The Chaos and the Clutter

Printables

Valentine’s Emotion Game

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This printable Valentine’s Emotion Game can be just for fun or it can help kids develop a deeper understanding of their feelings. This works well for at home, in therapy, or in the classroom.printed paper game with emoji hearts and text that reads "Valentine's Emotion Game"

Printable Valentine’s Emotion Game:

Supplies needed:

Instructions for how to play:

  1. Print pages 2-4. (Get the free pages here.)
  2. Laminate the pages if you want to increase durability.
  3. Cut apart the cards.
  4. Shuffle the cards and stack them together.
  5. Place the cards on the table face down.
  6. Players take turns drawing one card, reading the emoji, and moving their place holder to the correct space. The first player to “finish” wins the game.

Game Play Variation:

Each time a player pulls a card, the player gives an example of a time where they have experienced that emotion. “I feel scared when it’s dark.” or “I felt sad when my friend moved away.”

Allowing kids to get used to talking about their emotions through opportunities such as this game, you normalize it. Kids learn best through play. Particularly when it comes to discussing hard topics, play allows kids to let down their walls and open up.

This game is a nice addition to the classroom as a learning station, an activity for after students have completed their work, or for a Valentine’s party.

Be sure to input your email below to get your free printable Valentine’s game.

Here are some other learning through play opportunities for kids to work on their emotions:

Printable Pirate Emotions Playdough Mats

Feelings Jenga

Spider Emotions Matching Game

Gross Motor Dinosaur Action Cube

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This gross motor dinosaur action cube is a fun way for kids to work on their gross motor skills and get valuable sensory input. This activity requires very few supplies and can be done anywhere.

outstretched hand holding a square while a child jumps in the background with text that reads "Dinosaur Action Cube"You can use the dinosaur action cube indoors or outdoors. Kids of many ages can participate. This is a fun rainy day or snow day activity because it gets the whole body engaged. Kids explore their movements and imaginations as they hatch, tromp, charge, fly, and munch like the dinosaurs of the past.

I love how these activities can be paired with a dinosaur unit. When we combine full body movements with learning, kids are more likely to remember. Participating in these gross motor activities is also a great brain break for them which makes learning more effective as well. This can be used in the classroom, at home, or in your homeschool.

Dinosaur Action Cube:

Supplies needed:

Directions:

  1. Print.
  2. Cut around the outside.
  3. Fold along the fold lines.
  4. Tape or glue into a cube.
  5. Students can take turns to roll the cube and act out the action indicated.

You can also take the activity one step further by having them read about each of the dinosaur types on the cube or having them draw that species. There are so many possibilities.

Just enter your email in the box below to get your dinosaur action cube and let the learning begin!

The actions engage the student’s sensory systems as well as work on gross motor skills. With these actions, they are able to get visual, auditory, tactile, proprioceptive, and vestibular sensory input. I enjoyed seeing my kids’ interpretations of the dinosaurs. Some kids also like to add their own sound effects. We may not know exactly what dinosaurs sounded like, but my kids did some pretty convincing impressions!

Check out these other dinosaur learning activities:

Dinosaur Fossil Sensory Bin

Dino Slime

Dinosaur Activities

December Emotions Copywork Practise

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These December Emotions Copywork practise pages allow children to work on their printing at the same time that they reinforce their knowledge of emotion words. Expanding a child’s emotional vocabulary is so important. As is showing them that talking about feelings is normal and healthy. This little pack of papers helps do both.

3 cute little cartoon Christmas trees with facial expressions. The text reads "December Emotions Copywork Sentences"These printable worksheet pages help students associate the emotion word with the corresponding facial expression using adorable little Christmas trees. They are perfect for using in your classroom or homeschool. They also work well to use with your child if they need extra printing practise at home.

December Emotions Copywork Pages:

Supplies needed:

  • December Emotions Copywork pages (download them here)
  • pen or pencil OR
  • plastic sleeve AND dry erase marker

If you want to make the sheets reusable, laminate the pages or slip them into a plastic page protector. Students can then use a dry erase marker to complete the tracing and writing.

If these are for a one time use, give the student a pencil, crayons, coloured pencils, or markers and the printed papers.

Instructions for the student:

  1. Read the sentence.
  2. Fill in the outline.
  3. Trace the dotted words.
  4. Write the sentence on the lines provided.
  5. Discuss the various emotions.

These worksheets can be a great jumping off point for a class discussion or a one-on-one talk about different emotions. You can further expand that exercise by having the child describe a time when they have felt that emotion or to come up with a story around why the Christmas tree might be experiencing that particular feeling.

Simply enter your email in the box below to download the November Emotions Printing Practise Worksheets. You can use it with your child at home or print it off to use with your students in the classroom.

