Empathy Activities for the Classroom

Teaching students what it means to be empathetic is a great social skill they will carry with them for many years. As students are starting to develop empathy, we, as teachers, can help guide them to identify emotions in others, appropriate ways to respond to those who are feeling down and how it feels to be in someone else’s shoes.

Teach Starter has created a SEL flipbook to use with your first and second-grade students to help them develop into empathetic individuals. This flipbook includes 6 pages with the following topics:

• What is empathy?
• Identifying emotions
• Empathy feels like
• Empathy sounds like
• Empathy looks like
• How to be empathetic

How To Prepare Your Empathy Flipbook

If you are ready for your students to use this SEL activity in your classroom, head on over to the green download button. You will find the quick-print PDF document or the editable Google Slides version here. If selecting the Google Slides option, please note that you will first be prompted to make a copy of the resource to your personal drive before accessing it.

To assemble the flipbook:

1. Have students complete and color all pieces of the flip book template.
2. Have students cut each flipbook page on the dotted line.
3. Stack the pages in size order, starting with the largest on the bottom and ending with the smallest on top. Align them along the top edge.
4. Staple across the top.

This resource was created by Lindsey Phillips, a teacher in Michigan and a Teach Starter Collaborator. 

Extra Empathy Resources for Your Classroom

If you are looking for extra materials to accompany your SEL lessons, check out our suggested resources below!

[resource:5009979]   [resource:5009680]   [resource:5001343]