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

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

Lesson Goals

Define “feelings”
Name a list of feelings
Begin 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

(3-8 minutes)

Introduce the idea of “agreements” to the students. Us Time agreements are the rules that we all agree to follow when we are together. They are meant to ensure that everyone feels safe and heard. You can share some “agreements” with the students by naming them and drawing a little picture of each on the board or on a piece of paper. You might use these:

We will stay together
We will listen to each other
We will keep our hands and feet to ourselves

Ask students to raise their hand or say “I agree!” to show that they agree. Your class can add additional agreements together in future sessions.

Discuss: What Are Feelings?

(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.

Movement: Dance Your Feelings!

(3 minutes)

Play the song “Dance Your Feelings” and invite children to dance along with the different feelings as the music changes.

Closing Discussion

(2 minutes)

As a wrap-up, review what you learned today, using the feelings grid again if it is useful to you. Discuss:

What were the feelings we talked about?
Can we name them all?

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