Workshop Resources

Background

Congrats on your child completing the Music for Big Feelings workshop! On this page you’ll find all the resources you need to support your child develop emotional regulation strategies.

Emotional Regulation Steps

The 3 steps to a child developing Emotional Regulation Skills are 1. identifying emotions 2. understanding emotions and 3. responding to emotions. This page will lead you through music activities to help your child in these three areas.

Step 1: Identify Emotions

We identify emotions by visual clues and auditory clues. Visual clues are found by looking at the person to see their emotions. For example, smiles, tears, frowns. Auditory clues are found by listening to the person. For example: laughter, sighing, talking in a loud voice.

Activity

Help your child learn to identify emotions by singing the these lyrics to the popular song “If Your Happy.”

If you’re happy and you know it give me a (child gives a visual clue)
If you’re happy and you know it I would hear a (child gives a auditory clue)
If you’re sad and you know it give me a (child gives a visual clue)
If you’re sad and you know it I would hear a (child gives a auditory clue)
If you’re angry and you know it give me a (child gives a visual clue)
If you’re angry and you know it I would hear a (child gives a auditory clue)
If you’re scared and you know it give me a (child gives a visual clue)
If you’re scared and you know it I would hear a (child gives a auditory clue)

Step 2: Understand Emotions

Emotions have to be understood in context. For example, is my friend laughing at me or with me?

Activity

Help your child understand the context of emotions by singing these nursery rhymes and discussing the listed questions for each song.

Itsy Bitsy Spider
What big feelings did the spider feel when the rain came down?
What big feelings did the spider feel when the sun came out?

Jack and Jill

What big feelings did Jack feel when he fell down and broke his crown?
What big feelings did Jill feel when she came tumbling after?

Little Miss Muffett

What big feelings did Little Miss Muffett feel when the spider sat down beside her?

Five Little Ducks

Why was mother duck sad?
Why was mother duck happy?

Step 3: Respond to Emotions

We use the identified emotion and it’s context to decide how to either respond to it, or regulate ourselves to the emotion.

Breathing Activity

Exhaling and inhaling a breath to music can help regulate emotions. Breathe along with the music.

Tapping to the Beat Activity

The physical action of tapping along with a song helps regulate your heartbeat to match your tapping and this gives you control to then slow down your heart beat. You can either tap using your hands or use pencils as drum sticks. Use your own favourite song for this activity.