Virtual Learning Activities

Instructional Goals:  Build a calm down space for kids to take a minute and calm down

Estimated Time:   1 - 2 hours

Directions:  Have kids take ownership of cleaning a space in their room or closet to have a calm down space.  This space is their own personal space to go to when they need to take a break.  This may also help them clean their rooms.  You might even ask them if you can help and they guide you on what to do. This gives them some control when they so often feel like they have none.  This space could be in their room or a spot in the home.  Up to you. 

Instructions/Resources:  Calm Down Corner

Instructional Goals:  Meditation to relax the mind

Estimated Time:   10 - 25 minutes

Directions:  Students and parents will do a meditation activity together to help each other practice diaphragmatic breathing. 

Instructions/Resources:   K - 2 Balloon Breaths.  3 - 5 Square Breathing

Instructional Goals:  Provide positive sleep environment

Estimated Time:   Depends on age

Directions:  Remove all devices from the room.  Use this time to read together or observe the stars and catch up on each others lives.

Instructions/Resources:  AAP Sleep Recommendations

Instructional Goals:  Dinner or Breakfast time

Estimated Time:   1 hour

Directions:  Over dinner practice meaningful conversations with kids based on the conversation cards attached.

Instructions/Resources:  Conversation Starter Cards

Instructional Goals:  Dinner conversation

Estimated Time:   1 hour

Directions:  Have parents share with their kids family history.  Where did your family come from (country of origin). How did they arrive in Colorado?  What was it like growing up for you?  What was school like when you were a kid?  What was it like growing up with grandpa/grandma etc.?

Instructions/Resources:  Reasons to Learn More About Your Family History

Instructional Goals:  Utilize what you learned about family history to make a delicious meal together.

Estimated Time:   1- 2 hours

Directions:  Research a traditional family dinner and make it with your kids!

Instructions/Resources:  Google Recipes

Instructional Goals:  Movement to help with focus.

Estimated Time:   15 - 30 minutes

Directions:  Take this time to do a fun yoga video together!

Instructions/Resources:  Cosmic Yoga

Instructional Goals:  Create a list of positive affirmations.

Estimated Time:   20 minutes

Directions:   The purpose of this is to change a mindset from a stuck mindset to a growth mindset.  Begin to think of negative things you say to yourself.  Change those negative thoughts to positive ones.  Then put them into “I am”...statements.  Examples: “I am beautiful”, “I am smart”.  Do at least three of these.  Find a place in your room or bathroom wherever you look the most and post these there. This will help to change your mindset over the course of 21 days .

Instructions/Resources:  Post Its

Instructional Goals:  Must stick to a board or card game, no electronics!

Estimated Time:   30 minutes - 1 hour

Directions:  This is to get kids off of devices first and foremost.  Second it helps them to learn important social skills like losing, taking turns, being a team player, etc.

Instructions/Resources:  Cards, board games but no video games.  

Instructional Goals:  Changing our perspective to deal with change and get back to the green zone.

Estimated Time:   15 minutes - 30 minutes

Directions:   Watch the short video of Pip the pup and discuss with your child what they observed from the video.  Suggested questions:  What zones was Pip in?  How did Pip get into the green zone?  When you are in the blue or red or yellow zone what can you do to change your thoughts to get yourself into the green zone?  

Instructions/Resources:  Pip

Instructional Goals:  Get moving, take a break from school work and have fun together

Estimated Time:   15 minutes - 30 minutes

Directions:  Use anything you want and create an obstacle course, outside or inside.    

Instructions/Resources:  25 Low Prep Obstacle Courses

Instructional Goals:  One thing that can help us stay positive and happy during hard times is practicing gratitude.  When we practice gratitude, we look for the good things that are happening or have happened in our lives.  It can be hard to focus on the good things when so many things are not going as planned, but I’d like to challenge you to begin a daily practice of gratitude.

