After having a panic attack during a nationally televised basketball game, Kevin Love published a very brave and vulnerable article sharing his struggles with mental health. The outpouring of support that came from Kevin sharing his story was the inspiration for this curriculum. Kevin opens the door to talking about emotions in a school setting, a place where emotions are often not thought of as appropriate to share.
In this lesson, students will learn that everyone goes through difficult experiences in their lives, and they can’t always see what their classmates, friends, or teachers are going through. The educator will explain that we all feel different emotions throughout the day, and it can be helpful to notice these emotions. For the creative activity, students will draw pictures and/or write about a time when they felt a strong emotion (such as sadness, love, anger, fear, etc.). This will help start a discussion about different emotions and encourage students to welcome all of their feelings. This lesson will teach students that everyone goes through tough times, and that it’s normal to feel challenging emotions.
Destigmatize emotions that are often labeled as negative.
Raise awareness that students are not alone in their challenging emotions and that students can share their feelings with their teacher or a trusted adult.
Develop an understanding of how drawing and writing can be used as a tool to express emotions.
Review classroom expectations and remind students that it is important to listen and to be kind when another student is speaking.
Tell a personal story through drawing and/or writing – have it ready to share with your students.
Print the Creative Activity handout included in the “Materials for the Lesson” section for your students. (If you’re unable to print the handout, a blank sheet of paper can be used as a substitute.)
Have art supplies and writing materials available for students.
Hope talks about her worries distracting her during the school day, and she shares a drawing of her family’s dog that passed away. (This video is included in the upper elementary adaptation, which is explained in more detail at the bottom of the lesson.)
Display the ‘welcome slide’ from the Lesson 1 PowerPoint as you begin.
*Slide 1
*Slide 2
Explain that everyone feels many different emotions throughout the day, and that this is part of being human. Share a few different types of emotions that you frequently experience within a day – joy, sadness, nervousness, frustration, etc.
Using facial expressions and body language, act out the difference between emotions that we can see on the outside versus emotions that are hidden on the inside. Highlight the importance of being understanding and knowing that others may be going through something you can’t see.
Example of What You Could Say:
“Today, we are going to talk about emotions. Maybe this is a word that is familiar to you, and you know some of the names for emotions, or maybe this is something new to think about. Emotions are the feelings that we have like being happy, sad, angry, nervous, scared – there are so many different emotions, and they are all okay to feel. We all experience multiple emotions throughout each day.
Can anyone think of any emotions that you have felt today?
(Allow your students to share.)
We can sometimes see other people’s emotions through their facial expressions, like a smile or a frown (give a few examples of various expressions), or through their body language — the way they hold their arms, head, or shoulders (cross your arms, hang your head, or slouch your shoulders to show students what this could look like).
But other times, we can’t see how people are feeling because it is inside of them (you can point to your chest/heart or your head). And they may not be able to see how we are feeling because it is inside of us. Someone may be struggling, even if you don’t see it on the outside, so we should always try to be understanding of others.
I want us to understand that we do not have to hide our feelings and pretend that we are okay when we are struggling. Remember that it’s human to feel lots of different emotions throughout every day of our lives.”
Explain that drawing and writing are helpful tools to express emotions.
Share with your students either the picture that you drew or the piece that you wrote. By doing this, you are modeling your own vulnerability, sharing an experience when you were going through something difficult and no one would have been able to tell just by looking at you.
Example of What You Could Say:
“When we feel strong emotions, one way to help us move through that feeling is to draw a picture or write a story about the experience. Today, we are going to practice this by doing a fun activity together. We are going to think of a time in our lives when we felt a strong emotion and draw/write about that experience. First, I want to show you my example. (Share an age appropriate example of drawing/writing. You can highlight the words and images you used to show the emotion you were feeling.) Now, you are going to draw and/or write about a time when you felt a strong emotion, like sadness, love, anger, or happiness. You can use different colors and objects to express the different types of emotions. There is no right or wrong way to do this activity. We have paper and art supplies, and we are going to draw/write for 10-15 minutes. I will walk around and help you if you need help with ideas.”
*Slide 3
Pass out the Creative Activity handout included in the “Materials for the Lesson” section to your students. (If you’re unable to print the handout, a blank sheet of paper can be used as a substitute.)
Students spend approximately 10-15 minutes on their creative activity. Educators should walk around the room to support those who need help getting started and redirect those who need to be brought back to the activity.
Invite students to share their drawing and/or writing. (The hope is that students will share, but it is optional. It may take some time for the students to feel comfortable, especially if they don’t already know each other. The way to measure the success of the lesson and students’ engagement is not through their sharing aloud, but through their willingness to engage in the activity. For some students it might require a few lessons before they feel comfortable doing the activity. This can be viewed as a process, allowing students to grow comfortable in their own time.)
Example of What You Could Say:
“Okay, let’s all put down our pencils and art supplies. Thank you so much for working on your beautiful drawing/writing. You all did such a wonderful job! Before I ask if anyone wants to share what they worked on, let’s remember to be respectful listeners. Does anyone want to share their drawing and/or writing? If you don’t want to share aloud, but you would like to share your drawing and/or writing with me, you can do that as well.
(Allow students to share.)
Thank you so much for sharing. I want to make sure that before we move on through the rest of our day, we come back together for a moment to make sure that we feel calm. Let’s do a breathing exercise together so that we can feel calm and peaceful.”
Consider adding posters or images in your classroom that represent many of the emotions that students experience in their daily lives. One example could be an EMOTIONS WHEEL that a student could turn in order to show the emotion that they are currently feeling in that moment. Another example would be a FACIAL EXPRESSION POSTER where you move a cardboard frame each day to be placed over different facial expressions that matches the way a selected student in the classroom is feeling that day.
Kevin wrote a letter for the Players’ Tribune called “Everyone is Going Through Something.” In this letter, Kevin shares his own experience with anxiety in an open and vulnerable way. Read an excerpt of the letter aloud or share the letter in its entirety. Then students can write a similar letter either as a JOURNAL ENTRY to keep to themselves or a LETTER to give to someone that they want to express their feelings to. In order to frame this lesson, educators can also play Kevin Love’s ESPY Award video. This video shows why he wrote his letter and communicates to students that everyone feels challenging emotions.
Hope is a fourth grade student who wrote a book called “The Worry Shark,” which helps students to know that they aren’t alone in what they are going through. Watch Hope’s video above, then read this article aloud and discuss the book that Hope wrote. Invite your students to write their own children’s book.