Coping Skills Teaching Resources
Help your students build coping skills and strategies this school year with printables, activities and more teaching resources created by teachers for teachers like you!
This social emotional learning resource collection is packed with teacher-created worksheets and other helpful tools designed to help kids learn what coping skills are and how to use them to manage their emotions.
Looking for some tips on teaching kids to how to cope with challenges? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including examples of skills to share with your students, plus a kid-friendly way to explain the meaning of these skills.
What Are Coping Skills? A Kid-Friendly Definition
Do you need a kid-friendly definition to help explain what these skills are to your students? Try this one from our teacher team:
Coping skills are the special tools we use to help us deal with tough situations and big feelings or help us manage our emotions when things don't go the way we planned.
Our coping skills help us feel better and stronger, and they can make us feel more in control of our emotions and feelings.
Teaching kids to face their worries and concerns head-on is part of developing good coping skills.
Examples of Coping Skills for Kids to Share in the Classroom
This collection is packed with examples of coping skills built from the study of stress and how individuals adapt to challenging circumstances, but our teacher team didn't stop there.
We have put together a handy list of skills to focus on in the classroom in order to provide your students with a full toolkit of strategies they can use when they're feeling overwhelmed, stressed or anxious.
The coping skills that work best for each student are just as personal as the students themselves, and their ability to make use of each skill successfully can likewise be individual. One student may find that taking deep breaths is a great way to calm down when they're feeling overwhelmed, while another student may fare better talking about their problems with a trusted adult.
This is why we suggest teaching your elementary and middle school students a host of different coping skills and strategies so kids can pick and choose the ones that work best for them.
Here are some examples of coping skills for kids that we suggest sharing with your class!
- Deep Breathing — Learning to take deep breaths when you're feeling emotional is simple, but these exercises have plenty of research behind them that speaks to their efficacy in helping kids calm down and manage stress.
- Positive Self-Talk — Teach your students some positive affirmations they can use to reframe negative thoughts and develop a more optimistic outlook.
- Problem-Solving — Work on breaking down problems into smaller parts and brainstorming possible solutions helps them feel more in control and empowered.
- Asking for Help — Let your students know that asking for help from trusted adults, such as teachers or parents, when they are facing difficulties or feeling overwhelmed isn't just OK. It's a great coping mechanism to use!
- Mindfulness — Meditation, body scans and other mindfulness activities can all help your students develop awareness of their thoughts, emotions and sensations so they can cope better when they're stressed.
- Exercise — Kids and adults can release pent-up energy and reduce stress with something as simple as getting active, whether it's going for a run, taking a walk or practicing yoga.
- Art — Teaching your students to explore their emotions through art, such as drawing or journaling, allows them to process and communicate their feelings. Simple doodling, for example, is a perfect outlet for many students that doesn't require much more than a pencil and piece of paper!
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Dealing with Bullying Poster
Add this anti-bullying poster for the classroom to your bullying prevention toolkit and teach your students five resilience strategies to respond to bullying behavior.
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Emotion Strategies Wheel
Help your students self-regulate when they experience "big" emotions with this hands-on emotions wheel with accompanying calming strategies.
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The Worry Waterfall – Anxiety Management Poster
Teach your students how to deal effectively with worrying thoughts with this classroom poster.
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My Emotional Triggers Worksheet
Help your elementary students explore the situations that trigger them to experience certain emotional responses with this 2-page emotional triggers worksheet.
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5-4-3-2-1 Grounding Exercise – Worksheet
De-escalate your students while in difficult situations with this calming exercise.
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Resilience Writing Prompts
Use this set of resilience writing prompts to help your students reflect upon times they have observed resilience in themselves and others.
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My Feelings Volcano Worksheet
Prevent students from being overcome by strong emotions with this volcano-themed coping skills worksheet.
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Calming Down Mini-Book
Help your students to keep calm when they are experiencing heightened emotions with this social story mini-book.
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My Personal Coping Skills Plan – Template
Ensure your students have a personalized coping plan for those challenging moments with this comic-themed printable template.
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Emotional Self-Regulation Desk Mat
Promote emotional awareness and self-regulation in your classroom with this desk-sized strategies mat.
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Calming Strategies Fortune Teller Template
Help your students choose and apply strategies when they need to calm down with this handy fortune teller template.
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Understanding and Managing Anxiety Teaching Presentation
Teach your students about anxious feelings with this comprehensive guide to understanding and managing anxiety.
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Resilience or Not? Interactive Sorting Activity
Explore examples of resilience by playing this interactive sorting game perfect for your social-emotional learning lessons.
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Resilience Word Search
Use this resilience word search to immerse your students in the key vocabulary related to this important social-emotional skill.
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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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Perseverance Strategies Mini-Book
Teach your students perseverance strategies with this printable mini-book perfect for elementary students!
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I Can Calm Down! Worksheet
Help students identify calming skills they can apply to real-world scenarios with this one-page worksheet.
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Managing Big Emotions – Cut and Paste Worksheets
Empower students to identify and manage big emotions with this set of cut-and-paste worksheets for younger students.
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Guided Meditation (Mindful Breathing) Script for Kids
Share this guided meditation script with students to promote mindfulness and help them to regulate their emotions by breathing mindfully.
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Coping Skills Wheel – Anchor Chart
Help your students learn and apply emotional self-regulation skills with this coping skills wheel of choices poster.
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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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Managing Anger Worksheet (Intermediate)
Help older students identify and manage angry feelings with this self-reflection and action plan worksheet.
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Managing Anxiety Worksheet (Primary)
Help students identify and manage anxious feelings with this self-reflection worksheet.
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Circle of Control Poster
Display this poster in your classroom to remind students about the things in life they can and cannot control.
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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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Mindful Coloring and Breathing – Pinwheel Activity
Practice mindfulness through coloring and breathing with this paper pinwheel craft activity.
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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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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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What Is Resilience? Teaching Slides
Teach your students the meaning of resilience with this age-appropriate slide deck perfect for your social-emotional learning lessons.
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Exploring Resilience Worksheets
Explore what resilience looks like and sounds like with your students with this set of three worksheets perfect for your social-emotional learning lessons.
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Becoming Resilient Mini-Book
Use this printable resilience book to teach your students what resilience means and how it can be used as a tool in their everyday lives.