Estimated Time:   15 minutes - 30 minutes

Directions:   Watch the short video 25 Reasons to Be Thankful.  Then Let's make a Gratitude Jar:

1. Find a jar or container you can use for your gratitude jar. The container isn’t important so something as simple as a plastic storage container will work. Decorate the container if you can.

2.  Write down one thing you are grateful for each day on a small slip of paper and then place into the container or jar. 

3. At the end of the week, go back and share all the things you were grateful for that week with someone you love or that is special to you.  

Instructions/Resources:  25 Reasons to Be Thankful

Instructional Goals:  If your kids are home with siblings, have you noticed that sometimes siblings will say or do mean or irritating things to each other?  Have you noticed you do the same thing to them?  This is called fishing.  When people are fishing, I imagine them baiting a hook with a put down, tease, mean comment, or a dirty look, just to name a few.  The fisherman is hoping you will bite the hook. 

Estimated Time:   15 minutes - 30 minutes

Directions:  Watch the two short videos and discuss with your child the videos.  Here are suggested questions.  What does it mean to bite the hook?  (It means you give a reaction and let the fisherman know that they have upset you.  When you bite the hook, you give your power away and let the fisherman control you.)  Think about all the times people fish at school, do you bite the hook at home or at school?  Do you know some ways to avoid biting the hook?   

Instructions/Resources:  A Tease is a Hook

 Learn to Swim Around the Hooks

Instructional Goals:  We often forget that it's sometimes the simple things that makes others and our own hearts happy.  Reach out to someone you love and remind them that they are special like you!

Estimated Time:   15 minutes - 30 minutes

Directions:  Make a card for someone that does not live in your home.  Grandparent, aunt, family friend, cousin.  Suggestions, you can draw them a picture, tell them that you miss them, or just say hi!       

Instructions/Resources:  Paper, makers, envelope and a stamp

Instructional Goals:  Small acts of kindness can make someone else's heart happy and yours.  You never know what someone else may be going through.      

Estimated Time:  All Day

Directions:  Watch the video below.  Suggested questions to answer:  What was the first emotion that the dog was feeling?  Once the dog realized why the bird wanted the worms, what do you think the dog was feeling?  Why do you think the dog changed his mind?  What was the kind act that the dog did?  What was the kind act that the bird did?  After you have watched the video and talked with a family member about the video.  Do at least 3 acts of kindness today, the more you can do the better!  After you do the act of kindness take a moment and think about how that made the other person feel and yourself!            

Instructions/Resources:  Kindness Must See

Instructional Goals:  Move, Move, Move, get your body moving and have fun!     

Estimated Time:  5 - 20 minutes

Directions:  Move your body, have fun, be silly.  Grab a family member find your favorite song or your family members favorite song and dance dance dance.  Dance all your worries away!  Dance until you can no longer dance anymore!            

Instructions/Resources:  KIDZ Bop Dance Along Videos or Trolls: Can't Stop The Feeling or Minions: Uptown Funk

Instructional Goals:   Change up your routine a little and have an indoor picnic for lunch.  Grab your family and your favorite stuff animals and turn off all the electronics, put the tablet and the phones away and turn off the TV.        

Estimated Time:  30 minutes

Directions:  Grab a blanket and lay it on the floor in your house.  Be involved and help with making the food, setting up picnic and help with cleaning up the picnic.  Don't forget to include everyone even your favorite stuff animals.  Most important, turn off all electronics.                

Instructions/Resources: How to Throw an Indoor Picnic with Kids

Instructional Goals:  Anger isn’t bad.  Anger is our signal that we don’t like something.  It’s okay to feel angry, but it’s not okay to hurt others or break things when we are angry.  Let's understand more about what anger looks like and feels like.

Estimated Time:  5 - 20 minutes

Directions:   Click on the correct powerpoint for your grade.  Go through the powerpoint, watching the video and follow the directions.           

