Help kids change unhelpful thoughts into more helpful, balanced thoughts with the Butterfly Thought Changer CBT Counseling Game. This self-checking, differentiated cognitive behavioral therapy activity includes digital Google Slides games and printable scenario cards for practicing emotional regulation, flexible thinking, and helpful self-talk.

Choose from open-ended and multiple-choice versions to meet your students’ needs. Use the scenarios to discuss how changing a thought can influence feelings and behavior during everyday challenges.

📦 What's Included:

• 2 Differentiated game versions, each available in print and digital Google Slides formats
• 30 Open-ended cards with a scenario and an unhelpful thought for students to change into a more helpful thought
• 30 Multiple-choice cards with a scenario and two thought options for students to choose the more helpful thought
• Self-checking digital games for interactive practice

🎒 Quick Details: Grades 1–5 | 👥 Individual, small group + classroom | 🖨️ PDF + Google Slides | 🎯 CBT, cognitive reframing + emotional regulation

🛍️ Bundle & Save:

Want a discount on this? Check out the: Skills for Big Feelings Super Ultimate Growing Bundle includes:

• 184-Page curriculum, available with the paperback or eBook, plus a 221-page eBook with 40 coping skills crafts
• 12 Interactive workbooks with 150 Google Slides pages, 16 guided relaxation MP3s, and videos demonstrating 30+ coping skills
• Digital and printable CBT games, 70 unique Bingo cards, coping cards, dice, spinner wheels, mazes, and fortune tellers
• Posters, family handouts, editable documents, and future bundle additions at no extra cost

Want a discount on this? Check out the: CBT Skills for Big Feelings Game Bundle includes:

• 7 Digital and printable games: Feelings Film, Jolly Jellybean Helpful Thought Hunt, Butterfly Thought Changer, Measuring Challenges Pirate Game, Bella Bird’s Equal Measurements, Donut Worry About Making Mistakes, and Gumball Gratitude
• Practice naming feelings, identifying and changing unhelpful thoughts, measuring challenges, matching reactions, responding to mistakes, and gratitude

🎯 Skills Addressed:

Recognizing automatic thoughts, helpful and unhelpful thinking, cognitive reframing, balanced self-talk, flexible thinking, emotional awareness, self-regulation, and connections between thoughts, feelings, and actions.

💡 Ways to Use It:

Use the printable cards in individual counseling, small groups, or classroom social-emotional learning lessons. Start with two thought choices for added support, then use the open-ended version to practice generating helpful thoughts independently.

Play together by screen sharing the Google Slides games during telehealth or projecting them on a smartboard for in-person lessons.

Reinforce Session 4 of Skills for Big Feelings: A Guide for Teaching Kids Relaxation, Regulation, and Coping Techniques, or use this game as a stand-alone activity.

👩‍🏫 Who It's For:

Counselors, social workers, psychologists, speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, and other service providers supporting self-awareness, emotional identification, self-regulation, and social awareness.

Teachers and parents who want to bring social-emotional learning into classrooms and homes.

🖨️ Format & Download:

Includes a printable PDF and digital Google Slides games. Both differentiated versions are available in both formats. Please ensure you can open PDF files and access Google Slides before purchasing.

📚 More CBT Resources:

Read about helping children change unhelpful thoughts with CBT for examples and teaching tips for noticing, checking, and reframing thoughts.

📌 Important Notes:

• Encourage realistic, supportive alternatives to unhelpful thoughts while validating children’s feelings and experiences. The goal is not to require positive thinking or dismiss difficult emotions.
• This game aligns with Session 4 of Skills for Big Feelings and can also be used independently
• This is a digital download. No physical product will be shipped. Due to the digital nature of this resource, all sales are final and refunds are not available.