Teaching emotions to preschoolers

Talking with preschoolers about emotions — Better Kid Care — Penn State Extension

Just like adults, children need to develop strategies for managing their emotions, so that they can build social-emotional skills. When children are more socially and emotionally aware and skilled, they can more effectively navigate relationships, calm down and problem solve when challenges arise.

But unlike many adults, it can be difficult for children to recognize and understand emotions in themselves and others without adult support. The process of calming down when upset and using words to describe feelings and address challenges requires a lot of practice. It also requires a lot of adult support. When adults provide support and explanations, it helps children understand what they can do to manage their feelings. Children who learn how to understand emotions in themselves and others are better able to regulate their own responses to strong emotions.

Helping children to identify and label emotions is an important first step. Many preschoolers do not yet have the vocabulary to identify feeling words like angry or frustrated, or have the skills to “read” facial cues or to interpret body language. Adults support children’s social-emotional development when they label and talk about emotions.

Support children’s emotional understanding:

Ask children how they feel and notice children’s feelings throughout the day. For example, when a child has a concern or problem, ask questions or make comments like, “How are you feeling? or “It looks like you might be feeling sad about something.”
Talk with children throughout the day about emotions. For example, when reading books to children, label the characters’ emotions and point out the facial expression and body language of the characters in books.
Talk about how you are feeling during the day in appropriate ways. For example, “I am feeling happy today because today we are going on our field trip!” or “I am feeling sad today because I had to take my sick dog to the vet. ” Direct children to look at your facial expressions and body language as you say, “How can you tell I’m feeling happy today?”
Talk about how people might feel in different situations to help children understand the different contexts of feelings and that all people have feelings. For example, when reading books or talking with children about their own lives, ask questions like, “Why do you think she felt that way? How could you tell she was feeling sad?”
Label and define feelings for children when they do not have the words to express how they are feeling. For example, “It looks like you might be concerned that you won’t get a turn on the swings today. That feeling is called worried. Let’s figure out a plan to help you with the problem if you are feeling worried.”

When children experience strong emotions, it’s important for adults to support their efforts to calm down so they will be better able to talk about how they are feeling. After children learn how to calm down and talk about how they are feeling, they can then begin to problem solve. When children are able to problem solve challenges, they are better able to focus on tasks, to learn, to form friendships and to navigate social situations. Talking about problems and how to solve them helps children develop more flexible thinking, and helps them to think about different ways to solve a problem. As children are able to better problem solve on their own it helps build their confidence and sense of “I can do it!” attitude.

Support children’s self-regulation and problem-solving skills:

Help children when they need to calm down. For example, when it looks like a child is beginning to get upset say, “It looks like this is a good time to calm down. Let’s take a deep breath together.”
Help children frame how they are feeling so that they can talk about the problem. For example, after a child has calmed down, reinforce feeling talk and problem-solving talk by saying, “You took a breath and calmed down, now you can say how you are feeling and what the problem is. Then we can figure out how to solve the problem.”
Model feeling talk and problem solving throughout the day. For example, “I think I need to take a deep breath and calm down. I’m feeling frustrated because I can’t find the book I was going to read to you. I’ll have to think where I put it. I had it when I walked over to the book nook. If I walk over there, maybe I’ll find it.”
Encourage children to share their feelings with each other. For example, when problems arise, encourage children to talk with each other about their feelings and about the problem. This process helps children label their feelings so that they can calm down, talk about a problem and talk about a solution to the problem.
Help children make the connection that all feelings are ok, but not all behaviors are ok. For example, “It is ok to feel frustrated when you have to wait your turn for your favorite center. It is not ok to push your friend.”
Be a cheerleader for children when they are problem solving! For example, “Tamara, you calmed down and told Jeremiah how you were feeling. Then you talked to Jeremiah about how to solve the problem so you could both play with the blocks. You were both great problem solvers!” Be specific when offering praise to children about their problem-solving efforts.

