Words for Big Feelings
Personal & Social Development · Self-Regulation & Resilience · language
Know and use the key words for managing big feelings — calm, strategy, cope, settle, patience, overwhelmed, and breathe — and understand that having words for these ideas is the first step to using them
What mastery looks like
- Use words like 'frustrated', 'anxious', 'overwhelmed', and 'disappointed' accurately to describe how they feel in difficult moments
- Explain what 'calm down' strategies are in their own words and name at least two they have tried (e.g. deep breaths, counting, walking away)
- Distinguish between similar feelings — e.g. explain the difference between being angry and being disappointed
Check your understanding
When Words for Big Feelings is feeling really upset or frustrated, can they use words like 'I need to calm down' or 'I'm feeling overwhelmed' instead of just acting out?
Prerequisites
None — this is a foundational concept.