Emotional intelligence is a crucial skill that helps children understand and manage their emotions and navigate their relationships with others.
In this article, we’ll explore 15 fun and effective activities that can help kids engagingly develop these skills.
By practicing these activities, your child can build the emotional awareness, empathy, and self-regulation they need to thrive in social settings.
If you want to deepen your child’s emotional learning, you can also teach your child emotional intelligence.
1. Guided meditation for emotional awareness
Guided meditation is a calming practice that helps children become more aware of their emotions.
By leading your child through a short meditation session, they can focus on how their body feels and identify any emotions they may be experiencing at that moment.
This simple yet powerful activity encourages emotional awareness and teaches kids to pause, reflect, and understand their feelings before reacting.
Discover how the Storybook app's story "A Moment of Gratitude" helped one family navigate their child's emotional conflict! 🌟 The Johnson family struggled with their son, Lucas, who was having a hard time expressing his feelings of frustration.
After reading this heartwarming story, Lucas learned how to recognize his emotions and practice gratitude, helping him feel more in control and calm. 🙏✨
2. Emotion charades
Emotion charades is a fun, interactive game where kids act out different emotions while others guess what they’re feeling.
This game can include a variety of emotions, from happiness and surprise to sadness or frustration. It encourages kids to identify and express their own emotions creatively while learning to recognize these emotions in others.
To play, write down emotions on pieces of paper, and take turns acting them out.
This activity enhances emotional recognition and encourages empathy, helping kids better understand how different emotions are expressed through body language and facial expressions.
3. Feelings journal
A feelings journal is an excellent way for kids to reflect on their emotions each day.
Encourage your child to either write or draw about how they’re feeling, providing a space for them to express themselves.
This daily habit fosters self-awareness and helps children identify patterns in their emotional responses, making it easier to regulate their feelings in the future.
To get started, provide a journal or notebook, and suggest prompts to help your child articulate their emotions. For example, "What made you happy today?" or "What was something that made you feel upset?" A feelings journal is a great tool for kids to build emotional intelligence in a personal, meaningful way.
4. Role-playing scenarios
Role-playing is a powerful tool for helping kids practice social situations, such as making friends or dealing with conflicts.
By acting out different scenarios, children can explore how to respond to various emotions and situations, giving them a safe space to learn valuable social and emotional skills.
This type of activity not only builds empathy but also teaches problem-solving and effective communication.
To set up a role-playing session, choose everyday scenarios where emotions might arise, such as a disagreement with a friend or asking someone to play. Guide your child through different ways to approach the situation, encouraging them to express how they might feel and what actions they could take to resolve the conflict.
5. Emotion matching game
The emotion-matching game is a great way for kids to enhance their emotional vocabulary.
In this activity, children match facial expressions to words that describe emotions, such as "happy," "angry," or "surprised."
This game helps kids recognize and label their emotions accurately, making it easier for them to communicate how they’re feeling in real life.
To play, print out, or create cards with pictures of various facial expressions and corresponding emotion words.
Ask your child to match the faces to the correct emotion, and discuss the feelings behind each expression. If you're also looking for activities to help with self-control, check out these impulsive control activities for kids to complement your emotional learning journey.
6. Breathing exercises
Breathing exercises are a simple yet effective way for children to manage overwhelming emotions and stress.
The Thompson family found incredible relief when they used the Storybook app's story on "Breathing Exercises." Their son, Ethan, had been struggling with moments of anger and frustration, and nothing seemed to help. After reading the story together, Ethan learned how to use deep breathing to calm down, and the difference was immediate! 🙏✨
It became a daily ritual that not only helped Ethan manage his emotions but also brought the family closer as they practiced mindfulness together. Ready to help your child take control of their emotions? Try "Breathing Exercises" on Storybook today and experience the calm it brings! 📖💙
7. Storytelling with emotional focus
By reading books that focus on various feelings—such as happiness, sadness, fear, or excitement—children can relate to the characters’ experiences and learn how to manage similar emotions in their own lives.
Discussing the emotions portrayed in the story encourages empathy, making it easier for kids to identify their own feelings and develop emotional intelligence.
To get started, choose books that highlight different emotional experiences, and after reading, talk with your child about how the characters felt and why. Ask them how they would feel in similar situations, fostering deeper emotional understanding.
