Help your students look clearly at situations and separate facts from interpretations while learning how emotions signal unmet or met needs. In this powerful mental health lesson (created alongside a child psychologist), teens reflect on real-life experiences, explore the emotions they felt, identify the needs behind them, and discover healthy strategies to meet those needs.

This resource helps students:

• Recognize how thoughts and interpretations shape emotions

• Understand emotions as signals for needs

• Build emotional awareness and empathy

• Develop healthy coping and communication skills

Activities Include:

• Stand & Play: Facts vs Interpretation Game A fun, movement-based activity to practice spotting interpretations vs facts.

• The “Finder” Group Game In groups of four, students analyze different real-life scenarios to identify the situation, emotion, need, and strategy to meet that need, rotating roles for each round.

What’s Included:

• 35 Editable Google Slides

• 3-page Student Worksheet

• Printable Finder Game Labels

• NHES-Aligned Teaching Instructions

Perfect for middle school and early high school health or SEL classes!