Anxiety in children can manifest as restlessness, difficulty concentrating, or fear of new situations. Therapeutic games and calming activities can provide comfort, build confidence, and teach essential coping skills. Here’s a curated list of the best anxiety-reducing games and activities for kids—each selected for its emotional, cognitive, and physical benefits.
Look for the therapist-approved sticker!
As you explore the activities below, every game with the therapist-approved sticker has been designed by our qualified therapists. You’ll find many more activities like these in the lumin&us® parenting app!
1. FREE lumin&us® family wellbeing and parenting app
Our NHS-approved lumin&us® parenting app has games and activities galore, all designed by qualified Theraplay® therapists in collaboration with parents to help children with anxiety aged around 3-12 feel calm and connected!
We’ve included a select showcase of the games below. They’re all available on the FREE basic version of the lumin&us® app. Some extra-special good news is that you can also access the premium version of the app for free, too! As a parent or professional working with families, you simply need to take part in our annual research trials and you’ll get up to 12 months of the premium version (which has LOTS more insights, games and activities for you to try based on your child’s current state of SAFE, STRUGGLING or DROWNING) for free.
What makes lumin&us® different is that we use relational and play therapy-based interventions. This is around supporting the child with 4 pillars: healthy limits, feeling cared for, confidence and connection. Anxiety is often linked with these pillars not being adequate in a particular area.
How to play Hide and Find:
Have your child close their eyes, then hide a cotton ball or small treat somewhere on them or around the room.
Older children can hide it themselves with the parent’s eyes closed.
Benefits of playing this game:
- Eye contact
- Experiencing calming touch if done without tickling
- Having fun together
How to play Count the Crunches:
Put a party ring biscuit on your finger or a flavoured crisp between your thumb and finger. Invite your child to see how many bites it takes to eat it.
Vary the game by encouraging them to take small bites, big bits or slow bites, or quiet / loud bites.
Benefits of playing this game:
- Regulating as crunching helps this
- Eye contact
- Fun and being silly
How to play Den Building:
Gather cushions, pillows, and blankets. Stack them with your child to build a den.
Once it’s built, let your child hide in there with a little snack or join them in their den.
Think about what your child may like to have in their cosy den such as fairy lights, books, a torch or phone charger.
Benefits of playing this game:
- Help your anxious child to feel safe
- Enjoying a snack and activity together
- Fun and safety, helping your child feel a sense of control
Why the lumin&us® app works:
The lumin&us® app contains insights and activities tailored to yourself and your child. All its content is designed by qualified therapy professionals.
The lumin&us® family wellbeing app will help you as a parent to:
- Understand the connection between your child’s behaviours, thoughts and feelings
- Support your child with their anxiety, mental health and BIG emotions
- Improve parent-child relationships and family wellbeing
- Support, calm and soothe your child through co-regulation of their nervous system
Give the app a try and see for yourself!
Once you’ve tried the app you are also welcome to join our Facebook community of parents using the app for mutual support when it comes to helping your kid with their anxiety and resulting behaviours.
2. Mindfulness and Breathing Games
Mindfulness activities can help kids stay grounded in the present moment. The therapist-recommended game Cotton Ball Blow can help your child to reduce anxiety by calming the nervous system and redirecting thoughts away from stress. As a mindfulness and breathing activity for your child it can help to lower cortisol levels, promotes emotional regulation, and is easy to implement at home.
How to play Cotton Ball Blow:
Hold a scarf between you and your child. Keeping the cotton ball on the scarf, try to blow it back and forth between you and your child. You can also blow it between you using cupped hands.
Benefits of playing this game:
- Eye contact.
- Regulation (blowing helps this)
- Taking turns and getting rhythm and connection with each other.
Some more ideas for mindfulness and breathing games:
- Bubble Breathing: Ask the child to blow slow, deep breaths into a bubble wand. Some parents may find this helps with teaching your child anxiety-reducing diaphragmatic breathing in a fun way.
- Five Senses Scavenger Hunt: Have kids find one thing they can see, hear, touch, taste, and smell to anchor them in the now.