8. Gratitude practice
Gratitude practice is an excellent activity for children to develop a positive outlook on life.
This practice not only enhances emotional well-being but also fosters perspective-taking and helps children build resilience in difficult situations.
To implement gratitude practice, encourage your child to draw or write about at least three things they are grateful for each day. This simple habit can help them focus on positivity and nurture a mindset of appreciation.
9. Mindful coloring
Mindful coloring is a peaceful activity that allows children to express themselves creatively while discussing their emotions. This combination of relaxation and self-expression helps children regulate their emotions and process feelings they might not fully understand.
Set up a quiet space with coloring materials and suggest they choose colors based on how they’re feeling. Whether they choose calm blues or energetic reds, this practice promotes emotional regulation while also being a fun creative outlet.
10. Social emotion puppets
Social emotion puppets turn emotional learning into a fun, interactive experience.
Whether the puppet is happy, sad, or frustrated, this hands-on approach encourages kids to engage with their emotions in a playful, less intimidating way.
To play, create or purchase puppets and stage different emotional scenarios, such as making new friends or dealing with disappointment. Encourage your child to interact with the puppets and express how the characters might feel, helping them connect their emotions with real-life situations.
11. Kindness challenge
A kindness challenge is a fun and simple way for kids to practice empathy and develop social awareness. This activity promotes positive social interactions and encourages children to think about how their actions can affect the people around them.
To start a kindness challenge, create a list of small, achievable goals and encourage your child to complete one each day. Whether it’s holding the door for someone or saying something nice to a sibling, these small acts of kindness help nurture empathy. For more fun ways to develop your child’s social skills, check out these social skills games for kids.
12. Emotion wheel activity
The emotion wheel activity is a creative and effective way to help children identify and name their emotions.
By creating a wheel with various feelings—such as happy, sad, angry, excited, or anxious—children can visually connect with their emotions and practice expressing how they’re feeling.
This activity encourages emotional awareness and helps kids understand that it’s okay to feel different emotions at different times.
Have your child spin the wheel and talk about a time they felt that way, or ask them to point to the emotion they’re feeling in the moment. This fun and interactive activity is a great way for kids to develop emotional literacy.
13. Music and emotion exploration
Music has a unique way of connecting with emotions, and exploring different types of music can help children better understand their feelings.
This activity connects emotions to sensory experiences, allowing kids to recognize that music can be a powerful tool for expressing and understanding emotions.
To practice this, play a variety of music—classical, upbeat, slow, or even nature sounds—and ask your child how each one makes them feel. Discuss how the rhythm, melody, and lyrics might evoke different emotions, helping your child build emotional awareness through the power of sound.
14. Positive affirmations
Positive affirmations are a great way to boost your child’s self-esteem and emotional resilience.
Teaching children to say affirmations like "I am valuable" or "I am kind" helps them develop a strong sense of self-worth and encourages a positive mindset.
The Martinez family found incredible support in the Storybook app's story "You Are Valuable." Their daughter, Mia, was struggling with low self-esteem after a difficult situation at school.
After reading the story, Mia was inspired by the message that she is valuable and capable. It gave her the confidence to overcome her fears and embrace her worth. 💖✨
15. Conflict resolution practice
Conflict resolution practice is a valuable way for children to learn how to handle disagreements and emotional challenges peacefully.
Walk through real-life scenarios with your child, such as a disagreement with a friend or sibling, and discuss peaceful ways to resolve the conflict.
To begin, role-play different conflict situations, allowing your child to practice how they would react and resolve the issue.
Encourage open communication, empathy, and finding a solution that works for everyone involved.
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Written By
Entrepreneur mum. I created Storybook: Bedtime Stories the #1 app in over 90 countries. I have been able to help families with the app and through my social media influence. I also created a Facebook group with over 12,000 moms where we support each other.
Medically Reviewed by:
Francisco Cornejo, a dynamic entrepreneur with a Masters in Communication from RMIT University in Australia, is the Co-Founder and CEO of Storybook. As a serial entrepreneur, he notably served as the Chief Marketing Officer at Honda Motors in Latin America, shaping the brand's regional presence. Passionate about family well-being and communication, Francisco leads Storybook in its mission to improve children's health globally, aiming to create positive impacts in both corporate and societal spheres.
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