Sometimes, it can be difficult for students to put how they're feeling into words. Art gives children another way to communicate, reflect and explore their emotions through colour, shape, drawing and making.
With R U OK? Day 2026 providing an opportunity to start meaningful conversations around wellbeing, creative activities can help teachers approach these topics in an engaging and age-appropriate way.
From collaborative murals to emotion colour wheels, these R U OK? Day activities can encourage creative self-expression while supporting emotional literacy and classroom wellbeing.
Why is art important for students' emotional wellbeing?
Art provides students with an opportunity to slow down, make choices and express ideas without always needing to explain them verbally.
Creative wellbeing activities can encourage children to recognise different emotions and explore how feelings might be represented through colour, line, shape or imagery. This can support social and emotional learning while giving students greater freedom to express themselves.
Classroom art activities don't diagnose emotions or replace professional mental health support. They offer another avenue for self-expression, reflection and connection.
How does art help students express their emotions?
Art and emotions are closely connected because creative activities give students different ways to represent how they feel.
A student might choose bright colours to represent excitement, repeated lines to show frustration or soft shapes to communicate a sense of calm. There isn't necessarily a right or wrong way to represent an emotion.
This freedom can make art and wellbeing activities particularly useful in the classroom. Students can develop their own visual language while building awareness of different emotions and how they experience them.
Why can art make it easier for students to communicate?
Talking directly about feelings isn't always easy, particularly when a student isn't sure how to describe what they're experiencing.
Creating artwork can provide a starting point for conversation. Rather than asking a student to immediately explain how they feel, teachers can invite them to talk about the colours, shapes or ideas they have included in their artwork.
These conversations can help develop emotional literacy and create opportunities for students to listen to and understand different perspectives.
For R U OK? Day, craft ideas and creative activities can therefore be used as conversation starters, not just something students make and take home.
Creative activities that encourage emotional expression
1. My safe place artwork
Encourage students to think about the people, places and environments that help them feel comfortable, calm and supported.
Materials
- Paper or card
- Pencils
- Markers or textas
- Paint
- Collage materials
- Glue
Activity
Invite students to draw, paint or collage a place where they feel comfortable, calm or supported. Their safe place could be somewhere real, such as home or the beach, or somewhere completely imagined.
Students can add colours, people, objects and other details that help communicate why the space feels positive to them.
Learning Focus
Self-reflection, emotional expression through art and student wellbeing.
2. Affirmation bracelets
Turn a positive word into something students can wear and be reminded of.
Materials
- Alphabet cube beads
- Pony beads
- Ball chain bracelet with clasp
Activity
Students choose a word that feels encouraging or true for them, such as believe, kindness, grow, inspire or confident. They spell their word using the alphabet cube beads, then thread it onto the ball chain bracelet, using pony beads to space out the letters, before closing the bracelet with its clasp.
Learning Focus
Fine motor skills, self-reflection and turning a feeling into something to wear.
Full activity: Affirmation bracelets
1. Messages of encouragement
Create a small keepsake that carries an encouraging message for someone who might need to hear it.
Materials
- Acrylic base with a protective plastic coating
- Alcohol inks
- Clear extender for alcohol inks
- Street paint markers
- Paper towel or scrap paper, for the work surface
- Wooden card holder, for display (optional)
Activity
Students trace their acrylic base onto paper, then draw a simple shape such as a heart or flower inside the outline and transfer it onto the protective plastic. They drip small amounts of alcohol ink onto the shape to build up a pattern of colour, then leave it to dry for 24 hours. Once dry, students use paint markers to write an encouraging message over their design, peel back the backing plastic and display the finished piece in a wooden card holder.
Learning Focus
Colour exploration, fine motor control and putting a caring message into words.
Full activity: Messages of encouragement
Supporting student wellbeing through creativity
R U OK? Day is a useful reminder to start conversations about student mental health, but wellbeing is something classrooms can support all year, not just on one day.
Regular creative activities give students another way to reflect, communicate and process how they're feeling, on their own terms.
FAQs
What are the benefits of art activities for students?
Art activities can support creativity, fine motor development, problem-solving and self-expression. Wellbeing activities for students can also provide opportunities to recognise emotions, reflect on experiences and communicate ideas in different ways.
How can teachers use R U OK? Day in the classroom?
Teachers can use R U OK? Day to introduce age-appropriate conversations about emotions, connection and checking in with others. Creative R U OK? Day activities can provide a practical starting point for these discussions.
How can schools support student wellbeing beyond R U OK? Day?
Schools can support student wellbeing by making social and emotional learning part of everyday classroom practice. Regular opportunities for creativity, reflection, connection and conversation can help keep wellbeing visible throughout the year rather than limiting it to one awareness day.
How can teachers encourage students to talk about their feelings?
Teachers can create opportunities for students to express themselves in different ways, including conversation, writing and art. Asking open-ended questions about a student's artwork can provide a gentle starting point for discussing ideas and emotions without requiring them to immediately explain exactly how they feel.