Craft Your Toolbox Activity Pack

Purpose: Hands-on crafting to personalize coping strategies and reinforce strategy recall.

Time: 15 minutes

Materials:

• Small toolbox containers (mini boxes, pencil cases)
• Art supplies: colored paper, markers, stickers, glue sticks
• Index cards (3–5 per student)
• My Coping Strategy List Worksheet for later

Instructions:

1. Set Up & Focus (2 minutes)

   • Remind students they’ll create a personal toolbox to hold strategies.
   • Confirm each station has container, art supplies, and index cards.

2. Decorate Your Toolbox (5 minutes)

   • Invite students to choose colors, stickers, or drawings that feel calm or empowering.
   • Encourage thinking about images or symbols that represent support (e.g., sun for hope).
   • Prompt: “What colors or pictures make you feel safe or strong?”

3. Write & Illustrate Strategy Cards (6 minutes)

   • Have students write 3–5 coping strategies on separate index cards (one per card).
   • Strategy starters: “When I feel ____, I will ____.”
   • Encourage a simple drawing or sticker on each card to cue memory.

4. Organize & Tidy (2 minutes)

   • Students place their finished cards into their toolbox.
   • Invite quick pair-share: “Show one card to your neighbor and explain why you chose it.”

Differentiation Supports:

• Creative Support:
  • Offer pre-cut shapes or printed icons for students with fine-motor needs.
  • Allow use of magazine cutouts or textured materials.
• Language Support:
  • Provide a word bank of common coping strategies.
  • Offer sentence starters or have an adult scribe for those who prefer to draw.
• Guided Reflection Prompts:
  • “Why is this strategy helpful to you?”
  • “What image could remind you of this strategy when you need it?”

Next: Move on to [Show & Tell Toolbox Items] for sharing and feedback.

Show & Tell Toolbox Items

Purpose:

• Strengthen students’ ownership of their coping strategies
• Practice public speaking, active listening, and giving supportive feedback
• Build a sense of community and shared resilience

Materials Needed:

• Student ‘toolboxes’ and strategy cards from Craft Your Toolbox Activity Pack
• A talking piece (e.g., a soft ball or small token) to establish speaking turns

1. Review Discussion Norms (1 minute)

• Respectful Listening: Eyes on the speaker, quiet hands, positive body language
• One Speaker at a Time: Hold the talking piece when sharing
• Supportive Feedback: Offer affirmations and kind suggestions only
• Confidentiality Reminder: What’s shared in the group stays in the group

2. Structured Sharing (6 minutes)

1. Arrange students in a circle.
2. Choose a volunteer or use a talking piece to select the first speaker.
3. Each student holds up one strategy card and follows this framework:
   • Name the Strategy: “This is my…(e.g., Balloon Breath)…”
   • Why I Chose It: “I chose it because…”
   • When I’ll Use It: “I’ll use this when I feel…”

Sentence Starter Example:
• “I picked __________ because it helps me feel __________ when I’m __________.”

3. Peer Affirmations & Suggestions (5 minutes)

• After each student shares, neighbors can respond with:
  1. Affirmation: “I like how you chose that because…”
  2. Additional Idea (optional): “Another time that might help is when you are ___; you could also try ___.”

Verbally model one example:
“I like how you chose journaling because it helps you understand your feelings. Another time you might use it is after gym class when you need quiet time.”

4. Group Reflection (4 minutes)

• Whole-Group Question: “Which new strategy did you hear today that you’d like to try?”
  • Students answer with thumbs up or share briefly.
• Compare & Connect: “Did anyone choose the same strategy as someone else? How might you help each other remember to use it?”

5. Transition to Worksheet Completion (Remaining Time)

• Distribute My Coping Strategy List Worksheet.
• Instruct students to transfer their strategies, add notes from peer feedback, and write one action step: “This week, I will try my new strategy when…”
• Collect worksheets for review and plan follow-up supports.

My Coping Strategy List

Instructions

Fill in the details for each coping strategy you chose. Use the space below to write, draw, and plan.

Strategy 1

Name of Strategy:




Draw a reminder symbol or picture:







Why it's helpful to me:







When I will use it:

Strategy 2

Name of Strategy:




Draw a reminder symbol or picture:







Why it's helpful to me:







When I will use it:

Strategy 3

Name of Strategy:




Draw a reminder symbol or picture:







Why it's helpful to me:







When I will use it:

(Optional: If you created more than three cards, add additional strategies here.)

Action Plan

This week, I will try my new strategy when:

Where I will keep my toolbox so I remember to use it:

My confidence level (1 = not sure, 5 = very sure): _______

Turn in this worksheet to your teacher when you are finished.

Coping Toolbox Warm-Up

Time: 5 minutes

1. Greeting & Set the Tone (2 minutes)

• Welcome each student by name as they arrive.
• Quickly review group norms: respectful listening, positive feedback, confidentiality.

2. Calming Activity Share (3 minutes)

• Prompt: “Share one thing you did this week that helped you feel calm or relaxed.”
• Use this sentence frame:
  “When I felt (feeling), I (activity) to help me calm down.”
  
  
  
  
• Options for sharing:
  • Pop-corn style: volunteers share one at a time
  • Think–Pair–Share: discuss with a partner then one partner shares out

3. Transition to Lesson

“Thank you for sharing! Today we’ll learn more coping strategies and build them into our very own Coping Toolbox.”

Toolbox Exit Reflection

Purpose: Wrap up the session by reviewing key takeaways, reinforcing confidence, and setting a plan for using your Coping Toolbox.

Time: 5 minutes

1. Strategy Snapshot (1 minute)

• Prompt: “One new strategy I’ll definitely use is…”
  
  
  
  

2. Confidence Check (1 minute)

• Circle your confidence level for using your toolbox:
  • 1️⃣ Not Sure 2️⃣ A Little Sure 3️⃣ Somewhat Sure 4️⃣ Pretty Sure 5️⃣ Very Sure
  
  
  
  

3. Action Commitment (2 minutes)

• Write your plan: “This week, when I feel ___, I will use ___ from my toolbox.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

4. Closing Calm-Down (1 minute)

• Lead the group in one final deep breath together:
  • Inhale for 4 counts (smell the flowers)
  • Exhale for 4 counts (blow out the candle)

“Great work today! Remember, your Coping Toolbox is there whenever you need it.”