Interoception is the sense that helps us register these internal messages. For young children, a change in the body may show up before the words for an emotion: the body knows first.
These interoception activities for kids offer ten brief ways to explore body sensations, consider a feeling that might fit, and choose a response. Try them during everyday moments at home, at school, or in a therapy session.
What is interoception?
Signals such as a heartbeat, shifts in breathing, hunger, warmth, tense muscles, or an unsettled stomach tell us something about our internal state. Noticing those messages is interoception, often described as an eighth sense alongside the five familiar senses, balance, and awareness of body position.
Children's awareness of internal sensations continues to grow as they develop. Research suggests that greater awareness of these sensations may support understanding and managing emotions. Everyday exchanges with an adult who pays attention, makes space for answers, and explores body clues together give children opportunities to practice.
Books about emotions, including The Color Monster, often introduce feeling names through colors. Exploring sensations gives children a physical experience to connect with those words. This somatic approach begins with what a child notices inside.
How to guide children
- Begin with sensations. Ask, "What do you feel in your body?" and leave plenty of room for an answer.
- Supply simple describing words. Offer paired choices such as fast and slow, heavy and light, or warm and cool when an answer is hard to find.
- Welcome the child's wording. "My tummy feels funny" already gives you a useful starting point.
- Favor small, playful visits. Spread practice across a few minutes several times a week so each session stays manageable.
- Choose settled moments. Explore these ideas on calmer days, when emotions feel easier to approach.
Feel it: activities to notice body signals
Heartbeat detective
Try about 30 seconds of comfortable dancing, marching, or jogging in place. After stopping, rest a hand over the chest and ask, "What do you feel in your body?" Pause for a minute, then check once more to explore how the heartbeat feels as the body rests.
Fast and slow breath
After a little comfortable movement, pause and notice the natural pace of breathing. Once the child is ready to rest, lie down with a small plush toy on the belly and watch its rise and fall. Compare breathing just after movement with breathing during rest, letting the breath find its own rhythm.
Warm hands, cold hands
Briskly rub palms together, then gently rest them against the cheeks to notice the warmth. Next, touch a cool cup of water and compare the sensations.
Squeeze and soften
Curl the fingers into fists for a count of five, using a comfortable amount of pressure. Open the hands and shake the fingers loose, then invite the child to notice the change. Comparing firm muscles with relaxed ones can make tension easier to recognize when strong feelings arrive.
Body weather report
Choose a regular check-in time and invite children to describe their body as a kind of weather. A storm, a buzz, a cloud, sunshine, or stillness can stand in for a sensation that is difficult to put into words.
Name it: activities to connect a signal to a feeling
Which color might it be?
Following a Feel it activity, offer the feeling colors and ask, "Which feeling might that be?" Treat each answer as a possibility to explore together; "might" leaves room for uncertainty. Linking a body clue with a feeling word creates an opening for name it to tame it.
Story pause
Pause during a picture book scene with a clear emotional moment and invite children to imagine the sensations the character could be noticing. A character can offer a more comfortable starting point for practicing the connection between body clues and feelings.
Daily check-in
Build a small check-in into the beginning or close of the day. Ask, "What do you feel in your body?" Follow with, "Which feeling might that be?" Then explore what response would suit the feeling. A classroom feelings poster lets children answer by pointing to a color.
Help it: activities that help the body
Push, squeeze, hug
For an uncomfortable feeling that comes with a lot of energy, try a wall push with both palms, a cushion squeeze, or a self-hug. Let children choose an amount of effort or pressure that feels comfortable, and pause to notice how their body responds. These movements give children a way to use some of that energy.
Slow breath with a hand on the tummy
Rest one hand over the belly and take a gentle breath in, imagining the scent of a flower. Let the air flow out slowly, keeping the breath comfortable. Begin with just two or three easy breaths.
Comfortable feelings deserve room to be enjoyed. When children notice joy or pride, join the celebration with a shared jump or a hand placed proudly over the chest.
In the classroom and the therapy room
Make space for these short activities during morning circle, between classroom tasks, or before everyone heads home. After recess, heartbeat detective offers a simple way to begin noticing body changes. In the therapy room, a short Feel it activity can help children settle into the session before conversation begins.
Sources
- Craig, A. D. (2002). How do you feel? Interoception: The sense of the physiological condition of the body. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 3(8), 655-666.
- Mahler, K. (2015). Interoception: The eighth sensory system. AAPC Publishing.
- Murphy, J., Brewer, R., Catmur, C., & Bird, G. (2017). Interoception and psychopathology: A developmental neuroscience perspective. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 23, 45-56.
- Price, C. J., & Hooven, C. (2018). Interoceptive awareness skills for emotion regulation: Theory and approach of Mindful Awareness in Body-Oriented Therapy (MABT). Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 798.
- Lieberman, M. D., Eisenberger, N. I., Crockett, M. J., Tom, S. M., Pfeifer, J. H., & Way, B. M. (2007). Putting feelings into words: Affect labeling disrupts amygdala activity in response to affective stimuli. Psychological Science, 18(5), 421-428.