Helping children develop emotional understanding requires repeated and intentional practice. Adults support children’s development when they help children identify, label and talk about emotions, and when they support children’s efforts around problem solving.

References:

Bierman K., C. Domitrovich, R. Nix, S. Gest, J. Welsh, M. Greenberg, C. Blair, K. Nelson, and S. Gill. 2008. “Promoting academic and social-emotional school readiness: The Head Start REDI Program.” Child Development 79: 1802-1817.
Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning
Domitrovich, C., M. Greenberg, C. Kusche, and R. Cortez. 1999. Manual for the Preschool PATHS Curriculum. Channing-Bete Company.
Ursache, A., C. Blair, and C. Raver. 2012. “The Promotion of Self-Regulation as a Means of Enhancing School Readiness and Early Achievement in Children at Risk for School Failure.” Child Development Perspectives 6: 122-128.

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Lessons and Activities to Build Self-Awareness – Proud to be Primary

Teaching emotions for kids is easy with these social-emotional learning ideas and activities for the classroom.

Social-emotional learning is a key component in teaching young children. You’ll find that a good part of your day is spent educating your students about how to recognize, manage and express feelings. Because of this, below are engaging ways to teach emotions for kids in your classroom.

Everything You Must Know to Teach Emotions to Kids

Why do students need help learning how to express healthy emotions and feelings?

Students learn healthy emotional habits and ways of expressing their feelings in several ways. They learn at home as well as in their interactions with their family and friends. Children tend to pick these things up naturally. They learn by watching how others respond and mimicking their behavior. Many kids are active in their churches, community centers, sports, and hobbies. In those places, they learn how to interact with friends and neighbors as well.

But, what about the students who don’t have such opportunities?

It’s up to us, as educators, to model, teach, and encourage them to practice healthy emotional responses to everyday situations and events! Helping children to express their feelings and handle difficult situations with calm is our ultimate goal.

1. Helping Kids Identify Different Emotions

Children should be taught the language necessary to label and identify the different emotions they may experience. The reason is, we need to let them know that feeling different emotion is normal. By giving them the vocabulary needed to describe how they’re feeling, you are encouraging them to express themselves productively.

Recognizing Facial Expressions and Body Language: Children need to learn how to identify their own emotions, as well as others. One way to do this is by learning to pay attention to their own body signals, such as a frown and queasy stomach when nervous, or balled fists and tight shoulders when angry. Once they can recognize it in themselves, they can pick up on facial expressions and body language of others and then learn to react accordingly. In your morning meetings, perhaps spend five minutes modeling and discussing different emotional states.
Clip Chart: One way to encourage recognition of feelings is to provide a visual reference for them to use. A clip chart helps students to recognize and identify how they are feeling. They simply place a clip on the chart in the space that shows how they are feeling.

Play Games: One fun way to introduce, teach, and practice the names of emotions is to play an engaging game with students, such as these emoji card games, matching games, and board game.

2. Teaching Kids Healthy Expression of Emotions

We all feel the full range of emotions. Wherever they are on the happy or sad, engaged or bored, proud or embarrassed, ends of the spectrum, we can help them express those emotions in a safe and healthy way. The classroom is a great place to learn and practice!

“I Feel…” Statements: To learn how to express their feelings appropriately, students need to be taught how to use “I feel…” statements. Instead of screaming insults at another child who broke his crayon, little Johnny can say “I feel sad that you broke my crayon”, opening up the communication between the two students. This allows for healthy conflict resolution.
Coping with Extreme Emotions: Sometimes we must step in and help kids deal with the emotional roller coasters they sometimes find themselves on. Their extreme emotions get out of control and they need help finding their way back to calmness. We must realize that addressing the whole brain is key to understanding how to help them best.
Teaching Emotional Rights: It’s important for children to understand and assert their rights when it comes to emotions. This helps them maintain healthy boundaries with their friends and peers, and be respectful to teachers and adults.

