Watch and Play: Elmo and The Great Cookie Stack

In the Sesame Street episode Elmo and the Great Cookie Stack (available now on Netflix and PBSKIDS), it’s recording setting day and Elmo’s on a team with Abby and Cookie Monster to stack the tallest cookie tower. But every time Elmo tries to stack a cookie, the tower falls. Elmo feels discouraged because he keeps knocking down the tower. After Abby and Cookie Monster encourage Elmo to take a wiggle break, he knows how he can help his team in another way; he’ll help bake more cookies. With teamwork they bake and stack. Abby’s about to stack the last cookie but the tower falls. Time runs out and The Count announces that they set a new record for the most cookies baked on Sesame Street!

Preschoolers often find it difficult to cope with discouragement and persist with challenging tasks. In the face of a perceived failure, frustration and discouragement can feel insurmountable to a young child.

As caregivers, we can help children cope with these feelings by encouraging them to be gentle with themselves when things don’t go as planned. We can remind them of times that they have struggled in the past, only to find that with perseverance they were able to grow and accomplish what they’d hoped. We can also support them in using self-regulation strategies like Elmo’s wiggle break to give themselves a moment to calm down and think more clearly.

Check out the resources below to help your little one understand and cope with big feelings like frustration and discouragement.