Color Hunt Plan Teacher Guide • Pre-K
Color Hunt Plan
Connecting colors, feelings, and body cues through play.
💛💙❤️💚
Duration
30 Minutes
Group Size
Whole Class / Pairs
Core Domain
SEL / Self-Regulation
Learning Objective
Students will match four core colors to their associated feelings, describe a time they experienced those emotions, and identify physical body signals connected to each state.
Key Concepts
Color-Emotion Association
Interoception (Body Signals)
Emotional Self-Regulation
The Rainbow Feelings Framework
💛 HAPPY
Warm, smiley, high energy
💙 SAD
Heavy, teary, low energy
❤️ ANGRY
Hot, tight fists, fast heart
💚 CALM
Slow breaths, relaxed muscles
Before the Lesson Checklist
Hide the 16 Classroom Color Scavenger Cards around the room in visible spots.
Queue up the Rainbow Feelings Slides on the classroom screen.
Prep drawing crayons/markers for students (yellow, blue, red, green).
Print student Feelings Journals (1 per student) & write names beforehand.
Emotion Colors Hunt • Pre-K SEL Unit Page 1 of 2
Instructional Arc & Facilitation Guide
Step-by-step 30-minute pacing, discussion guidelines, and adaptive strategies.
00-05 M
Step 1: Introduction (Rainbow Feelings Slides)
Introduce colors to feelings & body cues (Yellow/Happy, Blue/Sad, Red/Angry, Green/Calm). Practice mirror facial expressions.
05-15 M
Step 2: Classroom Color Hunt (Scavenger Cards)
Students tip-toe silently (like "feelings detectives") to find cards matching their assigned team colors. Bring cards to circle time.
15-20 M
Step 3: Sharing Circle (Color-Emotion Stories)
Ask prompts: "Look at your card. What is this feeling? Can you tell us about a time you felt this way?" Practice active peer listening.
20-25 M
Step 4: Guided Color-Breathing Practice
Lead the class in deep green belly-breathing. Breathe in the cool, soothing green color; blow out hot red spikes to self-regulate.
25-30 M
Step 5: My Color Feelings Journal
Students draw inside their drawing journal page. Use color matching to illustrate their current feeling or a memory.
Sharing Prompts
• "Where do you feel that emotion inside your body? Heart? Tummy? Hands?"
• "Is it okay to feel angry? How can we help ourselves feel calm?"
• "Who can we talk to when our color feels blue or red?"
Behavior Hacks
• The Tip-Toe Cue: Challenge students to hunt like silent "ninjas/detectives" to keep excitement levels calm.
• Double Hunt: If students struggle finding cards, pair active hunters with observation-focused peers.
Differentiation & Accommodation Strategies
Support Options:
Use tangible color blocks (colored felt or plastic teddy bears) for sensory-seeking children.
Provide pre-drawn emojis for students to trace or color in their journals.
Challenge Options:
Have advanced learners draw two different mixed feelings (e.g., Happy/Scared) side-by-side.
Scribe descriptive feeling sentences for students who are ready to dictate stories.
Emotion Colors Hunt • Pre-K SEL Unit Page 2 of 2
Rainbow Feelings Slides Pre-K SEL Journey
💛 💙 ❤️ 💚
Rainbow Feelings
Let's find out how our bodies show us what we are feeling!
Welcome, Little Detectives! 🔍 Slide 1 of 6
Feelings Meet Colors 💛 Happy
Yellow is Happy!
😊 We smile big and feel wide awake.
☀️ Our chest feels warm and bouncy.
🎉 We want to jump, play, and share!
☀️
What makes you smile super big? Slide 2 of 6
Feelings Meet Colors 💙 Sad
Blue is Sad...
😢 Our eyes feel heavy, we might cry.
☁️ Our body feels slow and heavy.
🤫 We might want quiet time alone.
🌧️
It is completely okay to feel sad. 💙 Slide 3 of 6
Feelings Meet Colors ❤️ Angry
Red is Angry!
😡 Our eyebrows squeeze together.
🔥 Our face feels hot and body feels tight.
✊ Our fists might squeeze up hard.
💥
Angry feelings are normal. We can breathe through them! Slide 4 of 6
Feelings Meet Colors 💚 Calm
Green is Calm...
😌 Our muscles feel soft and relaxed.
🍃 Our breath is slow, deep, and quiet.
🧘 We feel ready to listen and learn.
🍃
Calm is a wonderful feeling to practice. Slide 5 of 6
Are You Ready? 🔍 Let's Hunt!
How to Be an Emotion Detective:
🤫
1. Tip-Toe
Walk super quietly around the classroom.
🔎
2. Find Cards
Look for a color card from your team's set.
🧘
3. Circle Up
Sit quietly back in our sharing circle.
Remember to look with your eyes, not run with your feet! Slide 6 of 6
Guided Color Hunt Script Read-Aloud Script • Teacher Resource
Guided Color Hunt Script
Use these direct prompts and actions to facilitate the 30-minute lesson smoothly.