3. Connecting Kids to Experiences with Emotions

Children learn to embrace their emotional state by realizing that it is normal and ok to feel the way they do. It’s our job to give them opportunities to label their feelings correctly. Emotional memory is strong! We can harness that power by helping students connect their experiences in the classroom with their emotions. By recognizing and acknowledging their feelings during a learning activity or classroom event, we can increase the chances of it sticking in our students’ long-term memory. You see, that’s why emotions for kids is so important!

Journaling: Encouraging students to journal about their feelings is helpful. They express their feelings by writing about learning tasks, field trips, or school events. For one, we often use this learning method in our classrooms for improving handwriting, spelling, vocabulary, and of course writing skills.
Emotion Sort: Have students sort pictures of children with experiencing different emotions. By doing so, they will gain practice recognizing facial expressions and body language and therefore, feel more confident understanding their own and others feelings.

4. Teaching Kids about Brain Biology and Emotions

The human brain is a fascinating subject, even for the youngest learners. Teach them what the parts of the brain are called, and talk about how different parts of the brain control their emotions and feelings.

Brain Craftivity: Try this fun craft activity that teaches children about the parts of the brain that control the emotions.

Upstairs and Downstairs: To try to explain how the parts of our brain work together, and how the emotions part can sometimes take over, try explaining it in terms they can understand, such as the “upstairs and downstairs.”

5. Encouraging Kids to Have a Positive Mindset

Additionally, add in self-talk and self-motivation skills. Positive and encouraging self-talk will help your students succeed, and create a more positive classroom environment overall. For example, you can teach them ways to feel good and focus on positivity. Here are ways to influence them to have a good attitude at school and teach emotions for kids.

Create a Vision Board: Vision boards are used in all types of professions, from business to graphic design. They can be used in the classroom too! Help children visualize what they desire and what makes them happy. Precisely, when they have an image in their mind of what makes them thrive, they are more likely to reach their own goals, and ultimately succeed in the classroom.

My Heart Map: This creative activity encourages children to thoughtfully consider what makes them happy and depict it on paper. It’s a great way to help them own and recognize their emotions and focus more on having a positive outlook.

Teach Growth Mindset: Any lesson about emotions and feelings can easily be integrated into a growth mindset curriculum plan. The two go together like peas and carrots!

Resources for Teaching Emotions with Kids

Emotions Self-Awareness Unit

The Emotions: Social Emotional Learning Unit includes 5 detailed, research-based lessons to teach emotions for kids. It is filled with hands-on and mindful activities. The curriculum teaches children about how their brain controls their emotions. It also teaches how to identify and express how they are feeling, and ways to encourage a positive mindset.

Emotions Book Companions

This emotional awareness resource includes 5 book companions on popular children’s books that relate to feelings and emotions (The Color Monster; The Feelings Book; Glad Monster, Sad Monster; F is for Feelings; In My Heart).

Children will participate in classroom discussions and book chats, share their feelings in written form, and participate in fun, engaging activities that build emotional awareness and social skills.

This emotions book companion resource includes a detailed lesson plan, guided questions, anchor chart, writing response, and follow-up activities (printable and digital included) for all 5 books. Great for distance learning and remote teaching of social-emotional skills!

FREE Emotions Lesson & Feelings Journal

Help students learn to identify and process their feelings in an emotions journal.

Download a free lesson and activities on identifying and labeling emotions from the Emotions unit by clicking the image below and signing up.

Social-Emotional Learning Curriculum

The mind + heart Social Emotional Learning Curriculum includes 8 units with 5+ detailed, character education, research-based LESSONS filled with TONS of hands-on and mindful ACTIVITIES that encourage children to express themselves and build important emotional and social skills. It includes emotions for kids!

More About Teaching Emotions

Emotional Skills Books and Videos

Self Regulation Strategies, Books & Videos

Empathy Skills Books & Videos

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Emotions for children - we study feelings and emotions with children simply and clearly

We will introduce the child to the variety of human emotions, teach them to express their feelings and recognize the emotions of other people through exciting story games

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Why should a child study emotions?

