Anxiety and Worry Escape Room

Learning anxiety coping skills doesn't have to be boring. This easy to implement escape room is a highly engaging team building activity. Students try to escape worry warts by learning tips along the way to cope with anxiety. Through a series of four tasks, students learn how to cope with stress and sort between things they can and cannot control.

*This is a digital download, not a physical product.

See video preview:

Worry: https://youtu.be/0HRK892KhJA

Why teach anxiety coping skills?

Teaching children how to manage their anxiety will help set them up for dealing with worry, fears, and give them the ability to set reasonable expectations for themselves.

Anxiety presents itself in many different ways: upset stomach, sleepiness, and difficulty concentrating. It can also impact the health and academic performance in students, especially around test time. 

We have to recognize when a child is struggling with worry or anxiety and help them learn how to manage and cope with it. 

Teachers, counselors, and specialists can use this resource to help students identify anxiety and take action to manage it appropriately, and therefore function at their highest potential in the classroom.

How to use this resource:

Optional: See the suggested videos (on the last page of this resource) to show as a hook to get students interested in understanding anxiety and coping skills. You can show these videos the day before, or right before the activity. 

Show the intro powerpoint to get them in the mood to escape worry. (AKA anxiety)

Begin the warning sire sound effects (see suggested music and video links on the last page of this resource.) Optional.

Split students into groups and hand out the warning signs to each group. 

Pass out task one to each group and let them know that they will have to complete it before they can turn it in and receive task 2. Tell them to hang on to all materials because you never know when you will need things again. 

Switch from warning signal music to calming background music. 

When they complete task 4, they will be prompted at the bottom of the answer sheet to give you a secret code! Once they turn in the correct code, you will hand out the final lock. 

Students must use a tiny shape clue, found hidden on all four task materials, to reveal the final code “CALM” on the lock.

If you notice a student detaching from the activity, or worrying about time (per stopwatch) drop an “Oh no! You’re a worry wart” sign on their desk. It will inform them that they are worrying and will have to do a deep breathing exercise or play with fidget tools before they can participate again. Use these at your own discretion. 

Optional: Take pictures of the first group to win with the mission complete signs.

You can choose to either allow the other groups to finish at their own pace or stop the activity after the first group completes all of the tasks correctly. 

Suggested optional tools to have on hand for added FUN:

Intense background music

Sand timer or stopwatches

Green slime for students to play with when they get a worry wart warning sign. (don’t be afraid of a little mess...they will never forget the time you let them have slime!)

This product includes:

Intro Powerpoint Presentation

How to Guide for using this resource page.

Print Checklist and Suggestions

4 Station Title Table Tents

4 Task description Cards

Task 1 Reading Passage

Task 1 Multiple Choice Questions Sheet

Task 2 Sorting Mat

Task 2 Sorting Cards

Task 3 Maze (easy) with answer key

Task 3 Maze (medium) with answer key

Task 3 Maze (difficult) with answer key

Task 3 Puzzle

Task 3 Puzzle (scary version)

Task 4 Decoder Wheel

Task 4 Quotes Sheet

Lock with final 4 letter code

2 Warning Signs

6 "Oh NO! You're a Worry Wart" Signs

4 Mission Complete Sign Designs

Answer Sheet

Answer Key

Links to videos, background music, breakout theme music, breakout timers with action music, and more to create an immersive experience.