Life is full of big emotions. It’s normal for kids to experience a big range of feelings, including anger and pain. Here are ten simple, effective coping skills that children can use in any situation to feel calmer, more confident, and in control of their feelings.

Why Should We Teach Kids Healthy Coping Skills?

Learning how to cope with stress and difficult emotions is a helpful tool for life. Parents, families, and educators play a key role in modeling and supporting healthy coping skills. We are the blueprints that teach kids how to manage their emotions.

Problems, obstacles, and setbacks are part of life. Healthy coping means using positive, effective strategies to handle life’s challenges. Coping skills are important tools to help both kids and adults manage stress, process uncomfortable emotions, and bounce back from tough moments.

When we teach coping skills to children and teens, we’re giving them helpful tools for life. We are teaching them important skills that will support their mental health and build confidence. When kids learn to recognize their feelings, they can choose healthy coping strategies to navigate the situation instead of running or hiding from their emotions. These skills aren’t just for tough times—they’re important for everyday life.

By learning and practicing different coping skills, children (and adults) can manage emotions, reduce stress, and feel more in control, no matter what comes their way.

10 Coping Skills For Kids

These coping strategies are simple, easy ways for kids to manage stress in healthy ways. They only take a few minutes to do and will help your kids start to feel better fast when they are overwhelmed.

1. Take a Belly Breath

Slowly inhale through your nose… hold… exhale through your mouth. Do this 3–5 times to help your body feel safe and calm. Deep breathing is one of several techniques that can help children calm their bodies and minds.

2. Draw or Color What You Feel

Sometimes feelings are hard to name but art can help us get them out. This is one of my favorite coping skills for younger children. Even if they don’t have the words to express how they feel, they can show how they feel on paper.

3. Squeeze Something Soft

Try a stuffed animal or pillow. Physical movement can release built-up energy and tension. Squeezing something soft helps calm the nervous system and reduce stress.

4. Read a Comforting Story

Find a book where a character goes through a tough moment and comes out stronger. Reading about how the character copes models ways to handle difficult situations. Let their strength remind you of yours.

If you need recommendations, all of the Make A Way Media children’s books show strong, diverse characters overcoming obstacles and learning something new along the way.

Learning to have empathy for ourselves and others is another great way to cope with hard or confusing situations. These books about empathy definitely deserve a spot on your bookshelf.

5. Say Something Kind to Yourself

Try: ✨ “I can get through this.” ✨ “I am still learning.” ✨ “My feelings are okay.”

Positive self-talk, like saying these phrases, can help lift mood and support children who may be feeling sadness or depression.

6. Take a Break & Move Your Body

Go for a walk, jump around, stretch, or dance it out. Exercise, such as walking, stretching, or dancing, is a powerful way to manage stress and reset the mind. Movement resets the brain.

7. Do a Quiet Activity You Love

Puzzles, Legos, drawing, reading, or even organizing can help ease anxious thoughts. When we have to focus on something else, it takes our mind of off of the strong emotions in our minds.

8. Talk to a Trusted Grown-Up

Tell someone how you’re feeling. You don’t have to go through anything alone. Talking about your feelings with someone you trust is a healthy way to cope with stress.

9. Listen to Music That Matches Your Mood

Let music help you feel what you feel—and then gently shift it when you’re ready. Listening to music and paying attention to what you hear can help you relax and shift your mood.

10. Use the Hope Meter™

Check in: Is your Hope Meter low, halfway, or full?
What could help fill it up today?

If you’re having a hard time, checking in with the Hope Meter can be especially helpful to understand your feelings and what support you might need.

✨ BONUS IDEAS:

Make a “Coping Skills Box” with your child! Fill it with favorite tools, a book, a stress ball, affirmations, crayons, and a mini Hope Meter chart. Let it live somewhere accessible for easy emotional check-ins.

Sign up for the K Club! You’ll get free resources each month to help your kids build their coping skills and practice dealing with life’s challenges in healthy ways.

Ways to Build Your Child’s Coping Skills

Building strong coping skills is a journey that takes practice, patience, and a little creativity. The first step is to try out different coping skills—like deep breathing, positive self talk, or mindfulness—to see what feels most helpful for you or your child.

All of the strategies listed above help us focus on the present moment, instead of worrying about the past or future. That is a powerful coping strategy in itself but it takes time to master.

Instead of waiting for moments when you need coping skills, create opportunities to add coping skills to everyday life. Try doing mindfulness exercises together, such as gentle breathing, meditation, or yoga. This can help calm the mind and body, making it easier to manage emotions and handle stress. Spending time in nature, moving your body, or doing something you love can also help reduce stress and boost your mood.

Plan Ahead

Another helpful tool is to create a coping plan. This is a simple list or chart of your child’s favorite coping skills and strategies that they can use when big feelings or stressful situations come up. Having a coping plan ready helps kids (and adults) feel more prepared and confident when they need support. When our brains are flooded with big emotions, we can’t make logical decisions. Having a list of strategies to choose from helps bring us back.

Remember, everyone is different, and what works for one person might not work for another. Encourage your child to experiment with different coping skills and notice which ones help them feel better. By practicing coping skills regularly, kids can build confidence, learn to manage emotions, and develop healthy ways to cope with whatever life brings.

If you want more great coping skills for kids, be sure to join the K Club. It’s full of free resources that parents and educators can use to connect with kids and practice the important social emotional skills all kids need to thrive.

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