10 Fun Anger Management Activities For Kids That Really Work

Life and problems

Last Updated on February 28, 2025 by Team CrazyJackz

All the friends of your child keep complaining that your kid hits and abuses them. The school teacher of your toddler expresses her concern that your kid is slightly being aggressive in nature. More importantly, even at home, he/she keeps throwing tantrums when something doesn’t go their way.

Well, if this is what you feel.. Let me tell you are not alone. Kids and aggressive behavior go hand in hand. However, what if I tell you that few fun activities can change the aggressive nature of your son/daughter.

Yes, today we’ll reveal 10 proven anger management activities specially designed for kids. So, let’s look at them one by one.

10 Fun Anger Management Activities For Kids That Really Work
Bethany King via Flickr

1. The “Turtle Technique”

The “Turtle Technique” is a cognitive behavioral activity that can be used to help children manage their anger. The procedure of the “Turtle Technique” consists of 5 stages:

  • Recognizing that you feel angry
  • Thinking “stop”
  • Going into your “shell”
  • Taking three deep breaths
  • Thinking about calming thoughts, such as “It was an accident. I can calm down and think of good solutions. I am a good problem solver”.

As a parent, you can share that this is turtle’s secret trick for calming down. You can interestingly tell that a turtle starts by thinking to himself “STOP,” then goes in his shell. He then takes three deep breaths before thinking, “I can stay calm while finding solutions to solve my problem”. When he is calm, he comes out of his shell and is ready to solve the problem peacefully. You can even invite your child to practice the turtle’s secret method together with you. Thus, you and your kid can “go in their shells” at a time and together take three deep breaths.

Well, additionally, visual cues and pictures of the turtle technique in your child’s bedroom or wardrobe further help them remember this technique to control their anger.

2. Role-playing or modeling activities:

Role-playing activities are nothing but acting out and reliving scenarios, while having fun. This can be an effective anger management activity which works well for children in both individual and group settings.

All the individuals participating in the role play would generally receive instructions about their assigned roles before the activity begins.

  • The main actor needs to implement anger control techniques during the activity. He/she receives guidance to practice their anger management technique through role-playing exercises.
  • The co-actor should try to stay in his or her described role as the other person in the conflict.

After each role-playing exercise, you should actively provide appropriate reinforcement and appreciation whenever the anger management technique is used properly.

3. Backward Counting

This is another useful activity to control your kid’s anger. Yes, in this activity, whenever the child senses aggressive emotions, he/she is encouraged to count numbers. But here’s the twist, they must count numbers ‘backwards’.

The practice of counting backwards can serve to momentarily distract the child from the high-pressure situation. Yes, while counting backward from 20 to 1 at a slow, even pace, the child can use this time to think about how to respond most effectively. When appropriate, the child can even turn away from the provoking person or situation, while counting.

4. Expressing Feelings Through Art

Art is one of the purest forms of expressions, making it the most fruitful activity for any kid. Art enables children to express themselves, serving as a valuable outlet, through which they can vent out all their anger, grief, and emotions. This helps them release their inner anger and can eventually help them manage their aggression and anger. So next time you see your child throwing tantrums, encourage him/her to draw their emotions and put it on paper, instead of crying and sulking.

5. The “Super Hero Award”

The “Super Hero Award” is a certificate given out at the end of the day, noting how a child controlled their anger and impulse. Another reinforcing activity involves gifting a child with a stuffed superhero toy or puppet every month. If he was rewarded, the child should have done a remarkable job of controlling anger and impulse. Thus rewarding such good behavior naturally triggers your child’s inner desire to be appreciated and validated, thus encouraging him to practice it more and more.

It’s more of a carrot and stick technique, and rewarding your cute little rat with a carrot every time he controls his anger.

6. The Cool cup activity.

The Cool Cup activity is an effective anger management activity that merges hand-eye coordination with emotional regulation, to help children regulate and manage overwhelming emotions. The activity begins by drawing a character on a glove to represent someone dealing with big emotions. Then, take a cup and create a hole in the bottom of that cup and insert a straw.

Stretch the glove over the top of the cup with the character hiding inside. Now the real activity begins. Ask the child to breathe deeply while pinching the straw until the character on the glove pops off. At the same time, ask them to keep imagining their worries drifting away. Thus, the child subconsciously starts associating his overwhelming worries with proper exhaling. In fact, the cool cup gives a visual demonstration showing proper exhaling techniques for relaxation in overwhelming situations. For older children, you can use a larger cup that may require more deep breaths to get the character to pop off.

7. The Anger Management Game:

The Anger Management Game is all about using a color wheel containing three animals, which is designed to help children learn anger management skills. The game works best with one to three players, yet you can include more kids if necessary.

On each turn, a player spins the wheel, which reveals a question based on the color that stops. If the player gives a right answer, he will be given a point. Example questions include – Identifying the safest way to calm down when angry, such as choosing between punching a classmate or kicking a ball.. Asking how to react when someone scolds you without your mistake etc.

8. Think of a Proud Moment Technique:

The “Think of a Proud Moment” technique is an effective strategy which requires children to recall a moment that makes them feel proud, whenever experiencing anger. This unique activity serves two purposes: it diverts attention from the anger-triggering situation, while simultaneously making the child feel happier and calmer.

The technique is a powerful coping mechanism for every child, to effectively deal with his/her anger.

9 “Don’t Flip Your Lid” Technique:

This “Don’t Flip Your Lid” is a unique, fun activity. It uses a bag or box to represent a child’s anger. Children are asked to write down situations that make them angry, and then are asked to place these labels inside their bag. Anger management techniques are taught, and props are placed in the bag as reminders.

Now, the goal is to help children integrate these techniques by practicing the strategies, using the props from their bag. This technique can help children express their anger and learn healthy coping strategies.

10. Deep Breathing:

When we talk about breathing as an activity, you might think that you already know this. But let me tell you, it is a simple yet most effective anger management activity for kids. Yes, the simple act of taking slow, deep breaths can be a powerful activity for children learning to manage their anger. Thus, the kid will eventually learn to manage his/her aggression and develop controlled responses through deep breathing, which functions as a relaxation method to calm his/her angry feelings. 

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