• SHOP PRODUCTS
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Contact

Laughing Kids Learn

Where learning is made fun

  • Disclosure and Privacy Policy

Tool for teaching emotions in kids

April 15, 2014 by Kate 48 Comments

I believe this is a tool that parents, teachers and therapists could use to potentially help their children learn more about emotions in a fun and interesting way.

tool for teaching emotions in kids of all ages

Emotions are a tricky thing and there is rarely a time in our lives that we are not dealing with them, be it our own or those around us. As children grow and develop they can also go through stages that will see them struggle to regulate or understand why they feel a particular way.

Now let me be clear, I’m absolutely no expert in this area and we have our share of supermarket meltdowns, however, I like to think I try my best to help Possum (2.5 years) during those moments of struggle and I’m constantly learning and experiment with various techniques and ideas that might just work. This is just one of those.

How to make a tool for learning about emotions

Easter eggs聽that are so easily available at this time of the year. Following the instructions below, you can create your very own tool for teaching emotions in kids.

You will need –

  • Plastic eggs that break in half
  • Permanent marker
  • Modelling clay (optional)

Making a tool for learning about emotions

Quite simply, I began drawing a variety of facial expressions on each of the plastic eggs. Some were demonstrating emotions of being happy, sad, confused, angry, proud etc. I used the modelling clay in the base of each egg to keep them standing (or bobbling) upright.

learning about emotions

Of course the joy of these emotional eggs is that you can break and mix them up to create a whole lot of new and interesting emotions. It’s so fabulous and interesting to see how much a face can change just by the shape of the eyes or position of the mouth.

Emoticons

After a little while I started to get stuck for ideas. That’s when I got out my iPhone and used the emotion option to get more ideas of eye shapes and mouths. This will help those who are not so great at drawing as you can simply copy the illustrations shown.

Emotional egg collection

Role play for the little ones

Possum thought they were hilarious and couldn’t wait to play around with them. These eggs are fabulous for her age because she had a great time role playing with them and together we acted out little scenarios that explored emotions. It also prompted great discussion about how each egg was feeling and why it might be feeling that way.

Using the emotion eggs

Playing copy cats

We also had fun copying the faces drawn on each of the eggs. Some where much more challenging than others and it did seem to give us a good muscle work out in the face (LoL).聽To take this a step further I demonstrated by example of what each of the egg faces looked like and described how it felt. Whilst this was probably too advanced for Possum, she seemed interested so I simply went with it.

Mirror, Mirror

It’s a great idea to have a mirror on hand so children can reflect on what they look like showing different emotions with their face. It can actually be quite a funny experience. This type of approach highlights to children that we show so much emotion with our eyes, eyebrows and mouth. This can be extended for older children to explore body language.

Mixing up the emotional eggs

For older children

My gorgeous niece had lots of fun mixing and matching the eggs. For children who are older, these emotional eggs would be a great tool as often this age don’t feel so comfortable to verbally share how they are feeling. An alternative could be for children to show how they are feeling using the eggs.

It’s a creative outlet for older children to express how they are feeling.
teen learning about emotions

How would you use these with your kids?

Filed Under: 3 - 5 years, 5 - 10 years Tagged With: language, social skills

Comments

  1. katepickle says

    April 15, 2014 at 10:21 am

    This is such a clever idea! And so clever to look at emoticons for inspiration!!! You are a genius!

    Reply
    • Kate says

      April 16, 2014 at 9:06 am

      I’m a bit of a emoticon junky Kate. LOL
      Thanks for your comment.

      Reply
  2. nae peters says

    April 15, 2014 at 1:28 pm

    I LOVE this, I actually have some of those eggs sitting around & Dimples loves going over different emotions (and making faces of course).
    Great photos 馃檪

    Reply
  3. Hayley says

    April 15, 2014 at 2:04 pm

    Love this!! I think my son will be old enough for this next year when we pull all our plastic eggs out again! 馃檪

    Reply
    • Kate says

      April 16, 2014 at 9:05 am

      Thanks Hayley! I hope you and your family have a lovely Easter. I seem to find those plastic eggs down the back of the couch throughout the year. LOL

      Reply
  4. Rachel says

    April 19, 2014 at 10:21 am

    This is genius! Such a great way to explore emotions and deal with some of the tough topics!

    Reply
  5. Nichole {youclevermonkey} says

    April 21, 2014 at 8:04 am

    Lovely post Kate 馃檪
    We used use Tiny Teddy biscuits to talk about emotions too.

    Reply
  6. Linda says

    April 21, 2014 at 11:13 pm

    My 8 yr old adopted son has great fear when speaking of how he sees others. I want him to tell me about what they seem like to him…and how he feels when he is with them…I am going to draw many pairs of eyes and many mouth shapes…and let him put together the two to help him describe his day…thanks for the great idea.