3. Creative Art and Expression Activities
Art therapy allows children to express their emotions without the pressure of words. It’s ideal for shy or introverted children with anxiety. The following art-based activities can help to keep the kids busy and could provide an outlet for expression through creative art.
Engaging Art Projects:
- Feelings Collage: Let children cut out images that represent their emotions from magazines and glue them onto paper.
- Mandala Colouring: Intricate patterns offer a meditative, calming experience and improve focus. It doesn’t have to be a mandala, of course! Your child can colour in any image they might connect with, from images with a nature theme to trains. A potential benefit of colouring in abstract patterns is that your child can focus on the sensory aspect of colouring in as an activity.
- Emotion Monsters: Kids draw their anxiety as a monster, then you can invite them to decorate or “tame” it with accessories.
Why it can work: Art allows non-verbal expression. In some children, non-verbal expression can help to ease performance pressure and provide a sense of control.
4. Role-Playing and Pretend Play
Imaginative play is a powerful tool for anxious children. It builds social confidence and allows them to explore challenging situations safely. A top therapist-approved roleplaying game for children with anxiety is Animal Freeze, which helps to create a playful scenario involving cooperation and helps children to practice regulation, too.
How to play Animal Freeze:
Do animal walks or imitate animals in action until the leader either stops the music, or says “Red Light!” When this happens, everyone must stop moving.
To unfreeze and start again, play the music or say “Green Light!” if playing the game without music.
Benefits of playing this game:
- Experience of adults providing direction
- Encourages children to practice regulation by increasing and decreasing excitement levels
- Practicing and experiencing the benefits of cooperation
Additional Role-Playing Games for Children with Anxiety:
- “What Would You Do If?” Scenarios: Pose anxiety-provoking but manageable situations and brainstorm solutions together.
- Puppet Shows: Puppets can offer a safe way for kids to explore difficult feelings or social dilemmas. If you have crochet or knitting skills you can try your hand at creating a Beacon Beanie to use with your child for fun and calming play-based therapy.
Why it can work: Pretend play fosters problem-solving and emotional rehearsal in a low-pressure environment.
5. Movement and Sensory Games
Physical activity helps regulate emotions and energy levels. Sensory play also provides grounding and helps kids with sensory sensitivities linked to anxiety.
Our therapists recommend the game Distance Jumps for its combined benefits of building a sense of achievement, learning to take risks in a safe way, and experiencing structure and organisation in a fun pastime.
How to play Distance Jumps:
Using pillows as markers, see how far your child can jump. Praise, record the distance and repeat.
For more challenge, give starting instructions such as, “When I say jellybeans (or any other word of your choice) jump!”
Benefits of playing this game:
- Builds feelings of competence and achievement.
- Learning to take risks.
- Feeling safe and organised as counting helps children to structure.
Additional Sensory Activities:
- Yoga for Kids: Use animal poses and storytelling to keep it fun and engaging.
- Sensory Bins: Fill containers with rice, kinetic sand, or beans for a tactile calming experience.
Why it can work: Movement releases endorphins, and sensory play can be a fun pastime for kids that also offers comfort and predictability—two keys to reducing anxious behaviors.
6. Board Games and Card Games for Emotional Intelligence
Turn family game night into an opportunity for growth. Many games are designed to help you teach your child coping strategies, self-awareness, and empathy. Search online for the game titles referenced below to find out a little more about each game and see if it might be right for your own child.
Therapeutic Games to Try:
- The Coping Skills Game: Focuses on helping children identify and apply coping techniques.
- Feelings Uno: A twist on the classic game—each color represents an emotion, and players share stories when they play it.
- The Ungame: A non-competitive board game that sparks meaningful conversations.
Why it works: These games encourage open discussion of feelings, build emotional vocabulary, and reduce isolation.
Final Thoughts: Helping Children with Anxiety Through Play
The best games and activities for children with anxiety aren’t just about distraction—they’re about empowerment. From mindfulness to movement, each activity on this list offers tools that can help children to process their feelings in a healthy, playful way.
Pro tip: Consistency is key. Create a predictable routine around these activities to help anxious kids feel safe and secure.
