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 as 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 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, for example, while another student may fare better talking about their problems with a trusted adult.
This is why we suggest teaching your primary school students various 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 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 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 both 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 practising 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 a piece of paper!
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Managing Anxiety Worksheet (Upper Primary)
Help older students identify and manage anxious feelings with this self-reflection and action plan worksheet.
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Things I Can and Cannot Control - Sorting Activity
Help students identify things in life they can and cannot control with this interactive sorting activity.
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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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Managing Big Emotions Posters
Help students manage emotions such as anger, fear, worry, sadness and happiness with this colourful set of posters for your primary school classroom.
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Stress Management Toolkit for Kids
Practice stress management techniques with your students with this set of 4 worksheets, which form a stress management toolkit for reference.
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The Ultimate List of Coping Skills
Provide your students with this comprehensive list of coping skills to help them manage tricky situations and reduce the effects of overwhelming emotions.
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My Emotional Triggers Worksheet
Help your early years students explore the situations that trigger them to experience certain emotional responses with this 2-page emotional triggers worksheet.
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My Calm-Down Toolkit
Help your students calm down when they experience a big emotion with this printable coping skills toolbox template.
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Big Problem, Little Problem Posters
Show different strategies for identifying and solving big problems and little problems with printable posters.
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Managing Anger Worksheet (Lower Primary)
Help students identify and manage their anger with this self-relfection worksheet.
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What Is Anger? Poster
Teach your students to understand and manage anger with this informative classroom display poster.
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Mindful Colouring and Breathing – Pinwheel Activity
Practise mindfulness through colouring and breathing with this paper pinwheel craft activity.
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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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Stress Management Techniques for Kids Teaching Slides
An editable PowerPoint presentation to use when teaching your students about stress management.
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What Can I Control? Interactive Resource
Learn about self regulation with this PowerPoint about things that you can and cannot control at school.
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Coping Strategies Bingo
Identify and remember different coping strategies that can be used at home or in the classroom when feeling overwhelmed with an emotion.
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Managing Anxiety Scenario Cards
Explore ways to manage anxiety in a variety of real-life situations with this set of 16 scenario cards.
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Resilience Posters
Teach students the meaning of resilience with these beautifully designed resilience posters for your primary school classroom.
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Emotional Self-Regulation Poster
Promote emotional awareness and self-regulation in your classroom with this classroom poster.
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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.
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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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Perseverance Posters
Teach students the meaning of perseverance with these beautifully designed classroom posters based on a mountain climbing theme.
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Coping Strategies for Managing Stress Teaching Slides
Use this informative set of 21 teaching slides to introduce or revisit coping strategies for students to manage stress.
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Coping Strategies to Manage Stress Flipbook
Get crafty with your students creating this colourful flip book containing their own preferences of strategies for managing stress.
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My Personal Coping Skills Plan – Template
Ensure your students have a personalised coping plan for those challenging moments with this comic-themed printable template.
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5-4-3-2-1 Grounding Exercise – Worksheet
De-escalate difficult situations with a printable grounding exercise.
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Positive and Negative Coping Skills – Cut and Paste Worksheet
Explore the difference between positive and negative coping skills with this cut and paste worksheet.
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Understanding and Managing Anger Teaching Presentation
Teach your students about angry feelings with this comprehensive guide to understanding and managing anger.
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Managing Anxiety Worksheet (Lower Primary)
Help students identify and manage anxious feelings with this self-reflection worksheet.
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Bounce Back – Resiliency Task Cards
A set of 24 task cards to use when teaching students how to be resilient.
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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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Resilience or Not? Interactive Sorting Activity
Explore examples of resilience by playing this interactive sorting game perfect for your social-emotional learning lessons.