Better understand yourself

It is sometimes difficult for a child to even realize, and even more so to formulate what he wants now, what he feels, why he suddenly became uncomfortable. And most importantly, understand what to do with it. Knowing the emotion "in the face", the child will not be at a loss in front of her.

Manage your emotions

Emotions arise uncontrollably, but how to dispose of them is up to us. Even a brave person can be frightened, but at the same time one will cry and hide, while the other will look fear in the face and defeat it. And this is exactly what you should learn from childhood - otherwise you won’t become successful.

Communicate more effectively with people

For productive communication, it is important to be able not only to recognize the emotions of others, but also to correctly express your own. Many will prefer to deal with a calm, friendly interlocutor, and not with a closed beech or a person who expresses his feelings too violently.

Protect yourself from manipulation

Each of us hides our true emotions in some situations. Sometimes it's a matter of etiquette. But sometimes people can pretend to benefit at our expense and even harm us on purpose. This is where basic knowledge of human emotions comes in handy.

What should a child know about emotions?

What are emotions and how they arise

The child should learn that emotions are a reaction to what happens to him. They help us to be aware of our attitudes to people and events, regulate behavior and better understand others. Emotions can arise spontaneously, but there is no need to be afraid of this - they can and should be controlled.

How to visually distinguish one or another emotion

People don't often talk about their feelings and emotions directly. How do you know if a person is scared or sad? Is he happy or nervous? Surprised or interested? Is he sincere? You can distinguish the emotions of other people based on their facial expressions, facial expressions, actions.

How to control your own emotions

Those who do not know how to cope with their emotions are perceived as ill-bred and unpleasant people. Children are usually forgiven for inappropriate expressions of emotions, but the sooner the child learns to take control of them, the better he will get along with people and the more he will achieve in the future.

How to introduce a child to emotions and feelings?

Be sincere with children

Parents who believe that the manifestation of emotions is a weakness and it is better to ignore them altogether will grow up unhappy, socially unadapted children. Feel free to express your feelings in front of a child: angry, laughing out loud, sad. Let him understand that different emotions are normal.

Pay attention to your child's emotions0009

If you see that the child, for example, is sad, turn to him: “You are sad. What happened? And what do you think to do with it? It is important that he understands: he will not be punished for what he feels, you are ready to analyze his feelings with him - and you will always tell you how to express them, what to direct them to.

Expand your child's emotional vocabulary

Psychologists have noticed a connection between emotional vocabulary and communication and introspection skills. Use at home more synonyms for words denoting sensations. Address the shades of emotions. For example, the general “evil” may mean “irritated”, “angry”.

Read and analyze literature together

The ability to empathize is formed when a person imagines himself in the place of another. Invite the child to imagine how he would feel if he were in the place of one or another literary hero. What would you do with these emotions? Would you express them or hide them? How would you proceed from them?

Learning emotions with children in an interactive

game format

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Explore the interactive play activities your child will have with Umnaziah's Introducing Emotions course.

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The structure of the course "Emotions for children"

10 THEMED LESSON GAMES 30-40 MINUTES EACH

Each lesson is dedicated to one of the situations or emotions. The theory for the lesson is presented in the format of short stories and interactive tasks designed for children aged 6-13.

40 FUN CHALLENGES BUILT INTO THE SCENARIO OF LESSON

Each lesson contains 5-7 tasks to consolidate the material covered. All tasks have a plot and bright illustrations or are presented in the form of a game.

UNLIMITED ACCESS TO ALL COURSE MATERIALS

The child will be able to take the course as many times as he needs. You buy the course once and can return to it even after 5 years.

INTERACTIVE KNOWLEDGE QUIZ GAME

The course ends with an interactive quiz game, for the successful completion of which the child receives a certificate. You will be confident in his knowledge!

What topics do we study in the course "Emotions for Children"?

Galaxy of Emotions

Joy and Sadness

Fear and Anger

Interest and Surprise

Trust and Aversion

Complex emotions

What is empathy?

