LESSON 1:

• Check out this Feelings Wheel to help you learn the different feelings we have every day. Start with the inner most circle and identify what you are feeling. From there move out to the 2nd circle within the same color section, and then to the 3rd wheel to help narrow down the exact feeling you are having. For example, this morning I woke up feeling sad. As I moved to the next level on the feelings wheel under sad I realized it was loneliness that I was feeling. The next level on the feelings wheel under lonely are the feelings abandoned and isolated. Using the wheel helped me identify that I am feeling isolated due to our social distancing because I miss being at HES and seeing all the students and teachers! Now that I really understand what I am feeling and why I can take a mindful moment (see below) and in the coming weeks we'll talk about other strategies to use! Using the feeling wheel helps us to expand our feelings vocabulary and to really think about what we are feeling so we can express ourselves better!

• Now create your own Feelings Journal to use at home. You can create your own, or use this template.

  • Use your journal when you are needing to express yourself. Writing about what you are feeling is a healthy outlet! Sometimes it helps me to first write down what I am feeling so later I can more easily talk about it with someone. Some people prefer to draw than write, that is also a great outlet!

  • If you prefer to draw than write, draw a picture of a memory or people/activities/things that make you have each feeling.

• Additional Activities

  • Additional reading option: "The Way I Feel" by Janan Cain. Listen to it here.

    • Take pictures of yourself showing what each feeling looks like in order to create your book of feelings.

  • Watch the movie "Inside Out"

Definitions:

• Rose = something positive that happened to you during the week

• Thorn = something you need help with or a challenge you are experiencing

• Bud = something you are looking forward to next week

Journal about your rose, bud and thorn or use this worksheet. Now think about how you can turn your thorn into a rose.

Did you notice any changes in your feelings or energy levels after doing this activity? When can it be helpful to turn a thorn into a rose? Who is someone that can help you with your thorn?

LESSON 2:

Think about how your body may respond to different emotions. How do your muscles feel? Your head and thoughts? Your eyes? Your stomach? Your breathing? How else does your body react?

• Here is an example of how my body reacts when I am angry. When I notice my body starting to feel this way it helps cue me into how I'm feeling and that I should probably start using my calming corner or other strategies (more on that to come!).

• Now it's your turn! Pick an emotion and use this worksheet to show how your body feels.

  • If you can, think about the severity or level of your feeling using the thermometer on the 2nd page of the worksheet.

• Don't forget to do a Rose, Bud, Thorn journal entry or use this worksheet, and then think about how you can turn your thorn into a rose.

Lesson 3:

First, think about what you want in your calming area. Not every strategy works for everyone, so this is a process figuring out what is helpful for you and what is not. For example, I love breathing exercises but that does not work for everyone! I do not do well with distractions such as word searches, but I know many people love them when upset! Here are some examples of things you can make and add to your calming box (and check out new additions each week to the section below for mindfulness and calming activities). Pick 3-5 activities for your calming space, more than that is too many options for you to pick from when feeling upset!

Some ideas:

• Coloring Pages - only do one during your time in the calming corner!

  • I usually do a Google search for children's coloring pages and use what comes up in the "Images" section.

• Word Searches - only do one during your time in the calming corner!

  • I usually do a Google search for children's word searches (I like emotion word searches!) and use what comes up in the "Images" section.

• Use your Feelings Journal you made week 1 to write or draw how you are feeling.

• Stress ball - you can roll, squeeze and push on the ball. It shouldn't be to toss around, this is a tool not a toy!

  • Include a stress ball you have at home

  • Make a stress ball with a balloon and flour. If you don't have a funnel I usually can get flour in with someone else helping to keep the balloon open and spooning the flour in. It can get a little messy!

• Make a glitter jar to focus on when breathing.

  • Watch this video to help understand the glitter jar before making it!

• Do breathing exercises. Here are a few visuals you could use:

  • Figure 8 Breathing

  • 6 Sides of Breathing

  • 5 Finger Breathing method

• 5 Senses Grounding Exercise. You can use this worksheet or name the items in your head.

  • Name 5 things that you can see (for example: people, a pet, books, my hands, a clock)

  • Name 4 things that you can feel (for example: my sweater, the table, my hair, my fuzzy socks)

  • Name 3 things that you can hear (for example: a car outside, people talking, music, a pencil tapping, footsteps)

  • Name 2 things that you can smell (for example: hand lotion, laundry detergent on my shirt, food cooking)

  • Name 1 thing that you can taste (for example: my chapstick, gum, toothpaste)

• Squeeze playdoh - focus on how it feels in your hands. Like the stress ball, it shouldn't be tossed around, this is a tool not a toy!

  • Make your own play doh.

• Smell a satchel - this can be a calming experience.

  • To make your own, place your scent in a small jewelry bag or ask an adult to help you sew one.

  • Some things you may have in your home that you can place in your satchel: a tea bag, rice scented with fragrant oils, fragrant soap bars, potpourri, pine needles, mint leaves, cinnamon sticks, cotton balls sprayed with perfume.

