Student Worksheet

Paint A Little Positivity - Activity Instructions

Everyone can have a bad day or feel sad sometimes. That’s why it’s good to know what things make you feel good so that you can help yourself get back to a happier place. In this activity you will explore some things you can do to feel good. You will also record a range of different positive and negative feelings and think about what colours you would use to describe these feelings. You will then create a painting to share some positivity and happiness with others.

Part A: What Makes You Feel Good?

Step 1.

In this activity you’re going to explore the things you can do make yourself feel good when you’re feeling sad, worried or when you’re having a bad day.

Talk to an adult about the things that make you feel good when you’re having a hard time. Have a look at this Circle Of Activities and add your own ideas to this circle. We’ve added some of the things that we like to do to help get you started. You could also get an adult to add some of their ideas.

Step 2.

Once you’ve added some of your ideas to the circle, test three of the ideas including some that you added and some that others added.

On a separate piece of paper write down (or draw) the ones that you tested and rank them according to which ones made you feel the best. You can do this by adding the one that worked the best next to number 1, the second one next to number 2, and the third one next to number 3. See example below:

Standing on my head
Having a hug
Drinking a big glass of water

Step 3.

Now think of some words that you would use to describe feeling good. For example, you could use words like happy, positive, excited, calm or relaxed. Take the Colours Of Feelings sheet and write as many of these words as you can think of in the ‘positive words’ section of this sheet.

Step 4.

On the same Colours Of Feelings sheet think about what colours you would use to describe these positive feelings. Add these to the ‘positive colours’ section of the sheet. You can use pencils, paints, marker pens or crayons.

Step 5.

You’re now going to think about some of the things that make you feel sad, worried or anxious. For some people these sorts of things can be school, missing friends and family, not being able to catch a ball, or COVID-19. On a piece of paper or in a workbook you could create another circle and write down some of these concerns inside the circle. Spend some time talking with an adult about why these things worry or upset you.

Note: You might think some worries are bigger or more important than others, but if something is worrying you or upsetting you then it is important to you and should be included.

Step 6.

Now think of some words that you would use to describe how these things make you feel. For example, you could use words like sad, stressed, angry, unsettled or worried. Take the Colours Of Feelings sheet and write as many of these words as you can think of in the ‘negative words’ section of this sheet.

You can then think about what colours you would use to describe these negative feelings. Add these to the ‘negative colours’ section of the sheet. You can use pencils, paints, marker pens or crayons.

Step 7.

Ask an adult to help you read this section:

It’s interesting that we often use colours to describe our feelings. We have statements like 'green with envy' or 'I’m feeling blue' to describe some negative feelings. However, blue can also be a colour that we associate with feeling calm, and green can sometimes be a colour that we can use to describe feeling excited or energetic. There are no rules about what colours you use to describe your feelings. Did you use the same colours for both negative and positive feelings?

Note: Ask an adult to help you read this section. Once you’re finished spend a bit of time talking about this information and discussing whether you agree or disagree:

Sometimes when you’re having a bad day or feeling sad an adult might ask if you want to talk about it. It’s usually a good idea to share how you’re feeling with someone because they might be able to help you find a solution to a problem or help you understand what it is you’re feeling and why. But sometimes we need some time doing something to help us feel a bit better before we’re ready to talk about our feelings. So doing one of these activities can help us get into a positive mind-set that can make it easier to talk about what we’ve been feeling. It might be that it takes a whole day and night before you’re ready to talk about something that was troubling you, but it’s always a good idea to make some time to talk about it when you’re ready.

Part B: Create a Little Magic

Step 1.

It’s time to start planning a painting or series of paintings to spread a little bit of happiness. Your artwork should show what you can do to help yourself feel better when you are sad or worried.

You could do this by:

Creating a painting of your own design
Using one of these colouring-in templates: hands, heart or head (or create your own). You can fill the shapes with colours or images that remind you of positive thoughts
Creating a banner with these templates cut out and coloured in with different colours that remind you of positive thoughts

Step 2.

There are also some different painting techniques that you might like to experiment with. You might find that some of these are better suited to different negative or positive feelings.

Techniques:

Watercolour paint - In this type of painting you create a very watery paint solution that you add to your paper. You can also add the water to the paper first and then add paint to the wet parts of the paper. You adjust the lightness and darkness of your colours by adding more or less paint to the water. You can get some very interesting textures and details using watercolour but you do have to be careful not to allow your colours to overlap; it’s a good idea to let one colour dry a bit before adding another colour close by. Watercolour Techniques handout
Watercolour pencils - A bit like water colour paints except you do your drawing with your pencils first and then add water with a paintbrush to your colours to create a watercolour effect. Again, you have to be careful you don’t allow the colours to overlap.
Acrylic paint - Acrylic paints are easy to use in that you dip your brush into the paint and apply the paint directly to the page. The paint doesn’t spread like it does in watercolours. If you want to make darker or lighter colours you have to mix your paints before you apply them to the paper.

Part C: Share a Little Magic

Step 1.

It’s now time to share a little happiness by letting your friends and family see what you’ve learned and what you’ve created. You could:

Take a photo of your artwork to share with friends or family
Hang your artwork where it can be seen by neighbours (such as in your window or on your front door)

Step 2.

Everyone loves getting mail! You could send a bit of happiness by post using this postcard template. You can print this template and stick it to a piece of cardboard, or you can carefully copy this template onto a piece of cardboard - just make sure your postcard is an A6 size (a quarter of an A4 sheet of paper).

Ask an adult to help you print it, then decorate the front of the postcard with something that you think will make the person you are sending it to feel good. You can also add a little message on the back to the person you are sending it to.

Paint a Little Positivity (home learning)

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