Us Time / Feelings: Lesson 2: What Are Feelings? (Littles)

Feelings Unit (Littles)
Lesson 2: What are Feelings?

Lesson Goals

Defining “feelings”
Naming the feelings
Beginning to explore each feeling

Lesson Description

Students will practice naming feelings, talking about them, and recognizing feelings in others. By devoting structured classroom time to feelings, you are showing your students how essential an understanding of feelings is to their play, learning, and growth. You can refer back to this lesson during difficult moments in the classroom or playground.

Lesson Plan: What Are Feelings?

Play "Us Time" Song

(1 minute)

Open Us Time with the “Us Time” song. Sing it together or play the video.

Review Agreements

(2 minutes)

Review the agreements you created in Lesson 1:

Paying attention to each other
Keeping our hands to ourselves
Giving everyone a turn to speak.

Does anybody have any new agreements to add?

Let’s recommit by saying “I agree” or raising our hands.

Let’s make sure everyone feels safe sharing their feelings during “Us Time.”

Play & Discuss "How You Feel"

(3 minutes)

Play a Feelings Song: “How You Feel” by Oh, Hush! and Grayson DeWolfe from Noggin’s Big Heart Beats Album. Ask students to listen to the words and look at the characters’ expressions and body language during the music video.

After listening to the song and watching the music video, invite the students to discuss:

What did you hear in the song?
What did you see as you watched the music video?
How did it make you feel?

Discuss: What Are Feelings?

(3 minutes)

Prompt a conversation the the class about ALL the feelings.

“Let’s make a list of feelings.” The students should name as many feelings/emotions as they can.
Have everyone repeat the feelings that their classmates share.
Work together as a class to devise motions for each feeling — or suggest some that you think work well!

Movement: Dance Your Feelings!

(3 minutes)

After listening to the song and watching the music video, invite the students to discuss:

What did you hear in the song?
What did you see as you watched the music video?
How did it make you feel?

Feelings Grid Game

(5 minutes)

Share the Feelings Grid:

Ask the children to name and repeat the names of the feelings. Create motions or moves that go with each.

Then play a game with the Feelings Grid:

Toss a game piece or coin!
Where does it land?
When the game piece lands on a face, take turns describing a time YOU felt that way.

Closing Discussion

(5 minutes)

Share the Feelings Grid:

Ask the children to name and repeat the names of the feelings. Create motions or moves that go with each.

Then play a game with the Feelings Grid:

Toss a game piece or coin!
Where does it land?
When the game piece lands on a face, take turns describing a time YOU felt that way.

Thank You: Share the Us Time Closing Song

(2 minutes)

Conclude with “Thank You,” the Us Time “goodbye” song. This song marks the end of Us Time. Invite children to share what they want to say “thank you” for! Find the song online at playsparkler.org/UsTimeSongs.

Standards

ELOF: Goal P-SE 6, Goal P-SE 8, Goal P-LC 1, Goal P-LC-2, Goal P-LC 4, Goal P-LC 6
CT ELDS: SE.24.6, SE.36.6, SE.48.6, SE.60.8, SE.36.7, SE.48.7, SE.60.9, L.36.3, L.48.3, L.60.4, L.36.5, L.48.5, L.60.5, L.36.11, L.48.11, L.60.10