Calm: Soothing Worries
Calm: Soothing Worries
Help young people learn how to soothe their worries with these wellbeing activities from Place2Be's Art Room and CBBC's Art Ninja, Ricky Martin.
About the project
This activity pack provides creative ways to help primary-aged children calm their worries. The three easy art activities support children to:
- settle their thoughts
- ground themselves
- explore how to share their worries with someone they trust.
We have also included a list of storybooks that will help children explore their feelings of worry or anxiety.
Download the Calm: Soothing Worries activity pack (PDF 2.2MB)
We have designed these art activities for school children aged 6–11. But do feel free to try them with children of other ages if you think they would help them. Alternatively, take a look at our other Art Room activities to find even more wellbeing ideas for schools and at home.
If you are a parent or guardian and are concerned about your child feeling anxious, you might find it helpful to read our 'My child is anxious' advice article on our Parenting Smart site.
Place2Be's Art Room and Ricky Martin
In the below video, Ricky Martin, one of our Place2Be Ambassadors, introduces this exciting children's art project.
Ricky Martin, also known as CBBC's Art Ninja, is a Creative Director, Film Maker and Presenter based in Bristol. He is committed to helping children express themselves through arts and creativity.
Especially for this art project pack, Ricky has created how-to videos with the Art Room team. So you can watch along as Ricky guides you through each wellbeing activity step-by-step!
Find out more about Ricky Martin becoming an Ambassador
Wellbeing activities overview
Below, we've summarised each wellbeing activity included in the Calm: Soothing Worries project pack. These creative activities involve children trying out different coping mechanisms they might find helpful when feeling anxious. The last activity also allows young people to explore ways they can share their worries with someone they trust.
Activity 1: Settle your thoughts
We've designed the first activity to help children distract themselves from worrying thoughts or feelings. It involves a simple drawing task meant to help them feel more settled by becoming focused on and absorbed in what they are doing in the present moment.
Activity 2: Soothe your senses
The second creative activity is about helping children feel more grounded physically by soothing their senses. Children will create a 'Garden of Calm' using art materials and found objects, exploring their senses along the way.
Activity 3: Share your worries
Best done with children feeling settled, the last wellbeing activity explores how to share worries with a trusted adult. The tradition of Guatemalan Worry Dolls inspired this activity, where children use scrap and art materials to create their own worry dolls.
Download the Calm: Soothing Worries activity pack (PDF 2.2MB)
At Place2Be, we believe art is a creative tool that helps develop resilience and aids us in connecting with others. Our Art Room team are specialists in using art to support and enhance children and young people’s wellbeing.
Why not try one of our other Art Room projects on themes including noticing feelings, nurturing self-belief and exploring changes?