Self Management Teaching Resources
Help your students improve their self management skills with activities and printable worksheets created by teachers specifically for elementary and middle school students.
This teaching resource collection has been designed to help teachers help their students develop a host of skills from skills such as self control to impulse control and time management, goal setting. With digital and printable activities available, there is something to fit every lesson plan!
Best of all, each teaching resource has undergone rigorous review by the Teach Starter team to ensure it's ready for the classroom ... and your students!
Curious about teaching self management skills and looking for strategies that will work for your students? Read on for some tips from our expert teachers!
What Is Self Management? A Kid-Friendly Definition
Like so many lessons we teach, it can be helpful to start off by defining what self management actually means to give our students an understanding of the topic at hand. Here's a self management definition for kids from our teacher team:
Self-management means being in control of your own thoughts, feelings and actions. When we have good self management, we are able to make good choices and stay focused on our goals. Self management skills also help us to handle our emotions in a positive way.
Self Management Skills for Kids to Teach in the Classroom
As one of the core competencies of SEL, self management covers a fairly broad area. The skills that kids develop under this umbrella can include everything from means for control anxiety and anger to learning to set goals and make the changes necessary to meet them.
So what are the main skills you should be teaching? Here are some of the more common ones our teacher team focuses on with our students:
Resilience
We help our students develop resilience by teaching them how to bounce back from setbacks, cope with challenges and persevere — skills that they'll need long after they've left your classroom.
Self Control
The names are nearly synonymous, so it's hardly surprising that self control falls under the self management umbrella. Teaching kids these skills can involve discussing techniques they can use to manage their impulses and emotions
Goal Setting
Being able to set realistic and achievable goals — both short-term and long-term — falls under self management. With this in mind, it's important to also teach your students strategies to work toward their goals and track their progress.
Time Management
Helping your students understand the concept of time and teaching them to plan and organize their tasks and activities falls right in line with providing strategies to achieve their goals. Time management is also an essential life skill that will serve your students well into adulthood.
Task Initiation
While the level of independence and ability to initiate tasks is highly dependent on factors like age and person abilities, encouraging your students to start tasks promptly and independently is part of building those self management skills. This also involves helping them overcome procrastination or avoidance behaviors.
Organization
Teaching our students strategies for organizing their materials — whether it's keeping their desks tidy or returning borrowed materials to the appropriate place – is a key component of teaching them self management. As they get older, they should be able to take on more and more responsibility for keeping their belongings organized.
Responsibility
Speaking of responsibility, it's important to promote a sense of responsibility by encouraging students to take ownership of their actions in your classroom, to complete their assignments on time and to follow classroom rules.
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Positive Self-Talk Poster
Encourage your students to use positive self-talk on a daily basis with this motivational classroom poster.
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Goal Grid - Goal Setting Template
Set goals for the new school year with a printable goal-setting template for kids.
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Managing Big Emotions – Interactive Activity
Teach students how to manage emotions using healthy coping skills with this interactive scenario game for the early years classroom.
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Coping Skills Wheel – Anchor Chart
Help your students learn and apply emotional self-regulation skills with this coping skills wheel of choices poster.
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Calming Strategies Fortune Teller Template
Help your students choose and apply strategies when they need to calm down with this handy fortune teller template.
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Printable Bookmarks - Mindful Coloring
Bring calm to the classroom with these mindfulness coloring bookmarks.
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Bingo Game – Coping Skills for Kids
Review calming strategies and coping skills for kids with a game of Bingo!
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Mindfulness for Kids - Daily Journal Worksheet
Create a mindfulness journal by printing your students copies of reflective mindfulness worksheets.
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Managing Anger Worksheet (Intermediate)
Help older students identify and manage angry feelings with this self-reflection and action plan worksheet.
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Managing Anger Worksheet (Primary)
Help students identify and manage their anger with this self-relfection worksheet
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Australian Animals Mindfulness Bookmarks
Practice mindfulness and keep track of your reading with these Australian Animals Mindfulness Bookmarks!
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My Body Warning Signs - Worksheet
Help students identify the body signs that indicate they are feeling unsafe with this cut and paste worksheet.
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Managing Anxiety Worksheet (Intermediate)
Help older students identify and manage anxious feelings with this self-reflection and action plan worksheet.
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I Can Help My Brain to Learn — Printable Classroom Posters
Display these classroom posters to remind your students of things they can do to ensure the three brains are functioning at their best.
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Learning Dispositions Poster Pack
Teach your students about learning dispositions with this set of 10 posters.
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Mindfulness - Learning From Home Pack
A collection of mindfulness related teaching resources and activities for parents to use with their children or teachers to send home with students during school closures.
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Calming Down Mini-Book
Help your students to keep calm when they are experiencing heightened emotions with this social story mini-book.
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Coping With Change - Social Story Mini Book
A social story to develop coping skills for when there is a change in the routine.
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5 Minute Mindfulness Meditation Activity Task Cards for Kids
Bring 5-minute mindfulness meditation into the classroom and your social and emotional learning with these 17 printable activity cards for kids.
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Emotional Self-Regulation Poster
Promote emotional awareness and self-regulation in your classroom with this classroom poster.
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Pattern Coloring - Flower
Use colors to create a pattern using this sheet.
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Yoga Poses for Kids - Task Cards
16 kid friendly yoga poses to display and use in the classroom for daily gross motor and fitness activities.
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Oral Language Activities
Share these oral language activities with your students to help them practice listening to others, expressing opinions, receiving instructions, and more!
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Calm Down Corner Classroom Decor Pack
Create a classroom calm-down corner with a printable Calming Corner Decor Pack.
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Have a Bright Year! Lightbulb Goal Setting Craft
Brighten up your first day of school with a fun Lightbulb-themed goal-setting craft activity.
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Name 5 Things - Calming Strategy Task Cards
Use the ‘Name 5 Things’ Calming Strategy in your classroom to help students regain self-control with printable calming activity task cards.
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Goal Setting Thermometer Template
Set and track individual and whole-class goals with a printable goal-setting thermometer template.
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Student Learning Goals Tracker
Identify and track student goal achievement with an editable and printable student goal-tracking template.
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When You Enter This Classroom - Door Decor Display
Welcome your students into your classroom with ‘When You Enter This Classroom” Door Decor.
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Printable Anti-Bullying Posters
Decorate your classroom and school during National Bullying Prevention Month with printable Anti-Bullying Posters!
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I Need a Break! Card Templates
Help your students regulate their emotions by presenting them with an ‘I Need a Break!’ card for a few minutes of downtime.
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I Need a Break - Choice Boards
Help upset students regulate their emotions in the classroom with our printable ‘I Need a Break!’ choice boards.
- Self Management Templates
- Self Management Worksheets
- Self Management Posters
- Self Management Games
- Self Management for Kindergarten
- Self Management for 1st Grade
- Self Management for 2nd Grade
- Self Management for 3rd Grade
- Self Management for 4th Grade
- Self Management for 5th Grade
- Self Management for 6th Grade