    Reply
    • Kate says

      April 22, 2014 at 9:32 pm

      Linda thank you so very much for taking the time to comment about your dear son. I really hope that this idea helps him in some way. 8 year olds often have so much going on in their little heads. Best wishes to you and thank you again for commenting. 馃檪

      Reply
    • Karl Graber says

      April 7, 2019 at 12:47 pm

      What the movie Inside Out …
      It a great movie to tie in with this…

      Reply
  7. Debs says

    April 22, 2014 at 11:46 am

    Such a cute idea. I always have spare ones of these floating around… especially now, haha. A great tool for classrooms as well. Thanks for sharing 馃檪

    Reply
  8. Melissa @ Honey Bee Books says

    April 25, 2014 at 8:46 am

    They are adorable! Might have to check out the after easter sales to get some of those eggs 馃檪 My daughter would love this.

    Reply
    • Kate says

      April 25, 2014 at 9:43 pm

      Thank you so much Melissa. 馃檪

      Reply
  9. Kylie @ Octavia and Vicky says

    April 27, 2014 at 7:14 am

    What a cool idea! Sharing and pinning.

    Reply
  10. Kelly says

    May 7, 2014 at 10:50 am

    I think my kids would have a blast with these!

    Reply
  11. Renee says

    July 17, 2014 at 1:05 pm

    Love this idea! I will definitely be using it with my 4 and 2 year old…thanks so much!

    Reply
  12. georgi says

    August 1, 2014 at 12:56 pm

    kate this is an awesome idea – thank you so much for sharing it so willingly. working with kids who don’t seem to like talking, most of all about some of those harder feelings/emotions, this tool will be excellent.

    Reply
  13. karen says

    January 19, 2015 at 12:33 am

    What a simple but fantastic idea!! I work with kids and am always looking for interesting ways to help them learn about emotions. I’ll be adopting this idea for sure and would love to hear more ideas!
    Thanks!

    Reply
    • Kate says

      January 20, 2015 at 3:45 pm

      Thanks Karen. Feel free to subscribe to my blog and keep informed. 馃檪

      Reply
  14. Kate says

    January 20, 2015 at 3:40 pm

    I give you permission to use ONE photograph with credit only. Thank you.

    Reply
  15. Janice says

    March 11, 2015 at 12:54 am

    Such a gorgeous idea! Love it 馃檪

    Reply
  16. Renee says

    April 20, 2015 at 12:55 pm

    Good for you! I’m a paediatric Occupational Therapist and one month ago I found pre-made eggs with facial expressions at the dollar store. I had the same idea as you and used them in a treatment session with a child with Autism who needs help identifying emotions. Now I will make more eggs just like you, right on!

    Reply
    • Kate says

      April 20, 2015 at 3:59 pm

      Thank you Renee for your wonderful feedback! All the very best to you.

      Reply
  17. Music and Spanish Fun says

    July 18, 2015 at 6:03 am

    I absolutely love this idea of using eggs to express emotions. Very creative! I will definitely use this activity in my Spanish class!
    Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
    • Kate says

      July 18, 2015 at 10:22 am

      How wonderful! Thank you so kindly for your beautiful comments. I hope I can continue to help you find good ideas for your class.

      Reply
  18. nadia says

    November 27, 2015 at 5:20 pm

    Great idea! This also supports fine motor skills (connecting/disconnecting) as well in the cognitive domain through matching. LOVE!

    Reply
    • Kate says

      November 27, 2015 at 11:47 pm

      Thank you Nadia, you’re absolutely right! 馃檪 Much appreciate your comment, lovely.

      Reply
  19. Ann says

    March 22, 2016 at 12:08 pm

    Thanks so much for this activity. I oversee a RAINBOW group of 27 primary school students. They loved this activity. Each facilitator did it a little differently- but everyone declared it a resounding success. 馃檪

    Reply
    • Kate says

      March 22, 2016 at 12:50 pm

      Oh Ann that is just so wonderful to hear that feedback. I really appreciate you taking the time to let me know.
      Best wishes. 馃檪

      Reply
  20. Jessica says

    September 14, 2020 at 12:43 pm

    I love this idea. I just moved to teaching 2/3 year olds, and was trying to find some hands on fun to teach emotions. Pictures and books just didn’t seem as fun. I love the mix and match idea, and I know I have some old eggs around somewhere. Thanks for the great idea. I can’t wait to see their reaction.

    Reply
    • Kate says

      October 1, 2020 at 3:51 pm

      Thanks Jessica. I absolutely loved reading your message. So glad you like this one. So simple to make too. Best wishes to you and your 2/3 year old group. Kate

      Reply
      • violette says

        February 4, 2021 at 8:41 am

        I have seen a bunch of thing of your you are very crafty. I wish I was like that. I am actually a student how was look for something to do a project in one of my high school classes and I run into some of your things. I love all your ideas they are very cool.