• Have a playlist with you favorite calming music to listen to.

• Do an imagery exercise (you are guided through a visualization). Here's one about a butterfly and one about a balloon.

• Do a muscle relaxation exercise, here's an example of one!

Now talk with your family about where your calming corner will be in your home and what the family rules are for when someone is using it. Here are the guidelines I created for the calming space in my office and some of the teachers at HES use. Make your own rules with your family so everyone understands how to use it in your home!

Lesson 4:

Four questions to ask yourself when you start feeling upset that should help you turn down the hose:

• H: Am I hungry?

• O: Am I overstimulated?

• S: Do I need to sleep?

• E: Do I need to exercise?

H: Am I hungry?

Hunger can effect how we're feeling and sometimes eating a healthy snack helps lift your mood. This is because when you're hungry your blood sugar may be low. When your blood sugar is low your body releases the same hormones that are released when you are stressed, so you start having the same reactions. If you notice this happening at certain times of the day it might be good to schedule a healthy snack break then!

O: Am I overstimulated?

Are you feeling overwhelmed or overstimulated by everything going on around you? Do you need to take a quick break? It can help to spend some time in the calming corner you created last week, take a walk (with permission from a parent!), read a book, sit outside, listen to some music or play a game.

S: Do I need to sleep?

It is important to get enough sleep in order to give our brain time to relax. If you are tired then it is harder to control your emotions and realize when you need to calm yourself. Think of it like your battery isn't fully charged when you are tired! Keep a bedtime routine and avoid screen time to let your brain know it should be getting ready to sleep.

For example, this is a strategy Daniel Tiger uses for his bedtime. Daniel Tiger uses this strategy song to help kids follow a bedtime process.

E: Do I need to exercise?

Sometimes our bodies need a movement break. Exercise makes us feel better because it releases all kinds of hormones that improves our mood and makes it easier to focus and learn. Walk briskly up and down the stairs, take a walk (with permission!), or do some moves from the this week's activity.

This week's activity:

• Create your own Move to Learn station at home with these images, or create your own! Or

• Use one of these movement ideas from Ms. Kelly and Ms. Sintros

Lesson 5:

We all have self talk! It's the thoughts that run through our minds ever day. You may be having some self talk now, like "I'm hungry" or "will I do well on my ELA assignment?"

When we start to feel overwhelmed it can be easy to start saying negative things to ourself, such as "I can't do this!" or "no one likes me!" This is called "negative self-talk" and when we start saying things like this it makes our mood, motivation and feelings of worth drop. Berating ourselves over and over often makes us feel worse, not better!

On the other hand, when we say positive things to ourselves, or use "positive self talk" we often feel better. Not only do we feel better, but it allows us to think about how to tackle the problem and fix it, rather than getting caught up in negative thoughts. Besides, it's okay to make mistakes, and sometimes we need to remind ourselves of this!

Our thoughts can be focused on actual mistakes or problems that we need to work on, but it is in your control to make yourself feel better with positive self talk, or worse with negative self talk. Our task for this week is to practice changing our thoughts and how we view a situation from negative to positive. Looking at these situations, how would you flip your self talk from negative to positive?

Situation #1: You are feeling stuck on the classwork assigned, but the teacher tells you that they don't have time to help you right now.

• • Negative self talk: "I will never understand this by myself!"

  • Positive self-talk:

Situation #2: You are fighting with your friend at recess over who gets a turn on the spinners. You end up getting into trouble even though you feel your friend started the argument by not giving you a turn.

• • Negative self talk: "I get into trouble for everything!"

  • Positive self-talk:

Situation #3: Your teacher assigns a project that involves working in groups. You approach a group of students and they tell you "We already have a full group."

• • Negative self talk: "No one likes me, I'll never find a group to work with."

  • Positive self-talk:

Situation #4: You and your sister are fighting over who gets to use the iPad. Your mom comes in and yells at you to give her a turn, even though you remember she got to use it last.

• • Negative self talk: "My sister gets everything, my parents like her better than me!"

  • Positive self-talk:

Situation #5: You get back your math test and have a lower grade than you expected. You're really surprised since you love math and usually do well.

• • Negative self talk: "I'm awful at math, I'll never move on to the next grade."

  • Positive self-talk:

Check out the Mindfulness activity of creating a Mindful Calendar (towards the bottom of this page). In addition to positive self talk it's important to think about and have gratitude for positive things in our life! The calendar will help you take stock of all the good in your life, and evaluate where you need to better take care of yourself so you can plan activities that will help!

Acceptance and Kindness Resources

Teaching Tolerance lesson plans: https://oneworldoneheartbeating.com/for_teachers/teaching-tolerance/

Welcoming Schools lesson plans: https://welcomingschools.org/resources/lesson-plans-diverse-families

Books:

Just Ask! Be Different, Be Brave, Be You - Justice Sonia Sotomayor

It's OK to be Different - Todd Parr