Calm down corner printables and SEL lessons for PreK-2
ARK SEL makes printable SEL and calm down corner resources for PreK through 2nd grade: feelings cards, check-ins, scripts, family letters, and short lessons you can print and use the same day.
ARK SEL is small on purpose. It's social emotional learning for PreK through 2nd grade, and that's it. Feelings check-ins, a calm down corner kit, scripts for the moments when a lesson falls apart, and short daily or weekly lessons for morning meeting.
One rule runs through all of it. A child can point, talk, draw, write, or pass. Non-readers can do every part.
Get the free Feelings Check-In
Start with the free stuff
Feelings Check-In
Takes about a minute. You hold up four feelings cards, kids point or say it or doodle it, and they pick one of three calm choices. 9 pages, US Letter, free.
Leave the price at $0 on Gumroad and the PDF goes straight to your email. How to run it
Calm Down Corner Setup Guide
Setting up a corner from scratch? 16 pages (15 on A4) for the adults: rules, signs, a 5-level feelings meter, and what to say the first time a kid goes over there.
Character illustrations were created with AI assistance. All layouts, text, and activities are designed and written by ARK SEL.
The bundles
Calm Down Corner Bundle, $12
Three resources for the hard parts of the day: the Calm Down Corner Kit (before), the meltdown scripts (during), and the bilingual family letters (after). $13.99 if you bought them one at a time.
Or buy it on TPT, same $12.
Complete PreK-2 SEL Library, $25
All five paid resources: the Kit, the scripts, the family letters, 365 Days of Big Feelings, and 36 Weeks of SEL. $33.79 if you bought them one at a time.
Or buy it on TPT, same $25.
Character illustrations were created with AI assistance. All layouts, text, and activities are designed and written by ARK SEL.
You can buy on Gumroad or on Teachers Pay Teachers. Same files, same price either way. If your school pays through TPT, use that. ARK SEL on TPT
Everything we make
- Calm Down Corner Kit, $5.50 (79 pages). 48 emotion cards in two styles (30 feelings), an emotion wheel, feelings meter, 10 coping cards, a calm choice board, and breathing boards. US Letter and A4.
- What to Say When Students Melt Down, $4.50 (60 scripts). Sorted by 16 feelings. Each one opens with a line you can read out loud word for word.
- The Bridge Home: family letters in English and Spanish, $3.99 (29 pages). Hard day letters, good day notes, and answers to the questions parents ask. US Letter and A4.
- 365 Days of Big Feelings, $9.90. A lesson of about 5 minutes for every day of the year. Opens in your browser, works offline.
- 36 Weeks of SEL, $9.90. One lesson a week for the whole school year, with editable PowerPoint for every lesson.
The single resources are on TPT. The two bundles and the free Check-In are on both TPT and Gumroad.
Guides
- How to set up a calm down corner kids will actually use
- A quick feelings check-in for PreK-2
- What to say when a student melts down: 6 scripts
- Notes home after a hard day, in English and Spanish
Questions people ask
Do I need to laminate anything?
No. It holds up longer if you do, but paper works.
Will this work for kids who can't read yet?
Yes. That's who it was built for. Pointing counts as an answer.
Is this a curriculum like Zones of Regulation?
No, and it's not connected to it. These are everyday classroom routines. They don't diagnose anything or replace help from your counselor or your school's safety steps.
Can I share it with my grade-level team?
The standard license is one teacher, one classroom. Each teacher on your team needs their own copy.
What paper size?
Every printable comes in US Letter. The Kit, the Setup Guide, the meltdown scripts, and the family letters come in A4 too. The 365 Days and 36 Weeks lessons are on-screen files (HTML and PowerPoint).
Who made the animal characters?
We made them with AI image tools. Everything else, the layouts, the text, and the activities, we design and write ourselves.