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Your Coping Toolkit: Stress Less!

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Samantha Garrity

Tier 1
For Schools

Lesson Plan

Coping Skills Lesson Plan

Students will be able to identify personal stressors and apply healthy coping mechanisms to manage difficult emotions effectively.

Understanding and practicing coping skills helps students build resilience, reduce stress, and improve their overall mental well-being, both in and out of school.

Audience

10th Grade

Time

30 minutes

Approach

Interactive discussion, brainstorming, and personal reflection.

Materials

Coping Skills Slide Deck, Stress Less Warm Up, My Coping Plan Worksheet, and Cool Down Check-In

Prep

Prepare Materials and Equipment

15 minutes

  • Review all generated materials including the Coping Skills Slide Deck, Stress Less Warm Up, My Coping Plan Worksheet, and Cool Down Check-In.
  • Prepare presentation equipment for the Coping Skills Slide Deck.
  • Print copies of the My Coping Plan Worksheet (one per student).

Step 1

Warm-Up & Introduction

5 minutes

  1. Begin with the Stress Less Warm Up to gauge students' current understanding of stress and coping.
  2. Introduce the lesson's objective: learning about coping skills to manage emotions and stress.

Step 2

What Are Coping Skills?

7 minutes

  1. Use the first few slides of the Coping Skills Slide Deck to define coping skills and discuss their importance.
  2. Facilitate a brief class discussion on why it's important to have healthy ways to deal with stress.

Step 3

Healthy Coping Strategies

8 minutes

  1. Present various healthy coping skills using the Coping Skills Slide Deck.
  2. Encourage students to share examples of healthy coping skills they already use or have heard of.

Step 4

My Coping Plan Activity

7 minutes

  1. Distribute the My Coping Plan Worksheet.
  2. Instruct students to identify their personal stressors and brainstorm healthy coping skills they can apply. Circulate to provide support and guidance.

Step 5

Cool Down & Wrap-Up

3 minutes

  1. Conclude the lesson with the Cool Down Check-In to prompt reflection on new coping strategies.
  2. Emphasize that developing coping skills is an ongoing process and encourage continued practice.
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Slide Deck

Your Coping Toolkit: Stress Less!

Strategies for Managing Emotions & Stress

Welcome students. Briefly introduce the topic of stress and emotions. Explain that today's lesson will equip them with practical skills to navigate these challenges.

What Are Coping Skills?

  • Ways we handle stress, challenges, and difficult emotions.
  • Can be healthy or unhealthy.
  • Help us adapt, solve problems, or feel better.

Ask students for their initial thoughts on "coping." Guide them to understand that it's about managing feelings and situations, not avoiding them.

Why are Healthy Coping Skills Important?

  • Reduces Stress: Prevents burnout and overwhelm.
  • Improves Well-being: Boosts mood and overall health.
  • Builds Resilience: Helps you bounce back from setbacks.
  • Better Relationships: Allows for healthier interactions.

Discuss how unhealthy coping mechanisms (like avoidance or anger) can make things worse. Emphasize the long-term benefits of healthy coping.

Your Healthy Coping Toolkit

Let's brainstorm some effective ways to manage stress and emotions!

Open the floor for student suggestions. Write them on the board or chart paper. Validate all healthy suggestions.

Common Coping Skills

  • Physical: Exercise, deep breathing, stretching, getting enough sleep.
  • Creative: Drawing, writing, listening to music, playing an instrument.
  • Social: Talking to a trusted friend/adult, spending time with loved ones.
  • Mindfulness: Meditation, journaling, spending time in nature.
  • Problem-Solving: Breaking down tasks, asking for help, planning.

Briefly explain each category and provide a quick example. Encourage students to think about what resonates with them.

Time to Build Your Plan!

  • Identify your top stressors.
  • Choose 2-3 healthy coping skills from our toolkit.
  • Develop a personalized coping plan.

Introduce the My Coping Plan Worksheet. Explain that this is their chance to make these skills personal and actionable.

What Will You Try?

  • What is one new coping skill you learned today?
  • How can you incorporate it into your daily life?

Prepare for the Cool Down Check-In. Reinforce the idea of ongoing practice.

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Warm Up

Stress Less Warm Up

Instructions: Take a moment to reflect on the questions below. You don't need to share your answers with the class, but be ready to think about them as we start today's lesson.

  1. When you feel stressed or upset, what is the first thing you usually do?



  2. Can you think of one thing that helps you feel a little bit better when you're having a tough day?



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Worksheet

My Coping Plan: Stress Less!

Instructions: Think about what causes you stress and how you currently react. Then, use the healthy coping skills we discussed to create your own personal plan for managing challenging emotions.

Part 1: My Stressors

  1. What are 2-3 common things that cause you stress or difficult emotions? (e.g., schoolwork, social situations, family expectations, future worries)






  2. When you experience these stressors, how do you typically feel (emotionally and physically)?






Part 2: My Healthy Coping Toolkit

Think about the healthy coping skills we discussed (physical, creative, social, mindfulness, problem-solving).

  1. List 3-5 healthy coping skills you think would work best for you.

    • Example: Listening to music, talking to a friend, taking a walk, deep breathing.











  2. Choose one coping skill from your list above. Describe how and when you could use it the next time you feel stressed or overwhelmed.












Part 3: My Action Plan

  1. My Coping Mantra: Write a short phrase or sentence that you can tell yourself when you start to feel overwhelmed to remind yourself to use your coping skills.



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Cool Down

Cool Down Check-In: My New Coping Skill

Instructions: Before you leave, take a moment to reflect on what we've discussed today.

  1. What is one new healthy coping skill you learned or rediscovered today that you are committed to trying?



  2. How do you think this skill could help you manage stress or difficult emotions in the future?



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