Teaching children how to cope can be one of the most important things we do as parents. In today’s society, our youth are suffering from anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, bullying, and stress at unprecedented levels. Coping skills offer a way for kids to manage intense feelings and emotions appropriately and effectively. This coping skills worksheet can be used by parents, teachers, school counselors, and therapists as a way to help teach kids about coping skills and how to use them.
Coping Skills Worksheet
This worksheet is meant to be used as a guide to help children learn about coping skills and how they may be used in a variety of settings and situations. Every child is different, and what works for one may not work for another.
This is why it is important to help your child practice different skills to understand what helps them cope and what doesn’t.
Triggers
Little kids can experience some pretty big emotions. Just as with adults, everyone’s triggers and threshold are different. Understanding and identifying triggers can help children prevent temper tantrums or inappropriate behaviors by avoiding triggers or implementing effective coping skills as early as possible.
Warning Signs
Physical symptoms and emotional behaviors can be a strong indicator of our level of anger, anxiety, or other difficult emotions. When children are taught to recognize their own warning signs, it allows them to become more mindful and implement skills required to cope before the situation gets out of hand.
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Coping Skills
There are hundreds of coping skills available but not every coping mechanism will work for everyone. It is also important for children to recognize that they will need a variety of coping skills to handle different emotions or symptoms, as well as for different situations.
For instance, if a child listens to music as a way to cope effectively, they should still have other skills in their toolbox for those instances when they don’t have their music readily available and still need a way to cope effectively.
Here is a short list of coping skills ideas for kids:
- Sing a favorite song
- Take a walk
- Blow bubbles
- Play a game
- Hug a pet or stuffed animal
- Talk to a parent or friend
- Play outside
- Write in a journal
- Watch a funny Youtube video
- Practice yoga
- Read a book
- Make/squeeze a stress ball
- Deep breathing
- Paint a picture
- Meditate
- Practice mindfulness
- Write a story or poem
- Do a random act of kindness
- Take a bath or a shower
- Create an art and crafts project
Support System
A child’s social support system is an extremely important part of their life and can impact their emotional well-being in profound ways. In fact, research shows that children with positive role models and close bonds to family and community supports are more likely to succeed well into adulthood than those without these ties.
Children can work towards identifying trusted adults that they can talk to in a crisis or as a way to cope.
Positive Self-Talk
Self-talk is an important, yet often overlooked area when helping children process difficult emotions. When negative, their inner voice can contribute to depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem that can persist throughout their life if not identified and challenged.
Using positive affirmations and promoting positive self-talk is a valuable coping skill that can increase self-esteem and feelings of self-worth.
CLICK HERE FOR YOUR FREE PRINTABLE COPING SKILLS WORKSHEET!
This worksheet may also be used as a gateway to continue the conversation with children. Helping them identify, express, and process their emotions is a valuable tool that can be carried into adulthood.
Did you find this useful? What creative ways have you found to help teach children to cope with their feelings? Leave a comment below!
Heather says
Coping skills are critical at all ages, and important to learn at a young age. This worksheet looks very helpful.
Christina says
Thank you, Heather! I could not agree with you more. There really is no age that is too early to start teaching and role-modeling these skills for our kids!
mindiepackgmailcom says
I LOVE this post! I have a daughter who suffers from depression and I love the list of coping skills you posted. I’m definitely going to suggest these to her.
Christina says
Thank you so much! I hope she finds it useful! In case you missed it, I also have a post on positive self-affirmations with 45 free printable cards that can help with depression and low self-esteem. She may also benefit from those if you’re interested in checking them out!
Kasey Ma says
Wow – I love this worksheet! I don’t have kids, but this is so handy to have. I will be bookmarking this!
Christina says
Thanks so much! It really is a great tool for everyone!
Jessica Gardner says
YES I LOVE THIS!!! as a parent of a child with Autism/ADHD/Anxiety & depression — this is HUGE!! Coping skills are huge for him. I will have to print this out for him and let him fill it out as a reminder.
Christina says
That sounds awesome, Jessica! I’m so glad it’s something he can use! I don’t know if you also saw my post on free printable coping skills cards, but he may also find those useful if you’d like to check them out!
Jennifer Penas says
Great idea! Learning what makes you angry and learning how to deal with it is so important at any age!
Christina says
Thanks, Jennifer! I completely agree with you. If left unchecked, angry kids can turn into angry adults who don’t know how to manage their emotions appropriately.
Well Worn Suitcase says
This is fantastic, thanks for sharing! We are definitely going to put it to use.
Christina says
Thanks so much for the kind comment, I’m so glad you found it useful!