Our anti-anxiety (De-Stress) baskets

As the children grow so do their sense of self, and an awareness of the world around them. Fewer tears are shed because of their inability to communicate hunger, fatigue, the need for touch. Most of their tears, however, are shed over misunderstandings and conflict with friends, and, frustration that swings like a pendulum - far left or far right, sometimes for what seems like hours on end.

Last year I created 2 anti-anxiety de-stress kits (baskets) for the group. I must state right off the bat that creating a one-size fits all kit or anything (for that matter) with the intent of using it for a group of young children is not easy.

How I created our anxiety reduction kits...

In creating my basket I tried to think of ways to allow the children to boost confidence, relieve stress, and also (most importantly) to respect their autonomy in the hustle and bustle of our day to day activities. I try to keep it simple by choosing activities/items that are generally soothing. As the children grow older, our little toolbox has become a go-to (and a favorite) activity, even when there is no stress - which is a bonus :).

Items include:

basket #1

1.      Jitter Gitter cards 
2.     the book Emotions that I Feel (a trace - along book)
3.     bean bag 
4.     squish (stress) ball
5.     a silk scarf
6.     assorted colourful feathers
7.     lacing activity    

basket # 2

1.     a mirror - good for making silly faces
2.     emoji light up stress ball (for rolling gently) 
3.     Jitter Gitter cards
4.     a silk & suede scarf
5.     fidget spinner
6.     kaleidoscope

Stay tuned for part 2 of this post to see what we do, how we do it, and some of our favorite
shops/resources.