Students will be able to identify and name three basic emotions (happy, sad, angry) by looking at facial expressions.
Understanding and naming emotions helps children develop self-awareness and better communicate their needs and feelings to others. It's a foundational step for social-emotional learning.
Audience
Kindergarten
Time
20 minutes
Approach
Through a story, discussion, and drawing activity, students will learn to recognize happy, sad, and angry faces.
Review the Feeling Faces Slide Deck and familiarize yourself with the content. - Print copies of the Feeling Faces Worksheet for each student. - Ensure you have enough crayons or markers for the class. - Set up the projector/Smartboard for the slide deck.
Step 1
Welcome and Warm-Up (2 minutes)
2 minutes
Greet students and ask them to show you a happy face, a sad face, and an angry face. - Explain that today they will learn more about feelings and how we can tell what someone is feeling by looking at their face.
Step 2
Story Time and Discussion (8 minutes)
8 minutes
Present the Feeling Faces Slide Deck. - Go through each slide, focusing on the facial expressions for happy, sad, and angry. - Read the short scenarios on the slides and discuss with students what emotion the character might be feeling and why. - Ask questions like: 'What do you see in their eyes?' 'What about their mouth?' 'Have you ever felt this way?'
Step 3
Feelings Face Activity (8 minutes)
8 minutes
Distribute the Feeling Faces Worksheet and crayons/markers. - Instruct students to draw a happy face, a sad face, and an angry face in the designated boxes. - Circulate and provide support, prompting students to describe the features of each emotion's face.
Step 4
Reflection and Sharing (2 minutes)
2 minutes
Ask a few students to share their worksheets and describe one of the faces they drew. - Reinforce that it's okay to feel all these emotions and that we can often tell how someone feels by looking at their face.
Slide Deck
What Do You See in a Feeling Face?
Today, we're going to be emotion detectives! We'll look at faces and guess how people are feeling.
Ready to explore happy, sad, and angry feelings?
Welcome students and introduce the idea of 'feeling faces.' Ask them to show you a happy face.
Happy Face!
Look at this face! How do you think this person is feeling?
What do you see that tells you they are happy? (Eyes smiling, mouth curved up!)
When do YOU feel happy?
Introduce the happy face. Ask students what they see in the eyes and mouth that makes it look happy. Prompt for personal connections: "When do you feel happy?"
Sad Face...
Now look at this face. What feeling do you see here?
What clues do you see? (Mouth turned down, maybe a tear!)
When do YOU feel sad?
Introduce the sad face. Discuss the features that indicate sadness (downward mouth, maybe watery eyes). Ask: "What makes you feel sad sometimes?" Emphasize that it's okay to feel sad.
Angry Face!
Uh oh, what about this face? How do you think they are feeling?
What do you notice? (Eyebrows squished, mouth in a straight line or frown!)
When do YOU feel angry?
Introduce the angry face. Highlight the furrowed brow, tight lips, or wide eyes. Ask: "What might make someone feel angry?" Reiterate that all feelings are okay, but we need to learn how to handle angry feelings safely.
Happy, Sad, Angry!
We learned about happy, sad, and angry faces today!
Your turn to be the artist and draw your own feeling faces on your worksheet!
Review all three emotions quickly. Transition to the worksheet activity. Remind them they will draw these faces.
Worksheet
Feeling Faces Worksheet
Name: __________________________
Circle the feeling word as you draw the face!
1. Happy Face!
Draw a happy face in the box below. What does a happy face look like?
2. Sad Face...
Draw a sad face in the box below. What does a sad face look like?
3. Angry Face!
Draw an angry face in the box below. What does an angry face look like?
Activity
Crayons or Markers Activity: Drawing Feeling Faces
Objective: To express and identify emotions through drawing facial expressions.
Listen Carefully: Your teacher will give you a Feeling Faces Worksheet. Listen to the instructions for each box.
Happy Face: In the first box, draw a face that looks happy! Think about what happy eyes and a happy mouth look like. What color makes you think of happy?
Sad Face: In the next box, draw a face that looks sad. What do sad eyes and a sad mouth look like? What color makes you think of sad?
Angry Face: In the last box, draw a face that looks angry. How do angry eyes and an angry mouth look? What color makes you think of angry?
Share Your Feelings: When you are done, be ready to share one of your feeling faces with the class! Tell us what you drew and why it looks that way.