Dating cloak

Control helmet

Find yourself

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Examples of tasks for the study of emotions

Get to know the other steps of the Emotional Intelligence for Kids course

"Introducing Emotions" is the first of four steps in the Emotional Intelligence course for children from Umnaziah. See what topics our students are studying in other levels.

Getting to know emotions

In this course, we will introduce the child to the spectrum of human emotions, try to understand their own feelings, and learn to recognize and recognize the emotions of others. How are curiosity and surprise related? Is it possible to stop worrying at the blackboard and is fear so terrible?

Personality types

The main objective of this course is to show the child the diversity of human characters. We are all different in some ways, but similar in some ways. Why do some guys easily make new acquaintances, while others are reluctant to make contact, and how do different people make decisions?

Teamwork

The course is designed for children aged 9-13 and introduces the child to the basic principles of teamwork, teaches them to identify and take into account the strengths of each team member and give constructive feedback. 0057 feedback.

Difficult situations

The course is designed for children 7-10 years old. During the game, the child empathizes with the characters of the course, helps them cope with conflict situations and learns to predict the possible consequences of their decisions and actions.

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Development of emotional intelligence in children: games and exercises

Today, most parents strive to develop their child from all sides. This is facilitated by a huge number of circles and "developers" from a very early age. However, in an effort to send the child to read or learn a foreign language as early as possible, adults ignore one important nuance.

Early and preschool age is the basis not only for laying down knowledge and skills, but also for the formation of an emotionally developed empathic person who is able to understand his thoughts and emotions. In this article, we will explain why it is so important to develop the emotional intelligence of a child and how to do it right.

Article content:

What is emotional intelligence
Why develop emotional intelligence
Signs of low emotional intelligence
Features of emotional intelligence at different ages
How to develop emotional intelligence
Emotional intelligence in preschool children
Games and activities to develop emotional intelligence in children
Output

What is emotional intelligence

This concept appeared relatively recently, in 1990, and means a person's ability to recognize and express their own emotions and feelings, as well as understand the emotions of other people.

The founders of this concept - Peter Salovey and John Mayer - distinguish 4 components in their model of emotional intelligence: ;

the use of emotions in thinking and activity: the possibility of using emotions to solve extraordinary problems;

understanding of emotions: interpretation of the cause of certain emotions, the ability to understand a complex of feelings or conflicting emotions, such as love and hate;

Conscious Emotion Management: The ability to accept all feelings from negative to positive, control emotions and consciously use them, depending on the situation.

In other words, the child first learns to understand his emotions, but on the basis of this, an understanding of the feelings of other people is developed, and in the future this skill contributes to building positive relationships with other people.

Why develop emotional intelligence

Children are very emotional by nature and have a whole range of feelings. However, learning to manage them is not an easy task. Why is it so important to teach a child to understand how he feels in different situations?

First, when a child knows why he has a certain emotion, it becomes easier for him to control it and regulate his behavior in general.
Secondly, by understanding himself, the child learns to understand others. This is an important component for entering the society of children and adults. The child acquires such an important quality as empathy - the ability to empathize with other people.

Understanding the feelings of the surrounding people, the child becomes responsible for his actions, predicts possible consequences.

Signs of low emotional intelligence

It is possible to determine the level of emotional intelligence using various methods. The main signs of low emotional intelligence are as follows:

inability to control one's emotions, as well as to determine them;
inability to empathize with other people or be happy for them;
inability to ask for or accept help and support from others;
the impossibility of building close relationships with other people or building relationships without an emotional component;
inability to understand the consequences of one's emotions for oneself and others.

Peculiarities of emotional intelligence at different ages

Consider how emotional intelligence develops in children by age.

Early age

A child from birth to three years old absorbs all incoming information as actively as possible. From the very first months of life, he reacts to the emotions of mom and dad. Smiles and laughs in response or cries if he hears negative intonations. As he grows up, he learns to read people's emotions and apply this knowledge to achieve his goals.