Instructions/Resources:  Got Anger?  K - 1st Grade  Got Anger? 2nd - 3rd Grade  Transforming Negativity by Becoming a Worry Warrior 4th - 5th Grade

Instructional Goals:    Anger isn’t bad.  Anger is our signal that we don’t like something.  It’s okay to feel angry, but it’s not okay to hurt others or break things when we are angry.  Let's understand more about what anger looks like and feels like.  

Estimated Time:  5 - 20 minutes

Directions:   Click on the correct link for your grade.  Grade K - 3rd watch the video and talk to your family about the video.  Teach someone in your house one thing that you can do to control your emotion.  Grade 4th - 5th go through the powerpoint, watching the video and follow the directions.                     

Instructions/Resources:  Controlling Emotions K - 1 Grade  The Mad Family: Anger Management for Kids 2nd - 3rd Grade  Transforming Negativity by Becoming a Worry Warrior (Part 2) 4th - 5th Grade 

Instructional Goals:  Do you sometimes have a hard time waiting your turn?  Is it tough sometimes to raise your hand in class and wait for the teacher to call on you?  When you are hungry do you sometimes have a difficult time waiting for dinner to be ready?  Having patience can be super hard sometimes.  Waiting for our turn in line or waiting for our turn to talk or waiting for something super exiting can be tough at times.  But if we don't learn to wait and be patient we might miss out on something really cool.      

Estimated Time:  15 minutes

Directions:  Watch the video The Very Impatient Caterpillar.  After you have watched it think about a time you had to wait, be patient and when the waiting was done was it worth it.  Like the very impatient caterpillar he had to wait to become something very beautiful.  What happened when he didn't want to wait any more and tried to fly too soon?          

Instructions/Resources:  The Very Impatient Caterpillar

Instructional Goals:  Let's make a mindfulness tool, a calming bottle for your home, something that is unique like you and will help bring you to the green zone.  (Happy).        

Estimated Time:  20 minutes 

Directions:  You will need:  a clean empty bottle with cap, super glue, water.  Depending on what kind of bottle you want to make you may need either glitter glue or glitter and regular glue.  You can also add anything you want to the bottle like sequences, water beads or regular beads.   Below are directions on a few different kinds of bottle that you could make.       

Instructions/Resources:  Rainbow Galaxy Sensory Bottle or Frozen Inspired Sensory Bottle or Mermaid Tail Glitter Sensory Bottle or Rainstick Musical Sensory Bottle or Butterfly Sensory Bottle or Ringer Game Sensory Bottle

Instructional Goals: Sometimes are emotions can get real high and we need to take a break from all the different things going on around us and calm our minds and bodies.        

Estimated Time: 20 minutes  

Directions: Watch the video Kids Mindfulness, follow the directions.  Which mindful game did you like the best?  Teach someone you know (family or friend) one of the mindful games from the video.             

Instructions/Resources:  Kids Mindfulness: Calm Compilation

Instructional Goals:   Let's make a mindfulness tool, slime for your home, something that is unique like you and will help bring you to the green zone.  (Happy).    

Estimated Time: 20 minutes 

Directions:  You can use one of the slime links below and follow the directions to make slime.  Ingredients will vary depending on which slime you want to make.  (always check with your parents first before making slime, ask them to help you!)           

Instructions/Resources: Glow in the Dark Slime or Fluffy Slime or Unicorn Slime or Butter Slime or Foam Slime

Instructional Goals:  Let's focus on the power of yet and stomping ANTs (automatic negative thoughts). 

Estimated Time: 10 - 15 minutes 

Directions:  Click on your grade below.  Follow the directions on the slides.             

Instructions/Resources: Grades K - 1st Rock Brain or  Grades 2nd - 3rd Rock Brain or Grades 4th - 5th Grade Transforming Negativity 

Instructional Goals:  Having Imagination or Being creative helps us reduce anxiety (being nervous), feeling depressed (feeling sad) and being stressed.

