Recognizing Our Emotions

Overview

This 50-minute lesson, designed for Year 4, 5, and 6 students, is the second lesson in the 12-lesson unit "Respectful Interactions and Emotions." The purpose is for students to recognise and label their personal emotions accurately, fostering emotional literacy, self-awareness, and respectful communication aligned with the Australian Curriculum (v9).

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Australian Curriculum Links

Health and Physical Education (Personal, social and community health)

• ACPPS042 (Yr 4): Recognise emotions and their impact on behaviour.
• ACPPS053 (Yr 5): Examine the influence of emotions and develop strategies to manage their emotions in different situations.
• ACPPS061 (Yr 6): Investigate strategies to manage changes and transitions and how emotional responses influence relationships.

General Capabilities

• Personal and social capability: Recognise emotions, interact respectfully, and reflect on personal responses.
• Literacy: Use vocabulary to identify and describe emotions.
• ICT Capability: Engage with digital tools for interactive learning.

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Learning Intentions and Success Criteria

WALT (We Are Learning To):

• Recognise and label personal emotions.

Success Criteria:

• Identify and name at least three emotions felt in different scenarios.
• Discuss in pairs how these emotions might influence behaviour.
• Optionally, write a short reflection on personal feelings.

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Resources Needed

• Interactive whiteboard or projector
• “Emotion word wall” (digital and printed) showing common emotions with images to help support dyslexic learners
• Scenario cards or slides depicting various everyday situations (e.g. winning a game, losing a pet, receiving a gift)
• Digital devices (tablets or computers) for interactive word activities (optional)
• Paper and coloured pencils/crayons for reflection writing

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Lesson Breakdown

1. Introduction (10 minutes)

• Engage and Connect: Start with a “Feelings Check-in.” Teacher models naming emotions they feel today and why, demonstrating honesty and openness.
• Briefly introduce the words: happy, sad, angry, excited, confused (also displayed on the emotion word wall). Use images and facial expressions to reinforce understanding.
• Use probing questions: "Have you ever felt happy when you got a gift? What about sad? What does that look or feel like?"
• Explain WALT and success criteria.

2. Activity 1: Emotion Recognition Through Scenarios (15 minutes)

• Divide class into pairs (supporting differentiated learning through peer discussion).
• Present a variety of everyday scenarios using slides or cards.
• Each pair discusses which 3 emotions they might feel in each scenario and why.
• Teacher circulates to scaffold and support vocabulary, especially helping students with word wall cues.
• Pairs share examples with the whole class briefly – encourage different feelings to validate diverse experiences.

3. Activity 2: Digital Emotion Sorting Game (10 minutes)

• Using classroom tablets/computers or interactive whiteboard, students play a digital sorting or matching game where they drag words or images to match emotions with scenarios.
• Dyslexia-friendly design: clear font, icons, and voice-over instructions if possible.
• Teacher supports individuals or small groups needing extra guidance.

4. Reflection Writing Extension (10 minutes)

• Students write a short reflection: “Today, I recognised these emotions... I feel these emotions when... I can use what I learned to better understand my feelings.”
• Provide sentence starters and writing scaffolds for ease.
• Encourage use of the emotion word wall to aid spelling and clarity.
• Allow coloured pencils for creative expression of emotions.

5. Plenary and Review (5 minutes)

• Invite a few students to share their reflections or words about emotions they identified.
• Reinforce key learning: recognising and naming emotions helps us understand ourselves and respect others.
• Remind students of the next lesson and how this connects to respectful interactions.

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Differentiation Strategies

• For diverse learners: Pair work to scaffold verbal sharing; word wall with images and clear fonts; sentence starters for writing; oral alternatives to written tasks.
• Dyslexia-friendly: Use multi-sensory approaches (visual images, verbal cues), avoid dense text, spaced layout, clear handwriting or fonts, and colour-coded emotion words.
• Extension for advanced learners: Challenge to include less common or more complex emotions in writing, e.g. frustrated, proud, nervous, and describe how these emotions affect actions.

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Assessment Opportunities

• Observation of student participation in paired discussions and sharing.
• Review of written reflections to assess emotional vocabulary use and understanding.
• Informal feedback during digital game activity to check correct emotion recognition.

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Through engaging discussion, multisensory tools, technology integration, and structured writing, this lesson promotes emotional literacy within a respectful learning environment, preparing students to better understand themselves and others, aligned with Australian Curriculum priorities.