Home›Lesson Plans›Social-Emotional Learning›Self-Awareness · Grade 3

Knowing My Feelings

Third graders build self-awareness by learning to name their feelings — happy, sad, angry, scared, excited — and recognize what situations bring up each one, the first step in understanding themselves.

Grade 3CASEL: Self-Awareness30 minutes1 class periodCASEL SELExplicit teaching4 StandardsCASEL
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Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Name different feelings.
  • ✓Notice how feelings feel.
  • ✓Connect feelings to situations.
  • ✓Know all feelings are okay.
Essential Question

Everyone has feelings, all day long! But can you name what you’re feeling? Learning to spot and name our feelings is the first step to understanding ourselves.

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Match It · Interactive

Match the Feeling

Project this and match each feeling to a time you might feel it — tap a feeling, then tap when it happens.

😊 Match each feeling to when you might feel itTry it
Feeling
When You Might Feel It
Now tap when you feel it!
The Lesson · SEL Flow (Check-In · Learn · Practice · Apply · Reflect)

30 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Check-In — How Are You Today?

5 min

Everyone has feelings all day — can you name what you’re feeling right now?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Do a feelings check-in.
  • Ask how they feel.
  • Set a caring tone.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Share a feeling.
  • Notice it.
  • Get ready.
2

Learn — Naming Feelings

8 min

Students learn.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Name many feelings.
  • Explain feelings are normal.
  • Notice how each feels.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Learn feelings.
  • Know they’re okay.
  • Notice them.
3

Practice — Match the Feeling

8 min

Students practice.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send students to Match the Feeling.
  • Match each one.
  • Talk about them kindly.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Match them.
  • Talk.
  • Explain them.
4

Apply — My Feelings

6 min

Students apply.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Name a feeling they had today.
  • Explain what caused it.
  • Know it’s okay.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Name one.
  • Explain it.
  • Accept it.
5

Reflect — Reflect

3 min

Students close.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Share one feeling word.
  • Say it’s okay to feel it.
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Share it.
  • Accept it.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the CASEL 5 Social & Emotional Learning Competencies.

CASEL
Self-Awareness

Identify and name a range of one’s own emotions.

CASEL
Self-Awareness

Link feelings, values, and thoughts.

CASEL
Self-Awareness

Recognize emotions as normal and okay.

CASEL
Self-Management

Begin to notice emotions in the moment.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Feeling-face picture cards.
  • Sentence frame: “I feel ___ when ___.”
  • Use a feelings chart.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with happy and sad.
  • Use face pictures.
  • Match one pair at a time.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Add more feeling words.
  • Notice feelings in a story.
  • Keep a feelings journal.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Screen / board
  • 😊A feelings chart
  • 💻Match the Feeling
  • 🖍️Crayons
  • 🪞A mirror (for faces)
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

feelingan emotion inside youemotiona feeling like happy or sadself-awarenessknowing your own feelingshappya glad, good feelingsadan unhappy feelingangrya mad feelingscareda frightened feelingexcitedan eager, thrilled feeling
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
Name two feelings.
Sample: happy, sad, angry, scared, or excited.
QUESTION 2
When might you feel excited?
When you can’t wait for something fun (like a birthday or a trip).
QUESTION 3
Is it okay to feel sad or angry sometimes?
Yes — all feelings are okay. What matters is what we do with them.

Reflect: name it to tame it.

Have students practice naming their feelings out loud during the day — “naming” a feeling helps it feel more manageable. A printable feelings sheet is in the SEL library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Self-Awareness: Knowing My FeelingsFlip
Card 1
Term
Tap to flip →
Meaning
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Nice work!

Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Self-Awareness: Knowing My FeelingsQuiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
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Nice work!

Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Self-Awareness: Knowing My FeelingsPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: angry, emotion, excited, feeling, happy, sad, scared, self-awareness
  1. an eager, thrilled feeling
  2. knowing your own feelings
  3. a feeling like happy or sad
  4. a frightened feeling
  5. an unhappy feeling
  6. a mad feeling
  7. an emotion inside you
  8. a glad, good feeling

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. Name two feelings.
  2. When might you feel excited?
  3. Is it okay to feel sad or angry sometimes?
Answer key — Part A: 1) excited · 2) self-awareness · 3) emotion · 4) scared · 5) sad · 6) angry · 7) feeling · 8) happy
Part B: 1) Sample: happy, sad, angry, scared, or excited. 2) When you can’t wait for something fun (like a birthday or a trip). 3) Yes — all feelings are okay. What matters is what we do with them.