Estimated Time:  15 - 20 minutes 

Directions:   Click on your grade below.  Follow the directions on the slides.           

Instructions/Resources: K - 3rd Mindful Imagination or 4th - 5th Mindful Imagination

Instructional Goals:  One particularly fun activity to apply mindfulness to, is eating. It’s something you can easily try by yourself at your next meal, and even with friends or family. If you have kids, it’s a great one to try with them.    

Estimated Time: 15 - 30 minutes 

Directions:  One way to think of mindful eating is to imagine that you are a scientist examining your food for the first time.  Click on the below link and follow the directions.  Do this activity with someone at your home!

Instructions/Resources:  Mindful Eating

Instructional Goals:  Try some mindful coloring worksheets, put on some "spa or relaxation" music and just color (which will calm down your brain)    

Estimated Time:10 - 40 minutes 

Directions:  Click on the link below, choose a page to color, print it out and color your worries away.            

Instructions/Resources:  Mindfulness Coloring Pages

Instructional Goals:  Being kind and filling someone else's bucket is very important to be a good leader and good person.     

Estimated Time:  5 - 30 minutes

Directions:  Choose on activity you want to do from the link below.  You can always do more!           

Instructions/Resources:  Home Kindness Challenge

Instructional Goals:  During this time when things get tough we can use flexible thinking (our "Bubble Gum Brain") to try new things or try things a different way.     

Estimated Time:  15 minutes

Directions: Click on the link below and listen to the book Bubble Gum Brain.  Think about a time where maybe you had bubble gum brain?  What could you have done differently?              

Instructions/Resources:  Bubble Gum Brain 

Instructional Goals:   Mindful walking is not about a destination; it is simply about each step and breathing.  Being mindful in the moment!   

Estimated Time: 10 minutes 

Directions:  Grab someone at home to do a Mindful Walk with (Click on the Mindful Walking directions)

Instructions/Resources:  Mindful Walk Directions

Instructional Goals:  Sometimes we have a hard time remember all the positive and really cool things about ourself.  Often we need to remind ourself of what a great and special person we are!     

Estimated Time: 15m- 30 minutes  

Directions:  Pick a few of the Positive Affirmations that are special to you and either make your own (collage style or in a journal) or print and fill out the worksheets     

Instructions/Resources:  Positive Affirmations Worksheets

Instructional Goals: In this Guided Meditation you are taken on a journey to your peaceful place; to your secret treehouse in the forest where you find pure relaxation.  This is aimed at making you feel safe and re-establish feelings of tranquility when you may be suffering challenging emotions such as stress, worry & anxiety.     

Estimated Time: 20 minutes 

Directions:   It is a guided Mindfulness Activity (you need to close your eyes and lay down, so they won't be looking at the screen).  If you have a smart TV you can find it on You Tube  you can find it through "mindfulness tree house for kids", if you would rather so everyone can lay down in the room.           

Instructions/Resources:  Mindful Treehouse 

Instructional Goals:  Learn how important your breaths are, they can help us be creative and bring us back to the green zone.   

Estimated Time: 5 - 20 minutes 

Directions:   On a blank piece of paper, with a black marker or crayon take a breath in through your nose, draw a line during your breath (across, squiggle ,circles) and then stop when your breath ends. Next, start to draw a new line while breathing out, then stop when your breath ends. You can do straight lines and circles all across the paper, be creative and be sure the lines cross.  Repeat 8-10 breaths in and out then color in the design you have just created. Everyone will have a different idea picture and ways to color it.  

Instructions/Resources:   Blank paper, black marker or crayon, colored marker or crayons.

Instructional Goals:  Recenter yourself, bring yourself back to being grounded.       

Estimated Time: 5 - 15 minutes  

Directions:  Click on the link below and choose 1 of the 5 mindful breaks to do.            

Instructions/Resources:  5 Mindful Breaks