Coping Skills Teaching Resources

Help your students build coping skills and strategies this school year with printables, activities and more teaching resources created by teachers for teachers like you!

This social emotional learning resource collection is packed with teacher-created worksheets and other helpful tools designed to help kids learn what coping skills are and how to use them to manage their emotions.

Looking for some tips on teaching kids to how to cope with challenges? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including examples of skills to share with your students, plus a kid-friendly way to explain the meaning of these skills.

What Are Coping Skills? A Kid-Friendly Definition

Do you need a kid-friendly definition to help explain what these skills are to your students? Try this one from our teacher team:

Coping skills are the special tools we use to help us deal with tough situations and big feelings or help us manage our emotions when things don't go the way we planned.

Our coping skills help us feel better and stronger, and they can make us feel more in control of our emotions and feelings.

Teaching kids to face their worries and concerns head-on is part of developing good coping skills. 

Examples of Coping Skills for Kids to Share in the Classroom

This collection is packed with examples of coping skills built from the study of stress and how individuals adapt to challenging circumstances, but our teacher team didn't stop there.

We have put together a handy list of skills to focus on in the classroom in order to provide your students with a full toolkit of strategies they can use when they're feeling overwhelmed, stressed or anxious.

The coping skills that work best for each student are just as personal as the students themselves, and their ability to make use of each skill successfully can likewise be individual. One student may find that taking deep breaths is a great way to calm down when they're feeling overwhelmed, while another student may fare better talking about their problems with a trusted adult.

This is why we suggest teaching your elementary and middle school students a host of different coping skills and strategies so kids can pick and choose the ones that work best for them.

Here are some examples of coping skills for kids that we suggest sharing with your class!

• Deep Breathing — Learning to take deep breaths when you're feeling emotional is simple, but these exercises have plenty of research behind them that speaks to their efficacy in helping kids calm down and manage stress.
• Positive Self-Talk — Teach your students some positive affirmations they can use to reframe negative thoughts and develop a more optimistic outlook.
• Problem-Solving — Work on breaking down problems into smaller parts and brainstorming possible solutions helps them feel more in control and empowered.
• Asking for Help — Let your students know that asking for help from trusted adults, such as teachers or parents, when they are facing difficulties or feeling overwhelmed isn't just OK. It's a great coping mechanism to use!
• Mindfulness — Meditation, body scans and other mindfulness activities can all help your students develop awareness of their thoughts, emotions and sensations so they can cope better when they're stressed.
• Exercise — Kids and adults can release pent-up energy and reduce stress with something as simple as getting active, whether it's going for a run, taking a walk or practicing yoga.
• Art — Teaching your students to explore their emotions through art, such as drawing or journaling, allows them to process and communicate their feelings. Simple doodling, for example, is a perfect outlet for many students that doesn't require much more than a pencil and piece of paper!