You might also be interested in:

December My Feelings Log

Teaching Emotions Toolkit

Thankfulness Bingo Style Game

December Feelings Log for Kids

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December can be full of wonderful holiday memories, but it can also carry with it a lot of worry and stress even for kids. The anticipation of Christmas, the change in routine, the extreme sensory overload, and the later nights can bring about some big emotions in kids that can be hard for them to pinpoint and even harder for them to express. That’s why this December Feelings Log for kids can be such a useful tool.

array of printable sheets with Christmas trees and words text reads "December My Feelings Log for Kids"When children are able to name and express their emotions, they are better able to manage them. It’s kind of like the first line of defence when it comes to challenging behaviours.

Giving them this tool can give them a leg up in beginning to express their emotions in healthy ways. It invites the child to consider their feelings about winter break (big change in routine) and to keep a record of how they feel each day. There are cute Christmas tree emotion visuals to help them better identify and sort out their own feelings.

Keeping a daily log allows kids to examine their emotions and it gives the opportunity for parents, teachers, or therapists to see if there are any obvious patterns emerging when looking back over the log. It’s a great tool!

December Feelings Log for Kids:

Supplies needed:

  • printed Feelings Log (download here)
  • scissors
  • glue stick
  • markers, pencil crayons, or crayons
  • pen or pencil

I suggest you use the Feelings Log as a jumping off point. If you find there are several days in a row where your child has placed a more challenging emotion in their daily feelings log, you can use it as a conversation starter. This allows you to delve deeper into WHY they may be feeling the way they are and to come up with coping strategies together.

Perhaps have them draw how they are feeling about other events in December such as Christmas, an upcoming concert or performance, visiting relatives, or grieving the loss of a relative, pet, or friend who will not be celebrating the holidays with them this year. This can be so helpful.

Just enter your email below to download your copy of the December My Feelings Log. You can use it with your child at home or print it off to use with your students in the classroom.

Check out these other resources for helping kids with their emotions:

Teaching Emotions Toolkit

Feelings Jenga

Unicorn Affirmations for Kids Colouring PagesUnicorn Affirmations

5 in a Row Thankfulness Game for Kids

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This Bingo style Thankfulness Game is a great way to practise gratitude with kids. It can be used during the Thanksgiving season or at any time. When important concepts are reinforced in a fun way, kids are more likely to remember them.

paper cube sits in background. A paper has bright coloured heart shaped buttons on it with text that reads "Thankfulness Game"Practising gratitude sets the stage for a happier life. It’s science. Research demonstrates that gratitude can improve general well-being, increase resilience, strengthen social relationships, improve life satisfaction, and reduce stress and depression.

This game can be played with 2-4 players at a time.

Thankfulness Game:

Supplies needed:

  • printed game cube and game sheets (downloaded from here)
  • scissors
  • glue or tape
  • markers, pencil crayons, or crayons
  • buttons, beads, or bingo dabbers to use as place markers.

Assembly instructions:

  1. Print the cube out on cardstock. Cut on the outside solid lines.
  2. Fold on the dotted lines.
  3. Form into a cube using glue or tape.
  4. Print as many game sheets as needed depending on the number of players participating.

Game Directions:

  1. Colour in the “Free Space” or place a place marker on it.
  2. Roll the die. Look at the category the die landed on.
  3. Name one thing you are thankful for in that category. For example, if you roll “family,” you can say, “I am thankful for my sister.” If you roll “clothes,” you might say, “I am thankful for warm, fuzzy socks!”
  4. After you call out your example, colour in a spot on your board or cover it with a place marker. The first person to complete five pictures in a row wins.

It may be hard for some children (depending on their age and developmental abilities) to think of things in each category to be grateful for. You can help by proving prompts or examples of your own.

To get your copy, simply enter your email in the box below to get your free printable Thankfulness Game to use with your child or students and also receive our free Sensory Solutions and Activities email series.

You may also be interested in:

Two Words That Will Transform Your Family

Why Kids Need Positive Affirmations

Birthday Party Emotions Playdough Mats

November Emotions Printing Practise

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I firmly believe that teaching emotions is even more important than teaching reading, writing, and arithmetic. Children need to develop a real understanding of emotions and know how to express their own. These November emotions printing practise worksheets allow kids to work on their printing while learning about emotions.

collage of worksheets with pumpkin faces on them and text that reads "free printable November Emotions Sentences"These copywork pages allow students to explore emotion words and associate the images with the corresponding feeling. This expands their emotional vocabulary.

November Emotions Printing Practise:

Download the printable pages. If you want to make them reusable, laminate the pages or slip them into a plastic page protector. Students can then use a dry erase marker to complete the tracing and writing.

If these are for a one time use, give the student a pencil, crayons, coloured pencils, or markers and the printed papers.

Instructions for the student:

  1. Read the sentence.
  2. Fill in the outline.
  3. Trace the dotted words.
  4. Write the sentence on the lines provided.
  5. Discuss the various emotions.

These worksheets can be the jumping off point for a class discussion or one-on-one talk about different emotions.

Simply enter your email in the box below to download the November Emotions Printing Practise Worksheets. You can use it with your child at home or print it off to use with your students in the classroom.