Feelings & Emotions Play Dough Mats | Kindergarten SEL

Help preschool and kindergarten children explore their feelings in a hands-on way with these Feelings & Emotions Play Dough Mats. Children will use play dough to build facial expressions while learning to recognize and talk about emotions. Perfect for morning tubs, calm corners, or SEL lessons.

📦 What’s Included

• 9 girl face mats in different hairstyles and skin tones
• 8 boy face mats in different hairstyles and skin tones
• 16 emotion cards for each skin tone:
  angry, bored, calm, embarrassed, focused, frustrated, happy, in love, thoughtful, sad, sick, silly, surprised, tired, worried, confident
• Bright colors and clear labels for easy sorting and independence

🛠️ How to Use the Play Dough Mats

• Children select a face mat and an emotion card
• Use play dough to build eyes, eyebrows, and mouths that match the emotion
• Encourage children to say: “I feel ___ when ___.”
• Use in morning tubs, small groups, calm corners, or SEL lessons

🎓 Educational Benefits

• Supports social emotional learning by teaching 16 emotion words, building empathy, and encouraging self-regulation
• Develops oral language skills as children practice using full sentences and sharing their feelings
• Strengthens fine motor skills through rolling, pinching, and shaping play dough
• Builds cognitive skills such as attention to detail, matching features to feelings, and problem-solving

✨ Final Note

These Feelings & Emotions Play Dough Mats combine SEL with fine motor practice in a fun, hands-on way. A must-have resource for preschool and kindergarten teachers who want to make learning about emotions interactive and meaningful.

This activity is also included in the Kindergarten Morning Tubs Set 2. If you already own the set, you do not need to purchase this resource separately.

Happy Teaching! 🌟