What if they don’t like me?
What if I make a mistake?
What if I get in trouble?
Worries like these are natural and experienced by adults and children alike. They become problematic when we can’t turn our minds off from all the “worse case scenarios.” The more mental energy that we give to our worries, the more anxious we can become. It is therefore important to teach children at a young age how to handle worries in healthy ways.
This week the Puppet Pals experience anxiety in a variety of scenarios. After talking about their feelings, they discover that most of their worries are actually unlikely to happen. Then they learn a few strategies to address their worries:
- Look at them through the sunshine glasses
- Wipe the worries away
- Take the worries out of your pack
- Turn down the temp.
The daily videos can spur kids on to talk about some of their own worries. Then they can try some of the strategies the next time they find themselves traveling down that downward worry spiral.
This week of lessons includes four scenario videos that you can watch with your students Monday through Thursday, with follow-up questions for class discussions. Kids can draw along with Artist Armand on Friday as they draw their own Worry Monsters on whiteboards and then wipe them all away. This week also includes a Simple Summary video in Spanish to help those who are developing simple language skills, while focusing on the target social-emotional skill of the week.
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