At Give Kids Art, we love creating meaningful activities that help kids connect with their feelings through art. Feelings on Wheels is a new favorite — an imaginative art and self-expression activity, inspired by and created for the Natural History Museum’s “L.A. on Wheels” festival. It’s a three-step activity that invites artists of every age to explore their emotions, imagine what moves them, and dream about where they want to go next.
Below, you’ll find Step 1 as a downloadable worksheet, followed by the instructions for Step 2 and Step 3, if you’d like to continue the activity. You can follow the full three-step journey, or try just one step on its own. There’s no right or wrong way to create.
This activity is perfect for kids, families, classrooms, or anyone who wants to explore feelings in a playful, creative way.
Step 1 — Color Your Wheel of Feelings
(Download the worksheet here.)
Your Wheel of Feelings shows different feelings you might have throughout the day, like Happy, Sad, Calm, Excited, Worried, and Brave.
Pick a color for each feeling and then decorate the section of your wheel using that color. You can also use patterns, shapes, or drawings.
Let each section show what the feeling feels like for you.
Step 2 — Design Your Dream Vehicle
Now that you’ve created your Wheel of Feelings, it’s time to design a vehicle that can take you and your feelings on a ride — and help you move through your emotions.
It could be a unique car, rocket, skateboard, or something totally new that doesn’t exist yet!
Think about what makes your vehicle “go.”
Is it powered by courage? creativity? kindness? music? glitter? love? What colors could you use to represent what powers your vehicle?
Step 3 — Imagine Where Your Vehicle Takes You
Once your dream vehicle is ready, imagine the special place it takes you.
It can be:
a real place (the beach, the park, a friend’s house)
a pretend place (Rainbow City, Cloud Castle)
a feeling place (Brave Mountain, Calm Lake)
or anywhere your imagination wants to go!
This place can show a dream you have, a feeling you want to get to, or simply somewhere that makes you smile.
Either fill in the background of your dream vehicle drawing with this special place, OR draw it on a new sheet of paper, and cut and paste your dream vehicle on top.
We believe creativity helps kids move through their feelings with courage. We hope this activity offers a small but meaningful way to explore, imagine, and create fearlessly — wherever you are.
Want to share your artwork with us? Email it to us at hello@givekidsart.org or share it on social media and tag @givekidsart. 🙂
