Whole Earth Curriculum WEC

Lesson 03 — Feelings Come and Go

Learners discover that feelings change: they arrive, stay a while, and pass — and that this is okay. They retell a feeling that came and went.

D01 P1: Emotional & Social Awareness D01.S1 40 minutes Draft

Objectives

Essential question

What happens to a feeling over time?

changestaypassagainokay

Materials

Standard materials

Low-tech / no-cost

Enriched / lab & device

Works in different contexts

A three-picture sequence showing a feeling arrive (a sad face with one tear under a cloud), stay (the same sad face bigger with two tears), and pass (a happy face under a sun), with arrows between the panels
A three-picture sequence showing a feeling arrive (a sad face with one tear under a cloud), stay (the same sad face bigger with two tears), and pass (a happy face under a sun), with arrows between the panels

Lesson 3 — Feelings Come and Go

Summary

Learners explore how feelings move and change over time. A feeling arrives, stays for a while, and then passes — and another one comes. They practice retelling a feeling that came and went, and learn that change is okay.

Objectives

  • Name and identify basic feelings (happy, sad, angry, scared, calm) in self and others. (D01.S1.K.01)
  • Describe a feeling using words, a drawing, or a movement. (D01.S1.K.02)

Connection

Think of a time you were sad, and then later you felt better. Or angry, and then a hug or a game made it soften. Feelings are like weather: rain comes, and then the sun comes out again. No feeling lasts forever.

Materials

  • Feeling face cards (happy, sad, angry, scared, calm)
  • Paper and crayons
  • A soft ball or rolled cloth to pass around

Preparation

  • Reuse or redraw the feeling face cards.
  • Arrange a circle so the ball can pass from learner to learner.
  • Prepare a gentle sentence frame to share aloud.

Facilitator note

This lesson is written to the learner (“you”) so it works in a classroom and for a self-directed learner. As facilitator, model first: tell your own “I felt ___, and then it ___” story. Keep it light — this lesson is about the natural passing of feelings, not about fixing or judging them. If a learner shares something heavy, honor it calmly and help them notice it softened or passed.

Procedure

  1. Gather (5 min). Sit in a circle. Think of a feeling you had today. Does it still feel the same now?
  2. Watch feelings move (10 min). Look at the feeling cards. A feeling is like a guest: it knocks, it stays a while, and then it goes. Act it out — happy arrives (big smile), happy grows (jump), happy leaves (soft and still).
  3. A feeling story (15 min). Pass the ball. When it comes to you, finish this sentence: “I felt ___, and then it ___.” (Example: “I felt angry when my turn was skipped, and then it went away when I played.”)
  4. Draw then and now (10 min). On paper, draw a feeling you had earlier, and beside it, draw how you feel now. They can be different.
  5. Close (5 min). Remember: feelings come and go. That is okay. A new feeling is always on its way.

Differentiation

  • Support: Offer two feeling cards to choose from and a partner to help finish the sentence.
  • Extension: Invite learners to tell a “before, during, after” story of one feeling with three quick drawings.

Assessment

  • Formative (observation): Can the learner retell a feeling that changed using “and then”?
  • Artifact (portfolio): The “then and now” drawing.

Resources

Home connection

At home, ask a grown-up to tell you about a feeling they had today that changed. Take turns telling your “I felt ___, and then it ___” stories.