Emotions

Planning is the ability to create a roadmap to reach a goal or achieve a task, while prioritizing involves the ability to make decisions about what is important for you to focus on next. It can be challenging for children to know where to get started on...

Learning how to get and stay organized is an important executive function skill for children. Good organization skills allow children to order items or pictures into sequential order, maintain toys and personal items in a neat and orderly manner, and...

It's easy for kids to feel sad when bad things happen in their lives. This is especially true when boys and girls are bullied or picked on or feel left out and isolated. Author and School Counselor, Bryan Smith, has developed four exercises to accompany...

Flexible thinking allows people to think about things in new ways or to incorporate new information into a specific plan or idea. Flexible thinkers are often able to come up with more than one solution to a problem or challenge. The ability to think...

Self-control is the ability to regulate one's emotions, thoughts, and behavior and to keep one's cool in the face of disappointment. These four activities developed by author Bryan Smith can help children with self-control. The lessons are designed to...

Too much stress STINKS! Students in grades K through 6 will identify the negative side effects of experiencing too much stress and develop healthy strategies for dealing with stressful situations. Reinforce the lesson from the storybook, Stress...

Join in on the fun with an activity from Bryan Smith’s If Winning Isn’t Everything Why Do I Hate to Lose? Students will practice their sportsmanship skills during a coin flip game called “Don’t Flip Out.” Extend the...

Join in on the fun with an activity from Bryan Smith’s Is There an App for That? Students will visually see how they have similarities and differences with other students. This activity will teach students the difference between staying true...

Explain to students that all animals have differences between them, but it does not mean one is better than the other. The worksheet provided will allow students to point out something positive for each of the animals listed in this activity from, Is...

Help students discover happiness through self-acceptance with this activity from Bryan Smith's storybook Is There an App for That?. Students will identify characteristics and qualities about themselves that are like-able to help reinforce the skill...

Students will have to determine whether certain scenarios demonstrate good or bad sportsmanship. Bryan Smith’s If Winning Isn’t Everything, Why Do I Hate to Lose? storybook explains the importance of teamwork and fairness. Put to use the...

Students will learn to show good sportsmanship regardless of whether they win or lose with this interactive activity. Bryan Smith’s picture book, If Winning Isn’t Everything, Why Do I Hate to Lose?, is highly recommended for this classroom...

Students will have the opportunity to put themselves in Braden’s shoes in this activity, teaching the importance of flexible thinking and responsibility. The exercise accompanies the storybook My Day is Ruined! from the Executive FUNction series...

Read the storybook It Was Just Right Here! from the Executive FUNction series written by Bryan Smith to your students, then pass out the “What’s Out of Place?” worksheet when the story is finished. This exercise will help to...

Help remind young children in grades K through 5 how to control their impulses and become more self-reliant by reinforcing the message from Bryan Smith's But I Need Your Help Now! storybook. Display this colorful 8.5"x11" poster in classrooms, hallways,...

Teaching students to plan, prioritize, and post can help break down assignments into more manageable tasks. Reinforce the message from Bryan Smith's I'll Never Get All of That Done! storybook, by displaying this colorful 8.5"x11" poster in...