What Kind of Happy Are You?

Instructions

Before You Begin

• Questions to ask yourself before doing this activity with students are: What is the emotional climate in the classroom right now? Are my students tired, agitated, anxious, energized, or something else? What steps can I take to gently acknowledge their current emotional experiences and while inviting them to meaningfully engage in this exercise?
• Once students begin the activity, remember that there are no right or wrong responses; students’ responses may differ based on their worldview, culture, mood, intensity of emotion, or depth of mindful engagement.
• As a teacher, consider how you may practice being open-minded as you hear students’ responses while also noting responses that may indicate the student is unhappy or struggling to identify situations where they experience positive emotions. Consider how you might encourage and support students’ well-being in these cases.

Part I: Discovering Positive Emotions

• Questions to ask yourself before doing this activity with students are: What is the emotional climate in the classroom right now? Are my students tired, agitated, anxious, energized, or something else? What steps can I take to gently acknowledge their current emotional experiences and while inviting them to meaningfully engage in this exercise?
• Once students begin the activity, remember that there are no right or wrong responses; students’ responses may differ based on their worldview, culture, mood, intensity of emotion, or depth of mindful engagement.

As a teacher, consider how you may practice being open-minded as you hear students’ responses while also noting responses that may indicate the student is unhappy or struggling to identify situations where they experience positive emotions. Consider how you might encourage and support students’ well-being in these cases.

Part II: Labeling Positive Emotions

• Questions to ask yourself before doing this activity with students are: What is the emotional climate in the classroom right now? Are my students tired, agitated, anxious, energized, or something else? What steps can I take to gently acknowledge their current emotional experiences and while inviting them to meaningfully engage in this exercise?
• Once students begin the activity, remember that there are no right or wrong responses; students’ responses may differ based on their worldview, culture, mood, intensity of emotion, or depth of mindful engagement.

As a teacher, consider how you may practice being open-minded as you hear students’ responses while also noting responses that may indicate the student is unhappy or struggling to identify situations where they experience positive emotions. Consider how you might encourage and support students’ well-being in these cases.

Closure/Extensions

To support learning beyond the lesson, ask students to write down and/or share ways they can experience more positive emotions in the future. Encourage students to focus on how they can induce positive emotions in their lives.

Optional Extension Activities

• Picture & Emoji Matching Activity
• Word Matching Activity
• Matching Positive Emotions to Self Activity

Additional Modifications:

• If your students struggle to reflect on experiences of positive emotions, you can ask them to name the positive emotion they’re feeling at the moment. They can put their name on the slip and pin it on the poster or bulletin board next to the positive emotion they’re feeling (e.g. I feel joy or pride).
• For some learners, learning about the 10 positive emotions might start with a teacher or a parent simply labeling the emotions when there’s an opportunity. Maybe a student expresses significant joy when swimming; label that with “you look joyful in the pool,” or when a student is peacefully listening to music, you could quietly mention, “It looks like that music gives you the feeling of serenity .”This is a great way to start building the vocabulary for students who may not have had many opportunities to hear these words.

Source

Thanks to our friends at Proof Positive who collaborated with us in creating this activity. Proof Positive is a nonprofit organization dedicated to spreading the science and skills of happiness.

Evidence That It Works

In her groundbreaking work on positive emotions, researcher Barbara Frederickson introduces us to the extensive benefits of feeling good, described in her “Broaden-and Build-Theory” of positive emotions. Her findings demonstrate that when individuals experience positive emotions, their awareness broadens. “Broadening” suggests that positive emotions quite literally open your mind. As positive emotions are triggered, you may even think more creatively and solve problems faster.

Fredrickson’s research also pinpoints 10 Positive Emotions, including pride, gratitude, joy, love, amusement, inspiration, awe, interest, serenity, and hope are all positive emotions. Ongoing experiences of positive emotions can help students to develop the mental, physical, and social resources they need to thrive and flourish. When we intentionally enhance our experiences of positivity, we nourish our minds, bodies, and relationships.

Why Does It Matter?

Educators can play a role in supporting students’ emotion regulation skills, helping them to address challenging emotions—as well as stress, anxiety, and depression. However, learning about positive emotions and how to experience more positive emotions can also benefit students’ emotion regulation skills while potentially benefiting student learning.

For example, a student who is feeling joyful might be more open to seeing a different way of viewing a problem, perhaps through the perspective of a peer, than a student who is feeling neutral or negative. Or, a student may be more motivated to learn a new skill if they experience a positive emotion prior to the task, as positive emotions can foster curiosity. Finally, if students are in need of additional resources to manage stress and adversity, experiencing positive emotions can build psychological resources like optimism and self-efficacy. Students who can identify and increase their access to positive emotions can better manage stress.

This lesson’s positive focus may also be particularly important for students who struggle with emotional regulation due to a disability or learning difference. This lesson could be included in a behavior intervention plan (BIP), which features support strategies for skill development so that students no longer need to rely upon challenging behavior to communicate and get their needs met. Teaching positive emotions in this way can be a meaningful intervention strategy and integral to developing self-regulation.