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Breathe, Think, Do!
You can help children to use the “Breathe, Think, Do” strategy to calm down, identify their feelings, and work to solve their problem!
Frustration is a normal part of life, but it can overwhelm kids and bring up a lot of big feelings. You can help them to use the “Breathe, Think, Do” strategy to calm down, identify their feelings, and work to solve their problem.
Breathe
First, help kids calm down.
- Encourage them to put their hands on their bellies and slowly take three deep breaths, in through the nose and out through the mouth.
- Ask them to whisper “calm down” (or another encouraging phrase) to themselves.
Think
Next, help children understand their problem and think about a plan to solve it.
- Encourage little ones to tell you how they are feeling and why. You can help them find the words by telling them what you notice (“It seems like you feel frustrated because you’re having trouble putting on your sweater.”).
- Help come up with a few different plans for solving the problem (such as unbuttoning the top button).
Do
Encourage kids to choose a plan and try it out.
- Ask, “Which plan is best? Let’s try it!”
- If the plan doesn’t work, ask, “How else could you do this?,” and then try the next plan.
- Remind kids that learning new things takes practice. It’s not that they can’t do it; it’s that they can’t do it yet.
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Empowering Kids to Make a Big Impact in Their Communities
Learning about what makes a community is the first step in learning how to take care of our communities!
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Engaging Kids with Nature and Community: Outdoor Activities and Adventures
Learning to care for the environment starts with loving the natural world around you.
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Julia’s Community Mural
There are so many ways to be kind, caring, and helpful in our communities!
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Community Garden Clean-up
Teamwork makes taking care of our communities a little easier.
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Community Connections
Showing our love through art is one great way to care for one another.
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Playground Helpers
Help the Twiddlebugs find their lost materials to build their playground!
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Together Trail
Help children practice counting and learn ways to help your community.