think of a time when you felt stressed or angry and used a strategy to calm down? How did that make you feel?

Related Skills

Besides understanding and managing their feelings, kindergarten students can benefit from learning other social-emotional skills, such as:

• Active listening and communication
• Empathy and understanding others’ feelings
• Problem-solving and conflict resolution
• Cooperation and teamwork
• Self-awareness and self-confidence

Next Steps

Teaching kindergarten students to understand and manage their feelings is an important step in their social-emotional development. By incorporating activities like the Feeling Thermometer and engaging in thoughtful discussions, educators can help students develop the skills they need to navigate their emotions effectively. To access more sample materials and activities for teaching social-emotional skills, sign up for free samples at Everyday Speech.