Emotions in Early Childhood

Understanding Emotions in Early Childhood

Rhymes, Stories, Worksheets, and Lesson Plans (Playgroup to UKG)

Emotions are an important part of a child’s development. In early childhood, children experience many emotions such as happiness, sadness, anger, fear, and excitement. However, they often do not know how to express or manage these feelings.

Teaching emotions helps children:

• Develop self-control
• Improve social skills
• Build confidence
• Express feelings in healthy ways
• Develop empathy and kindness

Emotional learning is just as important as learning alphabets and numbers.

 

Why Teaching Emotions is Important

Young children are still learning to understand their feelings. When children learn about emotions, they can:

• Say “I am angry” instead of hitting
• Ask for help when they feel sad
• Share their happiness with others
• Understand others’ feelings

This builds strong emotional and social foundations.

 

Basic Emotions to Teach (Playgroup to UKG)

Start with simple emotions:

• Happy 😊
• Sad 😢
• Angry 😠
• Scared 😨
• Excited 🤩
• Calm 😌

Teach one emotion at a time using stories, rhymes, and activities.

 

Emotion Rhyme for Children

Rhyme: "When I Feel Happy"

When I feel happy, I smile so wide,
I clap my hands and jump with pride.

When I feel sad, I may cry,
But it’s okay, I will try.

When I feel angry, I take a breath,
I calm my body and take a rest.

Feelings come and feelings go,
I understand them as I grow.

Repeat daily during circle time.

 

 

 

Emotion Story for Children

Story: The Little Girl Who Felt Angry

There was a little girl named Mia.

One day, Mia was building a tower with blocks.

Her friend came and the tower fell down.

Mia felt angry.

She wanted to shout.

She wanted to throw blocks.

But her teacher said,
“Take a deep breath.”

Mia took a deep breath.

She felt calm.

She built the tower again.

Mia felt proud.

She learned that it is okay to feel angry, but we must stay calm.

Moral: We can calm our body when we feel angry.

 

 

Activities to Teach Emotions

 

Activity Name	Description	Outcome
Mirror Activity	Children look in mirror and make: Happy face Sad face Angry face	This helps children recognize emotions
Emotion Cards Game	This helps children recognize emotions	Children identify emotions.
Emotion Circle Time	Ask children daily: “How are you feeling today?”	This builds emotional expression.

 5-Day Lesson Plan: Emotions Theme {Play group}

    

How Teachers Can Conduct the Mirror Emotion Activity Differently for Playgroup and UKG Children

Understanding emotions is an important part of early childhood development. One simple and effective activity teachers use is the Mirror Emotion Activity, where children look at themselves in a mirror and explore different facial expressions.

However, the way this activity is conducted should be different for Playgroup children (2–3 years) and UKG children (5–6 years), because their language and emotional understanding levels are very different.

Mirror Activity with Playgroup Children (2–3 years)

At this age, children are still developing language skills. Most playgroup children cannot clearly say, “I feel angry” or “I feel happy.” Instead, they express emotions through facial expressions, body movements, and sounds.

Teacher’s Role

The teacher should focus more on showing and naming emotions, rather than expecting children to say them.

How to conduct

1. The teacher gives each child a safe mirror.
2. The teacher models an expression first. For example, the teacher smiles and says:
• “Look, I am happy.”
3. Then the teacher encourages children:
• “Can you smile?”
• “Show me a happy face.”
4. The teacher helps by naming what they see:
• “Oh, Riya is smiling. She is happy.”
• “Arjun is making a sad face.”

The goal is not verbal communication, but exposure and recognition.

Example

The teacher smiles and says:

“This is a happy face. Happy means smiling.”

Children copy the smile while looking in the mirror.

This helps children begin to connect facial expressions with emotion words.

 

Mirror Activity with UKG Children (5–6 years)

UKG children have stronger language skills. They can identify, express, and talk about their emotions clearly. This allows the teacher to make the activity more interactive and meaningful.

Teacher’s Role

The teacher should focus on:

• Asking questions
• Encouraging communication
• Connecting emotions with real-life situations
• Making the activity more engaging through storytelling

How to conduct

1. Give each child a mirror.
2. Ask children to show different emotions:
• “Can you show me a happy face?”
• “Can you show me an angry face?”
3. Ask follow-up questions:
• “When do you feel happy?”
• “What makes you feel angry?”
• “What do you do when you feel sad?”

This helps children understand and express emotions in words.

Tips for Parents and Teachers

• Talk about emotions daily
• Do not ignore children’s feelings
• Teach calm breathing
• Use stories and rhymes
• Appreciate emotional expression

Conclusion

The Mirror Emotion Activity supports emotional development at all ages, but the teacher’s approach must match the child’s developmental level.

• In playgroup, the focus is on exposure and imitation
• In UKG, the focus is on expression, communication, storytelling, and discussion

By adapting the activity appropriately, teachers help children develop emotional awareness, confidence, and communication skills, which are essential for their overall growth.

 

With love,
Akshayaa Aravindan

Early Years Educator | Play School Journal

Play • Learn • Grow Together