Self Management Teaching Resources
Help your students improve their self management skills with activities and printable worksheets created by teachers specifically for elementary and middle school students.
This teaching resource collection has been designed to help teachers help their students develop a host of skills from skills such as self control to impulse control and time management, goal setting. With digital and printable activities available, there is something to fit every lesson plan!
Best of all, each teaching resource has undergone rigorous review by the Teach Starter team to ensure it's ready for the classroom ... and your students!
Curious about teaching self management skills and looking for strategies that will work for your students? Read on for some tips from our expert teachers!
What Is Self Management? A Kid-Friendly Definition
Like so many lessons we teach, it can be helpful to start off by defining what self management actually means to give our students an understanding of the topic at hand. Here's a self management definition for kids from our teacher team:
Self-management means being in control of your own thoughts, feelings and actions. When we have good self management, we are able to make good choices and stay focused on our goals. Self management skills also help us to handle our emotions in a positive way.
Self Management Skills for Kids to Teach in the Classroom
As one of the core competencies of SEL, self management covers a fairly broad area. The skills that kids develop under this umbrella can include everything from means for control anxiety and anger to learning to set goals and make the changes necessary to meet them.
So what are the main skills you should be teaching? Here are some of the more common ones our teacher team focuses on with our students:
Resilience
We help our students develop resilience by teaching them how to bounce back from setbacks, cope with challenges and persevere — skills that they'll need long after they've left your classroom.
Self Control
The names are nearly synonymous, so it's hardly surprising that self control falls under the self management umbrella. Teaching kids these skills can involve discussing techniques they can use to manage their impulses and emotions
Goal Setting
Being able to set realistic and achievable goals — both short-term and long-term — falls under self management. With this in mind, it's important to also teach your students strategies to work toward their goals and track their progress.
Time Management
Helping your students understand the concept of time and teaching them to plan and organize their tasks and activities falls right in line with providing strategies to achieve their goals. Time management is also an essential life skill that will serve your students well into adulthood.
Task Initiation
While the level of independence and ability to initiate tasks is highly dependent on factors like age and person abilities, encouraging your students to start tasks promptly and independently is part of building those self management skills. This also involves helping them overcome procrastination or avoidance behaviors.
Organization
Teaching our students strategies for organizing their materials — whether it's keeping their desks tidy or returning borrowed materials to the appropriate place – is a key component of teaching them self management. As they get older, they should be able to take on more and more responsibility for keeping their belongings organized.
Responsibility
Speaking of responsibility, it's important to promote a sense of responsibility by encouraging students to take ownership of their actions in your classroom, to complete their assignments on time and to follow classroom rules.
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Managing Big Emotions Anchor Charts
Help students manage emotions such as anger, fear, worry, sadness and happiness with this colorful set of anchor charts for your elementary school classroom.
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Stress Management Techniques for Students Teaching Slides
Teach your students about stress management with this set of editable teaching slides.
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Coping Skills Desk Plates
Download and print calm-down strategy desk plates for your students so they can respond appropriately to big emotions.
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Positive Self-Talk Brag Bracelets
Encourage a positive mindset with a fun set of printable positive self-talk bracelets.
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Big Problem, Little Problem Posters
A set of posters that show different strategies for big problems and little problems.
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Dealing with Bullying Teaching Slides
Teach your students about bullying and being resilient with an interactive slide deck.
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What Can I Control? Interactive Emotional Regulation Activity
Help your students build emotional regulation skills with an interactive emotional control activity for classroom SEL instruction.
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Mindfulness for Kids - Daily Journal Worksheet
Create a mindfulness journal by printing your students copies of reflective mindfulness worksheets.
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Let's Be Sharp! Goal Setting Craftivity
Set a positive tone and start the school year with a Let’s Be Sharp! Goal Setting Craftivity.
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Mindful Breathing Exercises – Task Cards
Use these mindfulness breathing exercises to help students calm themselves down when they are feeling upset or anxious.
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Crab Mindful Coloring Sheet
A crab mindful coloring sheet.
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Fox Mindful Coloring Sheet
A fox mindful coloring sheet.
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Koala Mindful Coloring Sheet
A koala mindful coloring sheet.
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Pattern Coloring (Version 4)
Use colors to create a pattern using this sheet.
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Chill Out – Classroom Break Passes
Give your students a work break to stop behavior problems before they start with our printable Chill Out Passes.
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Resilience Posters
Teach students the meaning of resilience with these beautifully designed resilience posters for your elementary school classroom.
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Mindfulness Coloring Sheets - Portrait
A set of 3 mindfulness coloring sheets.
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Dealing with Bullying Board Game
A fun board game for students to play when encouraging the use of resilience strategies.
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Resilience Acrostic Poem Worksheet
Have students write a resilience poem to help them understand the meaning of this crucial social-emotional skill.
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I Need a Break! Card Templates
Help your students regulate their emotions by presenting them with an ‘I Need a Break!’ card for a few minutes of downtime.
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I Need a Break - Choice Boards
Help upset students regulate their emotions in the classroom with our printable ‘I Need a Break!’ choice boards.
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Resilience or Not? Scenario Task Cards
Get students to explore real-life examples of resilience with this set of 16 scenario cards perfect for developing students' social-emotional skills.
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Teacher Bullet Journal Templates - Wellness Tracker
Build your own wellness journal using a printable bullet journal template for teachers!
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Christmas Brain Breaks - Activity Slides
Add some Christmas Brain Breaks to your classroom festivities to help boost engagement and attention during the holiday season.
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2024 Goal Setting Worksheet
Inspire your students to reflect and set goals for the new year with a Goal Setting worksheet.
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Positive Self-Talk Writing Prompts (Teaching Slides)
Use this set of 15 positive self-talk scenarios as writing prompts to expand your students ability to be kind to themselves!
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Perseverance or Not? Scenario Cards
Get students to explore real-life examples of perseverance with this set of 16 scenario cards perfect for developing students' social-emotional skills.
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Positive Self-Talk Poster
Encourage your students to use positive self-talk on a daily basis with this motivational classroom poster.
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Goal Grid - Goal Setting Template
Set goals for the new school year with a printable goal-setting template for kids.
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Perseverance Strategies Mini-Book
Teach your students perseverance strategies with this printable mini-book perfect for elementary students!
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The Pillars of Perseverance – Bulletin Board Display
Teach students the definition of perseverance with this beautifully designed bulletin board display based on a rock climbing theme.
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Perseverance Posters
Teach students the meaning of perseverance with these beautifully designed classroom posters based on a mountain climbing theme.
- Self Management Templates
- Self Management Worksheets
- Self Management Posters
- Self Management Games
- Self Management for Kindergarten
- Self Management for 1st Grade
- Self Management for 2nd Grade
- Self Management for 3rd Grade
- Self Management for 4th Grade
- Self Management for 5th Grade
- Self Management for 6th Grade