For preschoolers, understanding how to manage overwhelming emotions by taking breaks is a vital skill. This blog post offers a detailed lesson plan centered around a preschool Taking Breaks Matching Activity, a printable PDF that helps young learners connect feelings with appropriate break activities. The goal is to empower them to recognize when they need to pause and choose an effective way to regain their calm.

Lesson Plan Overview

Duration: 30 minutes

Materials: Preschool Taking Breaks Matching Activity printable PDF, writing utensil

Objective: To help preschool students identify emotions and learn appropriate self-calming strategies through a matching activity.

Preparation Steps

1. Download and print the preschool Taking Breaks Matching Activity.
2. Ensure a space conducive to group discussion and individual work.

Lesson Execution

1. Understanding Emotions (5-10 minutes): Start a discussion on different feelings and how they affect us. Use relatable examples to illustrate emotions like happiness, sadness, & anger.
2. Matching Activity (10 minutes): Hand out the matching worksheets. Instruct students to match emojis representing different emotions with suitable break choices (like taking deep breaths, coloring, or jumping jacks).
3. Discussion and Personalization (10 minutes): Have a group discussion about the choices they made. Encourage students to personalize their worksheets by coloring a picture of themselves using these strategies, fostering a sense of ownership in self-regulation strategies.

Conclusion

The Taking Breaks Matching Activity offers a practical and engaging way for early childhood special educators to teach preschoolers about emotional regulation and self-calming strategies. This simple yet effective activity can be a foundational step in helping young learners understand their emotions and how to manage them appropriately.

Sample Video

Students learn best from watching real students their own age model skills. Try out this sample video-modeling lesson below. We offer our entire Social-Emotional Learning platform free for 30 days here!

Related Blog Posts:

Mindful Breathing

Preschool Feelings Detective Activity

Box Breathing: A Simple Technique to Help Students Regain Calm and Focus