How can you tell they’ve got it: Words for Big Feelings?

If they’ve got it, you’ll see things like: Use words like 'frustrated', 'anxious', 'overwhelmed', and 'disappointed' accurately to describe how they feel in difficult moments; Explain what 'calm down' strategies are in their own words and name at least two they have tried (e.g. deep breaths, counting, walking away); Distinguish between similar feelings — e.g. explain the difference between being angry and being disappointed. Or just try it together: When your child is feeling really upset or frustrated, can they use words like 'I need to calm down' or 'I'm feeling overwhelmed' instead of just acting out?

Personal & Social Development Self-Regulation & Resilience Ages 5–8

Words for Big Feelings

Your child can use words for big feelings — calm, cope, overwhelmed — and say 'I need to calm down' instead of acting out.

In curriculum terms

Know and use the key words for managing big feelings — calm, strategy, cope, settle, patience, overwhelmed, and breathe — and understand that having words for these ideas is the first step to using them

Ages are typical, not deadlines — follow your child’s pace. How to help at home →

How to tell they’ve got it

Tick these off as you see them — no test required.

Use words like 'frustrated', 'anxious', 'overwhelmed', and 'disappointed' accurately to describe how they feel in difficult moments
Explain what 'calm down' strategies are in their own words and name at least two they have tried (e.g. deep breaths, counting, walking away)
Distinguish between similar feelings — e.g. explain the difference between being angry and being disappointed

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Try this together

When your child is feeling really upset or frustrated, can they use words like 'I need to calm down' or 'I'm feeling overwhelmed' instead of just acting out?

Where this sits on the map

Stuck here? Check the skills it builds on first. Confident? Here’s what it unlocks.

Builds on

Nothing on the map comes before this — it’s a starting point.

Words for Big Feelingsthis skill · ages 5–8

Unlocks

Patience and Delayed Gratificationages 5–7Patience and waiting practice requires understanding the vocabulary of coping and managing big feelings

Simple Calming Strategiesages 5–7Calming strategies (calm, breathe, settle) rely on knowing this vocabulary to name and apply the techniques

Coping with Life Changesages 5–7Coping with change draws on vocabulary like 'cope', 'strategy', and 'settle'

Learning from Mistakesages 5–7Framing mistakes as learning uses the vocabulary of feelings management and coping with setback

solid = must come firstdashed = helps

Curriculum alignment

Where this fits in the official school curriculum — our best automated guess, not yet checked by a person.

Show candidate curriculum codes · 1 ACARA · 3 VIC

Australian Curriculum v9 candidate

AC9HP4P06low confidenceYear 3–4 · Personal, social and community health

explain how and why emotional responses can vary and practise strategies to manage their emotions

Victorian Curriculum 2.0 codes & levels only

VC2HP4P06medium confidenceHealth and Physical Education · Levels 3 and 4 · Personal, Social and Community Health – Health Education strand

VC2HP2P04low confidenceHealth and Physical Education · Levels 1 and 2 · Personal, Social and Community Health – Health Education strand

VC2HP4P02low confidenceHealth and Physical Education · Levels 3 and 4 · Personal, Social and Community Health – Health Education strand

These are candidate alignments generated by semantic matching — machine-suggested and unreviewed (v0.1), not official or verified mappings. For official curriculum content see australiancurriculum.edu.au, curriculum.nsw.edu.au and f10.vcaa.vic.edu.au. Don’t rely on them for registration or compliance purposes.

Nearby on the map

Coping with Life Changesages 5–7 Learning from Mistakesages 5–7 Patience and Delayed Gratificationages 5–7 Simple Calming Strategiesages 5–7

All Self-Regulation & Resilience skills →