Lesson Plan
Detective Emotions Plan
Students will become "emotion detectives" by observing facial expressions and body language to accurately identify and label basic feelings, building empathy and social awareness in real-world scenarios.
Developing skills to read nonverbal cues helps children understand others’ emotions, fosters empathy, improves peer relationships, and supports healthy social interactions.
Audience
1st Grade Class
Time
40 minutes
Approach
Interactive detective challenges with images, cards, and games
Materials
Prep
Prepare Detective Materials
10 minutes
- Review Clue-Finding Slides to familiarize yourself with facial and body language prompts.
- Print and cut out Emotion Picture Cards ahead of time.
- Organize any props or cue cards for the Guess the Feeling Game.
- Ensure journals or sketch pads are ready for Emotion Journal Sketch.
Step 1
Introduction
5 minutes
- Gather students in a circle and introduce the detective theme.
- Explain that detectives use clues to figure out how someone feels without words.
- Show the first slide on Clue-Finding Slides and ask, “What emotion do you see?”
Step 2
Mini Lesson
10 minutes
- Display 4 different facial expression slides from Clue-Finding Slides.
- Model identifying key facial cues: eyebrows, mouth shape, and eyes.
- Discuss body language signals: posture and gestures.
- Label each emotion and list a word bank of synonyms.
Step 3
Detective Activity
10 minutes
- Pair up students and hand each pair 5 Emotion Picture Cards.
- One student acts as detective and the other reveals a card.
- Detective describes facial/body clues and names the emotion; partner confirms.
- Rotate roles after each card.
Step 4
Guess the Feeling Game
10 minutes
- Invite 3–4 volunteers to the front.
- Each volunteer silently acts out an emotion using facial expression and body language.
- Class guesses the emotion and cites observed clues.
- Rotate until all volunteers have acted.
Step 5
Cool-Down Reflection
5 minutes
- Ask students to draw or write about an emotion they recognized today in their Emotion Journal Sketch.
- Invite a few students to share their journal entries and discuss what clues helped them understand the emotion.
Slide Deck
Emotion Detective Mission
Today we will be emotion detectives!
- Look at the person’s face: mouth, eyes, eyebrows.
- Notice their body posture: arms, shoulders, stance.
- Put the clues together to name the emotion.
Welcome class! Introduce our ‘Emotion Detective’ mission. Explain that detectives look for clues in people’s faces and bodies to figure out how they feel.
Happy Clues
• Mouth: corners turned up in a smile
• Eyes: may sparkle or have “smile lines” at the corners
• Eyebrows: relaxed or slightly raised
• Body: open posture, arms may be out or relaxed
Show the big smiling face image or emoji. Encourage children to mimic the facial and body cues.
Sad Clues
• Mouth: corners turned down in a frown
• Eyes: may look droopy or have tears
• Eyebrows: slanted up in the middle
• Body: shoulders slumped, head down
Show a photo or emoji of a sad face. Ask: “What makes this face look sad?”
Angry Clues
• Mouth: lips pressed together or curled down
• Eyes: narrowed, staring
• Eyebrows: pulled down and together
• Body: clenched fists, stiff posture
Display an angry face image. Prompt students: “What clues tell us this person is angry?”
Surprised Clues
• Mouth: open in an “O” shape
• Eyes: wide open
• Eyebrows: raised high
• Body: hands up, shoulders raised
Show a surprised face. Invite students to freeze and copy the pose. Discuss how it feels.
Activity
Emotion Picture Cards
Printable cards for the detective activity. Each card shows a child modeling one of eight basic emotions. Students will use these as “case files” to describe clues and guess feelings.
Materials:
- Print and cut out all cards before class.
- Laminate for durability (optional).
Cards (8 total):
| Emotion | Illustration Clues | Teacher Note |
|---|---|---|
| Happy | Child with wide smile, open arms | Notice the upturned mouth and relaxed posture. |
| Sad | Child with downturned mouth, slumped shoulders | Look for droopy eyes and head tilted down. |
| Angry | Child with furrowed brows, clenched fists | Eyes narrowed and tight lips signal anger. |
| Surprised | Child with rounded mouth, raised eyebrows, hands near face | Wide eyes and open mouth show surprise. |
| Scared | Child with wide eyes, mouth open in gasp, body slightly turned away | Notice tense posture and raised shoulders. |
| Excited | Child jumping or bouncing, big grin, raised arms | Energetic stance and bright eyes reveal excitement. |
| Bored | Child resting head on hand, half-lidded eyes | Slouched posture and neutral mouth indicate boredom. |
| Confused | Child with furrowed brows, tilted head, one hand up shrugging | Look for puzzled expression and questioning posture. |
Game
Guess the Feeling Game
Objective:
- Reinforce students’ ability to read nonverbal cues by guessing classmates’ emotions based on facial expressions and body language.
Materials:
- A set of emotion cards (optional) with basic emotions written or pictured on them.
- Detective stickers or small “badge” cut-outs (optional) to reward correct guesses.
Setup:
- Clear a small performance area at the front of the room.
- Shuffle emotion cards and keep them face-down (if using cards).
- Prepare 3–4 chairs or markers for volunteers to stand on.
Instructions:
- Invite 3–4 volunteers and have them come to the front. Give each volunteer one emotion card (or quietly assign them an emotion).
- Explain that each volunteer will act out their emotion silently—no words or sounds, only facial expressions and body postures.
- The rest of the class are the “emotion detectives.” When they think they know the emotion, they raise their hand.
- Call on a detective to share their guess and ask them to describe the clues they noticed (e.g., “I saw furrowed brows and clenched fists, so I think it’s anger.”).
- Reveal the correct emotion card and discuss which clues matched that feeling.
- Award a detective sticker/badge to the student with the first correct answer (optional).
- Rotate through all volunteers so everyone has a chance to act and guess.
Time: 10 minutes
Cool Down
Emotion Journal Sketch
You’ve just wrapped up your detective work! Think of one emotion you recognized today—either in yourself or a friend.
- Draw a picture showing that emotion. What does the face or body look like?
- Write a sentence describing the clues you noticed. For example: “I saw ___ and knew they felt ___.”
Sentence: ________________________________________________