Unit Plan 11 (Grade K Counselor): Feelings in My Body
Teach Kindergarten body clues with feeling words, body outlines, coping tools, trusted adults, and help-seeking for big emotions.
Focus: Help students notice that feelings often show up in the body. The counselor asks students where they feel worry, anger, excitement, or sadness using a simple body outline, puppet, picture cards, or movement activity. Students learn that body clues can tell them when they may need to calm down, ask for help, or use a coping tool.
Grade Level: K
Subject Area: School Counseling (Feelings • Body Clues • Help-Seeking)
Total Unit Duration: 1–2 weeks, 30 minutes per session
I. Introduction
This Kindergarten counseling lesson helps students understand that feelings do not only happen in their minds. Feelings can also show up in the body. A student who feels worried may notice a tight stomach, a student who feels mad may notice tight hands, a student who feels excited may notice a bouncy body, and a student who feels sad may notice tears or a quiet body.
The counselor uses a puppet, body outline, feelings cards, or simple movement practice to help students connect emotions to body clues. Students learn that body clues can help them notice when a feeling is getting big and choose a safe next step, such as breathing, taking a break, using words, or asking a trusted adult for help. The goal is for students to build early self-awareness and understand that noticing body clues can help them care for themselves and make safe choices.
Essential Questions
- How can feelings show up in the body?
- What body clues might happen when students feel worried, mad, sad, scared, excited, or calm?
- How can body clues help students know what they need?
- What can students do when a feeling feels big?
- Who can students ask for help when a feeling is too big to handle alone?
II. Objectives and Standards
Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:
- Name common emotions such as happy, sad, mad, scared, worried, excited, and calm.
- Identify basic feelings, needs, or personal experiences using words, pictures, pointing, drawing, or actions.
- Recognize that feelings can show up as body clues, such as tight hands, tears, fast heartbeat, bouncy body, quiet body, or tight stomach.
- Match common feelings to possible body clues.
- Identify when a body clue may show that a feeling is getting big.
- Name a safe adult who can help when a feeling is too big to handle alone.
- (Optional Session) Apply feelings and body clue awareness through a body outline activity, puppet scenario, feeling-to-body match, coping tool choice, or reflection page.
Standards Alignment — Grade K (ASCA-based Custom)
- C:S1.Ka — Recognize Feelings and Personal Experiences
- Identify basic feelings, needs, and experiences using words, pictures, or actions.
- Example: A student points to a feelings chart and says, “I feel sad because I miss my mom.”
- C:S2.Ka — Name Common Emotions
- Identify common emotions such as happy, sad, mad, scared, worried, excited, and calm.
- Example: A student looks at a picture card and identifies the character as “mad.”
- C:S2.Kc — Ask for Help with Big Feelings
- Recognize when a feeling is too big to handle alone and identify a safe adult who can help.
- Example: A student says, “I can ask my teacher or counselor when I feel really upset.”
Success Criteria — Student Language
- I can name feelings.
- I can notice body clues.
- I can point to where I might feel a feeling in my body.
- I can say, “My body feels ___.”
- I can tell when a feeling might be getting big.
- I can ask a trusted adult for help.
- I can choose a safe tool when my body gives me a clue.