Feelings pong is a fun game to play and easy to set up – all you need is a table some cups and ping-pong ball. It is another great activity to use with the Super Simple Feelings Management Technique to help kids and teens to better understand and deal with the emotions they face.

Here’s what you need:

1. Plastic cups (9, 13, 18 or 24 cups work best for a pyramid). We used multi-colored cups so each color represented a group of emotions but that isn’t necessary for the game.
2. Ping-Pong balls.
3. Permanent Marker.

Here’s how it works.

1. Write the names of different emotions on the bottom of each cup.
2. Set up the cups (right-side-up) on one end of a table in a pyramid shape.
3. Have the player stand at the other end of the table.
4. Try to bounce the ping-pong balls into one of the cups.
5. When the ball lands in one of the cups, turn it over see what emotion it is.
6. Have the child act out the emotion or talk about a time they experienced it.

I enjoy demonstrating Feelings Pong when I speak at conferences because you get to see which of the attendees is “a little too good” 🙂 at it!

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Many of the resources and articles you see here on Hope 4 Hurting Kids include ideas and activities for teaching kids to better understand and deal with the difficult emotions that they face in life. To accomplish that goal, we suggest five main strategies to help kids to better recognize, understand and process their emotions. These five skills are represented by the letters SSFMT and the mneumonic:

Super Simple Feelings Management Technique

Here what each letter represents:

S(uper) – See It

We want each child to be able to recognize emotions when presented with a picture of them. Does that person’s face represent anger or fear? Does that body stance demonstrate joy or distress?

S(imple) – Say It

We want kids to develop an emotional vocabulary – to know the difference between being angry and being furious. To have a robust reservoir of emotion words to describe whatever they are feeling. This is accomplished by tasks like naming how they are feeling or putting their emotion on a gauge from less intense words like irritated to more intense words like enraged.

F(eelings) – Feel It

We weren’t overly creative with this part of our mneumonic, but feeling the emotion means understanding how different emotions affect our bodies. When the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, what emotion does that represent? What does a racing heart mean? How does my body react when I feel afraid? This skill is critical in the early detection of emotions.

M(anagement) – Mimic It

This is the process of acting out emotions. Show me what your face looks like when you’re happy. What does it sound like when you’re worried? What does your body look like when you’re nervous?

T(echnique) – Talk About It

Once we can see it, say it, feel it and mimic it, we want kids to talk about their own experiences with different emotions. Tell me about a time you were sad. What made you sad? Why do you think it made you sad? What made it better?

These Super Simple Feelings Management Techniques can be applied to a variety of different activities and games to help kids to learn about emotions. You can tailor many of those games and activities to focus on whatever aspect of SSFMT you want to concentrate on. For example, in the game Bottle Flip Emotions in different rounds you can have the child “Say It” by naming other emotions like the one they land on, “Feel It” by explaining how their body feels when they experience that emotion, “Mimic It” by acting out the emotion in pantomime or showing what their face might look like when feeling that emotions (while other kids in the group “See It” by guessing the emotion being acted out) or “Talk About It” by sharing a time they felt that emotion or a coping mechanism they could use to deal with it.

As you continue to help kids learn about their emotions, keep the Super Simple Feelings Management Technique in mind! You can find all kinds of games and activities to practice these techniques at our Hope 4 Hurting Kids Emotions Help Center.

The Super Simple Feelings Technique is the first step in our three stage comprehensive plan for helping young dealing with emotions called Jump In! Stand Strong! Rise Up!

Find out more about each stage:

• Jump In! (The Super Simple Feelings Management Technique)
• Stand Strong! (Please Don’t Sweat The Small Stuff); and
• Rise Up! (Grand Feelings Exit Plan)

The Feelings Parking Lot is a great tool to use with kids to both identify the feelings they are experiencing and to discuss different coping mechanisms that can help with those emotions. On top of that, it’s always fun to play with Matchbox Cars.

Here’s how to build it:

1. On a large piece of paper, poster board or foam board, draw a series of lines on either side to create “parking spaces.” Leave some space between the space for a driving area. Have fun decorating your parking area.
2. On one side of the parking lot, write the name of one emotion in each parking space. We also includes a simple emoji for each emotion to help younger kids who may not be able to read the emotion names (a list of the emotion names we used is included below, but you can use whatever emotions you want to include).
3. On the other side, write various coping mechanisms kids can use to deal with difficult emotions (again, the list of coping tools we used are listed below). Depending on how artistic you are, feel free to draw pictures representing the coping skill to help younger kids.

You can use the feelings parking lot one-on-one with an individual child, leave it out as an emotional “check in” for a group of kids at the beginning of a class or group with an adult to talk through the process, or just leave it out for the kids to explore and play with themselves.

Here’s how is works:

1. The child should pick a car or other vehicle.We suggest having a variety of types of vehicles for both boys and girls so they can pick one that they like.
2. Have them drive their car on the board and park in a spot that represents the emotion they are feeling.
3. From there, have them drive their vehicle to a spot on the other side of the board which represents a coping mechanism they can use to deal with that emotion.
4. Sometimes kids will be open to discussing the emotion they have selected or about the coping mechanism. Other times they will not want to talk about it. Either choice is ok. Keep in mind, that particularly younger kids talk and express themselves through their play, so pay attention to how they play with the The Feelings Parking Lot.

We are grateful to Therapeutic Interventions where we found the original idea for the Feelings Parking Lot.

The Emotions We Used on Our Feelings Parking Lot

• Proud
• Embarrassed
• Excited
• Happy
• Sorry
• Hurt
• Sad
• Bored
• Lonely
• Mad
• Confused

The Coping Mechanisms We Used on Our Feelings Parking Lot

• Exercise
• Play a Game
• Ask For Help
• Play a Sport
• Count to 10
• Listen to Music
• Stretch
• Give a Hug
• Ride a Bike
• Play With a Friend
• Take a Deep Breath

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Emotions Jenga is a fun game you can play with kids to teach them about emotions. When children have a better emotional vocabulary, they are better equipped to deal with difficult emotions when life throws things at them.

Here’s how Emotions Jenga works:

• Find a colored Jenga game. We found this one from Lewo on Amazon. If you can’t find a colored version, or just want to use the traditional version, you can use colored dots or write the names of the emotions directly on the blocks.
• For each color make a stack of notes cards with a variety of emotion names on them. You can see the ones we used below. We found colored note cards at Hobby Lobby (on sale), but you could use white cards and just mark a color on them.
• The child can pick any block to remove from the Jenga game. They then pick a card from the pile associated with that color. For whatever emotion they get, have them do one of the following. You can choose one activity, let the kids pick which one they one to do, or even use a die to determine which activity the child has to do:
  • Act out the emotion on the card.
  • Show what their face looks like when they feel that emotion.
  • Share a time they felt that emotion
  • Share a coping technique/something they like to do when they feel that emotion.
  • Show what the emotion looks like in clay.
  • Describe what their body feels like when they feel the emotion.

For our game, we used the following emotions by color (light blue is a wild card block, and the kids are free to choose from any stack).

Red (Emotions Related to Anger)

• Aggravated
• Angry
• Annoyed
• Enraged
• Fed Up
• Frustrated
• Furious
• Irate
• Livid
• Mad

Orange (Emotions related to Confusion and Stress)

• Baffled
• Busy
• Conflicted
• Confused
• Dazed
• Discouraged
• Dismayed
• Hurried
• Perplexed
• Pressured
• Rushed
• Stressed
• Uncertain
• Unsure

Dark Blue (Emotions related to Sadness)

• Awful
• Bummed
• Despair
• Devastated
• Distraught
• Gloomy
• Grief
• Heartbroken
• Hurt
• Joyless
• Lonely
• Miserable
• Sad
• Upset

Green (Emotions related to Fear and Anxiety)

• Afraid
• Alarmed
• Anxious
• Apprehensive
• Ashamed
• Awkward
• Concerned
• Desperate
• Doubt
• Embarrassed
• Frightened
• Guilty
• Hysterical
• Nervous
• Reluctant
• Shy
• Sorry
• Suspicious
• Threatened
• Worried

Yellow (Emotions related to Joy)

• Amused
• Caring
• Cheerful
• Comfortable
• Content
• Delighted
• Enthusiastic
• Excited
• Festive
• Friendly
• Glad
• Jolly
• Joyful
• Happy
• Love
• Peaceful
• Pleasant
• Positive
• Relieved
• Satisfied

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The Feelings Beach Ball is an easy, fun and effective way to help kids identify different emotions and talk about when they have experienced those emotions in their life. They’re simple to make too, you only need a simple Beach Ball (you can usually get one for around $1.00 after the summer is over) and a black permanent marker.

Here’s how it works:

1. Select an emotion for each color on the ball.
2. With a permanent marker, draw a face which represents each emotion.
3. With a group of kids, or between you and the child you are working with if one-on-one, pass the beach ball around.
4. When the child catches the ball, have them identify the emotion on the color under their right hand (or left if you’d prefer). The child can answer whatever emotion is elicited by the face you’ve drawn on the ball. It might not always match what you had envisioned, but if they’re way off base you might want to gently assist in identifying the emotion.
5. For an added twist, have the child share a time in their life they felt that emotion, or might feel that emotion.
6. You can also discuss ways of dealing with any negative emotions.
7. When the child is done, have him/her pass it to another child or back to you and play again.

Here are some pictures of our Feelings Beach Ball from different angles:

If you make a feelings beach ball, post a picture in the comments below so we can see how your’s turned out.

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Feelings Glasses is a great game to use to teach a group of kids, teens or adults what it looks like when we express emotions. In fact. one of the keys to teaching kids about emotions is helping them to recognize how those emotions make them look and act. Like any good “role-playing” exercises, Feelings Glasses mixes exaggeration and fun with learning. Here’s how it works:

1. Buy a few pairs of different colored glasses. I got mine at a party store around Halloween for a couple of dollars each, but I’ve also seen them at various dollar stores and Hobby Lobby in a variety of colors. I purchased six different colors (orange, blue, green, red, yellow and purple). You can definitely get by with fewer pairs, but if you want to do the exercise with more kids or multiple groups, it’s nice to have more choices.
2. Select kids to come up on put on each pair of glasses. You may want to participate as well to “keep things moving along.”
3. Explain to the kids that each pair of glasses represents a different emotion (start with basic emotions, but feel free to mix it up as the kids get older and as they learn more emotions). Sticking with the theme of the movie Inside Out, let’s make
   • Blue represent sadness.
   • Yellow equals joy.
   • Red for anger.
   • Green can be disgust.
   • Purple equates to fear.
   • We’ll leave orange out for purposes of this example, but you could keep it for yourself and let it represent sarcasm (which is not an emotion but can be helpful for keeping the exercise moving). Other ideas include, “Orange has to copy whatever emotion the last person who spoke had.” or “Orange is not allowed to speak but has to physically express the emotions of the person who is speaking.” Use your imagination!
4. Explain the rules of the game
   • You will give the kids a scenario.
   • They have to act out the scenario.
   • They can only express things using the emotion represented by their glasses.
5. Lay out a scenario for the kids. Try to be specific enough to get the ball rolling but not so detailed that you stifle creativity.
6. After the exercise is over, talk about each emotion and what the kids noticed.

Alternate Ways to Play

Some kids have trouble improvising a scene. You may need to help them along. Alternatively, you can propose an individual situation (rather than something to the group), and each person has to react to that prompt using their emotions. Play with the idea and figure out what works best with your group.

Feelings Glasses are a great way for a group of kids to have fun together and learn at the same time!

This idea was adapted from a game originally found on ElementarySchoolCounseling.org. Their version, which is geared specifically at school teachers, is great too if you want to give it a try.

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Stress is a huge issue for all kids in our society today. The levels of stress amongst children from disrupted homes though is through the roof. Dealing with things like fighting parents, complex schedules, new homes, new family members, stressed out parents, packed schedules and so much more can leave kids and teens from disrupted homes with lots a stress and little time. One simple solution which works amazing well with younger kids (though you may be surprised how well it can work with older kids too) is a simple container of bubbles. Here are a couple of ideas of how to use bubbles to help kids deal with stress.

Visualization With Bubbles

Bubbles are a great way to help kids visualize their emotions. Whether they are experiencing anger, stress, fear or other emotions, encourage the children to visualize each bubble as a negative emotion and watch it float away. Talk about the things that are stressing them out and encourage them to release those things in the bubbles as they float away. For younger children, allow them to stomp on the bubbles as they land on the ground. In addition to being a good visual reminder of letting things go rather than keeping them buried inside, the process of blowing the bubbles also encourages deep breathing.

Bubble Karate Master

Another option for bubbles is the Bubble Karate Monster. As you blow bubbles encourage kids to demonstrate their best karate moves to pop the bubbles. The only rule is no clapping the bubbles (that’s too easy), kids must use their feet and open hands to karate chop the bubbles. In addition to the breathing mentioned above, this simple exercise gets kids moving and using cross lateral movements (where arms and legs cross the body). This type of activity is a great stress reliever, and you may want to join in the fun if you’re feeling a little stressed yourself!

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