Preschool age

At the age of three, a child begins to separate himself from his mother and father for the first time and tries to become independent. This difficult time for parents is called the “crisis of three years”, or “I am myself”, and carries a huge potential for the development of individuality in a child. Most often, it is at this age that the child will deny even those facts that are illogical to deny. Specially put on shorts on your head, and a T-shirt on your legs and say that this is how it should be.

Parents should give their child the opportunity to experience what is right and best to do. You should not punish for obstinate behavior, it is better to be patient and wait for the end of the first serious crisis.

After graduation, the preschool child enters into an active social environment. Now he is surrounded not only by his mother, father, grandparents, but also by other adults and children. Throughout preschool childhood, the child acquires communication skills, learns to understand the emotional world, which helps him build social connections and prepares him for further stages of life.

School age

Children usually start school when they reach the age of seven. At this stage, the child is waiting not only for new knowledge, but also for more stringent requirements from adults, new acquaintances, which increasingly alienate the child from the adult. The student reaches a new level of emotional intelligence and becomes able to more fully express empathy.

How to develop emotional intelligence

The birth of emotional intelligence occurs directly in the family, and, of course, parents contribute to this. This process is natural, because through communication with the child, through the manifestation of feelings for him, the baby learns to understand emotions.

An adult must explain to a child all the variety of emotions and feelings, explain that it is normal to experience certain emotions, even if it is anger or fear. It is important not to discount the child's emotions with common phrases like "men don't cry." So you will plant in the soul of the child shame for your own feelings, and this will negatively affect the development of a high level of emotional intelligence.

When a baby cries, first of all, parents try to calm him down as soon as possible with quick methods. Try to explain to him why such an emotion arose. For example, "You're upset because you don't want to go home from your walk." When experiencing your own emotions, also tell your child what they are and why they arose.

Manifestation and understanding of all emotions, whether negative or positive, is very important for a child's mental health. Suppressed emotions in childhood negatively affect the quality of life already in adulthood. Therefore, it is so important for adults to help the child improve these skills.

Emotional intelligence in preschool children

The development of emotional intelligence in preschool children occurs in stages:

The child begins to understand his feelings. At this stage, parents discuss emotions with their child, referring to fiction or cartoons, discussing the feelings of the characters and their own. Here it is also important to ask the child every day what his mood is, what emotions he experienced during the day.
The child begins to understand the feelings of others. This stage gives parents the opportunity to show the child that mom or dad is not always in a good mood and that this is normal. Here you can already explain to the child that you do not want to play catch-up, because you are very upset because of problems at work and you want to sit quietly with the baby. Parents continue to turn to fairy tales or cartoons, analyzing the feelings of the characters. Understanding the feelings of another, the child develops empathy. It is important to show by example relationships with other people, to build an atmosphere of mutual understanding between parents.
The child learns to control his emotions. At this stage, the parents show how to express negative feelings without harming anyone, such as yelling and jumping, hitting the pillow, etc. It is also important to learn how to cheer yourself up in ways that are appropriate for the child. Find out what the child likes the most and what makes him feel better.

Games and exercises for the development of emotional intelligence in children

The most enjoyable activity for every child is a game. With the help of games, you can teach your baby to understand and accept all the feelings and emotions that he experiences. We have selected a small list of games that are aimed at increasing the emotional intelligence of a child.

Emotion Pictogram Games

This game requires special emotion cards. Invite the child to draw out any card lying face down and depict the emotion that is drawn on it so that other participants in the game can guess it.

How do I feel today game

You can use the same emotion cards for this game as in the previous one. Every day, invite your child to take a picture with the emotion that he felt today, and ask him to tell about it.

Puppet theater

A great activity to reinforce your favorite fairy tales, improve speech expressiveness and develop emotional intelligence through playing with fairy tale characters.

Ball games

Play ball with your child, passing it to each other in turn and naming emotions and their cause.