🗣️
Tip for Success: Keep your voice animated, changing your tone to match the feeling (bright for yellow, soft and heavy for blue, energetic but controlled for red, slow and gentle for green).
1. The Hook & The Rainbow Feelings (5 Mins)
Teacher Actions: Sit students in a circle on the rug. Open Rainbow Feelings Slides to Slide 1.
"Good morning, my little Feelings Detectives! Look at our screen. Look at these beautiful colors: Yellow, Blue, Red, and Green. Did you know that our feelings have colors too? Our bodies use colors to send us secret signals! Let’s peek at Slide 2... Look at Yellow! Look at my big yellow smile! Can everyone make a big happy yellow smile with me? Squeeze your eyes happy! Oh, my chest feels so warm and bright when I’m yellow!"
Teacher Actions: Click through Slides 3, 4, and 5. Have children mimic a heavy sad sigh for Blue, tight squeezed fists/angry eyebrows for Red, and a soft droop of the shoulders for Green.
2. The Color Hunt Mission Setup (10 Mins)
Teacher Actions: Show one of the Classroom Color Scavenger Cards.
"Now it is time for our big mission! I have hidden secret Color Cards all around our classroom. We have to find them. But wait! Real Detectives are super-duper quiet. If we run and shout, we might scare the feelings away! We are going to walk on our absolute quietest tip-toes. Let's practice on the spot... tip, toe, tip, toe. Perfect! When I say your color team, walk like a silent mouse, find ONE card of your color, and bring it straight back to your spot on the rug. Ready, set... tip-toe!"
3. Sharing Circle & Story Scribing (5 Mins)
Teacher Actions: Once gathered, point to children holding different colors. Scribe short answers on a whiteboard.
"Look at all these wonderful emotion cards! Maya, you have a Yellow card. What feeling is on your card? Happy! That's right. Can you tell the class about a time you felt happy? (Wait for response). Oh, you felt happy when you played with blocks! Thank you for sharing. Leo, you have a Red card. Squeezing your fists? When did you feel red? Yes, when someone took your toy. That made you angry. It is okay to feel angry!"
4. Guided Green Belly-Breathing (5 Mins)
Teacher Actions: Place hands on belly. Model slow deep breathing.
"Sometimes our red angry fire or blue sad clouds feel very big. Let's practice bringing in the Calm Green! Sit tall. Close your eyes. Imagine a beautiful, soft green balloon in your tummy. Breathe in slow through your nose and blow up your green balloon... (inhale)... hold it... now blow out all the hot red spikes or heavy blue clouds through your mouth... (exhale with a soft whoosh sound). Let's do it again! Fill your belly with cool green... breathe in... blow out... whoosh. How does your body feel now?"
Classroom Color Scavenger Cards Printable Resource • Cut along dotted lines
Scavenger Cards (Page 1 of 2)
💛 Happy & 💙 Sad Cards
CARD 1
☀️
Yellow Happy
Body Signal
"My face smiles big, my cheeks feel warm, and my eyes twinkle!"
🔍 Emotion Colors Hunt Find Yellow! 💛
CARD 2
⭐
Yellow Happy
Body Signal
"My chest feels bouncy, and my feet want to jump and dance!"
🔍 Emotion Colors Hunt Find Yellow! 💛
CARD 3
🌧️
Blue Sad
Body Signal
"My eyes feel heavy, and teary drops might slip down my cheeks."
🔍 Emotion Colors Hunt Find Blue! 💙
CARD 4
🐌
Blue Sad
Body Signal
"My head drops down, and my whole body feels very heavy and slow."
🔍 Emotion Colors Hunt Find Blue! 💙
Print on heavy cardstock or laminate for classroom reuse.
Printable Resource • Cut along dotted lines
Scavenger Cards (Page 2 of 2)
❤️ Angry & 💚 Calm Cards
CARD 5
🌋
Red Angry
Body Signal
"My face feels hot like fire, and my teeth squeeze together!"
🔍 Emotion Colors Hunt Find Red! ❤️
CARD 6
✊
Red Angry
Body Signal
"My hands ball up tight into fists, and my heartbeat goes fast!"
🔍 Emotion Colors Hunt Find Red! ❤️
CARD 7
🍃
Green Calm
Body Signal
"My chest goes in and out slowly, breathing cool quiet air."
🔍 Emotion Colors Hunt Find Green! 💚
CARD 8
🧘
Green Calm
Body Signal
"My body feels soft, relaxed, and fully ready to listen."
🔍 Emotion Colors Hunt Find Green! 💚
Print on heavy cardstock or laminate for classroom reuse.
My Color Feelings Journal My Name:
Date:
💛💙❤️💚
My Color Feelings Journal
Which color does your body feel like today?
💛 Happy
💙 Sad
❤️ Angry
💚 Calm
🎨
Feelings Detective Drawing Prompt: Choose one color and draw a picture of your body feeling that emotion, or draw a special memory of when you felt that way!
📝
Teacher/Adult Scribe Notes:
My color feeling is:
Because:
