While Teaching Feelings your child to understand and express feelings can be difficult, this fundamental aspect of education is essential. Children need to learn about feelings to express themselves appropriately and develop strong connections. It isn’t possible to develop all of their feelings in a single lesson, but by incorporating the ideas in this article, you can help them better understand their emotions and feel more comfortable sharing them. Plus, teaching your child about feelings will benefit you as a parent, too!
When identifying feelings, students may want to practice giving each other a thumbs-up or a thumbs-down. A follow-up discussion can be conducted to further explain how to identify good and bad feelings. To help students understand how to identify these two types of feelings, try giving examples of what it feels like to be in a hard place. In addition to using examples, students can use this activity to explore feelings that are hard to handle.
Another fun way to teach feelings to children is by using facial expressions. Having your students make up different facial expressions can help them develop empathy and understanding of others’ feelings. For example, if a child is happy, they can receive a high-five, while a shy child could get a hand holding. As they grow in confidence, they’ll eventually be able to use emotion words to communicate their thoughts and feelings to others.
One of the most common mistakes teachers make when it comes to teaching feelings is ignoring the role that emotions play in our lives. Most educators respond with happy emotions. While happy emotions are conducive to learning, they can also hinder concentration and motivation. For example, an extremely excited child can be difficult to focus, while a mildly frustrated child can help them persevere. Likewise, sadness can lead to compassion and sympathy, two crucial skills in developing empathy.
Another method of teaching feelings is through playing games. Try making a game of bingo with different feeling faces. You can use different pictures of children to act out each emotion. Encourage children to make up their own faces when they feel a certain emotion, and model how they react. A puppet play is also a fun way to help children express their feelings and ideas. You can make up a card for each emotion and hang it up on the classroom door. Afterward, they can pretend to be the puppet, who represents that emotion.
Besides playing games, children can also play computer games related to emotions. Several of these games are available online, and you can use them with your child to help teach them about their emotions. For example, the game Symbol World contains pictures of people displaying different emotions. If you are looking for a safe browser for your child, you can install the ZAC browser. With the help of this browser, you can select the appropriate online activities for your child.