        Reply
  21. Olivia says

    March 23, 2021 at 5:01 am

    Love this idea… I think it will be of great help to teach my son emotional intelligence! Thank you

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. How you can teach emotions in kids through eggs! | Cupcake 'n' Sunshine says:
    April 16, 2014 at 4:57 pm

    […] I absolutely loved this idea by Kate. You too should visit her blog for many more such wonderful ideas. Here is a link to her post –聽Tool for teaching emotions in kids […]

    Reply
  2. 100 (More) Activities to Teach Kids Good Character - Moments A Day says:
    May 1, 2014 at 8:11 am

    […] children develop empathy by creating DIY emotion dolls out of eggs – Laughing Kids […]

    Reply
  3. Tools for Teaching Emotions in Kids says:
    May 13, 2014 at 3:43 pm

    […] Check out Kate’s creative ways to help kids express their emotions. […]

    Reply
  4. 10 Activities and You Tube Songs to Explore Emotions - Liz's Early Learning Spot says:
    November 19, 2014 at 10:14 am

    […] Make plastic egg faces from Laughing Kids Learn […]

    Reply
  5. Emozioni in gioco: un libro-gioco sulle emozioni | says:
    March 3, 2015 at 6:01 pm

    […] Uova emozionanti […]

    Reply
  6. Tool for teaching emotions in kids – Laughing Kids Learn @KidsLaugh | TCDSB21C says:
    March 4, 2015 at 12:23 pm

    […] Source: laughingkidslearn.com […]

    Reply
  7. 26 Days of Toddler Learning Fun – Part I | The Modern Woman says:
    March 5, 2015 at 7:58 am

    […] Play – Expression Eggs […]

    Reply
  8. 10 Ways to Use Plastic Easter Eggs in Therapy | Speech Sprinkles says:
    March 18, 2015 at 12:57 pm

    […] Laughing Kids Learn had a cute idea to use plastic eggs to teach emotions which I will be using as soon as I finish […]

    Reply
  9. Best Parent Resources to Teach Kids About Feelings - One Time Through says:
    July 29, 2015 at 4:07 am

    […] Emotion Eggs聽|聽Laughing Kids Learn […]

    Reply
  10. 20 recursos emocionals que no et pots perdre | Educaci贸 i les TIC says:
    February 21, 2016 at 11:39 pm

    […] Font:聽https://laughingkidslearn.com […]

    Reply
  11. 10 Activities to Help Students Explore Emotions - Apperson says:
    May 27, 2016 at 4:33 am

    […] 1. Plastic Egg Faces […]

    Reply
  12. Empathy Game: A Tool to Teach Kids to Be Considerate {Free Printable} - Moments A Day says:
    November 1, 2016 at 1:16 pm

    […] can create your own mix-and-match egg faces using this clever idea from Laughing Kids […]

    Reply
  13. 10 idees fant脿stiques per treballar les emocions | Educaci贸 i les TIC says:
    April 1, 2017 at 10:42 pm

    […] Font:聽www.laughingkidslearn.com […]

    Reply
  14. 25 Plastic Egg Activities Your Kids Will Love - The Joys of Boys says:
    April 15, 2017 at 11:43 am

    […] with Plastic Eggs | Buggy and Buddy 6. Plastic Egg Shaker Music Games | One Time Through 7. Plastic Eggs to Teach Emotions | Laughing Kids Learn 8. Sink or Float Egg Experiment | Little Bins for Little Hands 9. Plastic Egg […]

    Reply
  15. Emotional Regulation Activities (7+) | OptimistMinds says:
    December 4, 2020 at 3:20 pm

    […] 1. Plastic Egg Faces […]

    Reply

Please Leave a Comment: Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Welcome
Hello and welcome!
My name is Kate and I am a mum to two little girls, Possum and Boo. We have lots of fun together learning with play at home and are pleased to share some of what we do with you.
Read my about page to find out more.

facebookpinteresttwitterinstagramgoogle plusyoutube

Search

Find More Great Ideas Here:

sesnory play
art and craft
nummeracy
literacy
Science
recipes
videos

Join the Tribe!

Subscribe



Find Activities by Age

  • 0 – 12 months
  • 1 – 3 years
  • 3 – 5 years
  • 5 – 10 years

Find Activities by Celebration

  • Christmas
  • SHOP PRODUCTS

Privacy Policy

  • Disclosure and Privacy Policy

Find posts by month

Copyright © 2023 路 Lifestyle Pro Theme on Genesis Framework 路 WordPress 路 Log in