Understanding and expressing feelings is crucial for children’s emotional development and well-being. A powerful tool that aids children in this process is the feelings wheel.
Each emotion in the feelings wheel is depicted through distinct colors and categories, making it easier for kids to associate their feelings with visual cues.
Feelings are meant to be felt and experienced. Too often our world teaches children to avoid or ignore their feelings. When we give children the space to feel, we are building a foundation of strong mental health.
Click to the free feelings wheel printable. This feeling wheel is part of my Mindful Emotions Toolkit, which contains printable resources like emotion thermometers, specific emotion cards, and regulation cards.
How to Use the Feelings Wheel Ask your child to describe what it feels like in their body when they feel happy, excited, or proud. Move the heart-shaped arrow to each emotion as you talk about them.
Next time your child has a big emotion, hand them the feeling wheel and ask them to find the one showing their feelings. Encourage your child to describe that feeling and the sensations that go along with it.
This is a significant first step in developing healthy coping skills. By helping your child label their feelings, you also show that you acknowledge and accept their emotions. This teaches children they can face their feelings instead of avoiding them.