My Break Menu
Breaks help your brain get ready to work again. Circle 3 breaks you like. Then make your break plan.
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This is sheet #64024601.
How to do it
- Read the menu of move, calm and fuel breaks.
- Circle three breaks you like.
- Make your break plan and write where you'll go back to.
Teaching tip
Keep the menu near the work spot and use a real timer for every break.
About this worksheet
A picture menu of movement, calming and snack-and-water breaks, plus a break plan with feelings, break length and a return-to-work line.
What kids practice
These are tools for kids who find it hard to start, plan, stay with or finish a task. In 2nd grade, work gets longer and has more steps, so kids need ways to break a big job into small pieces, decide what to do first, take a break and come back, and check their work before they say "done." These sheets help many children, with or without ADHD. They are not a test and not a diagnosis. If attention worries you at home and at school, talk with your child's doctor or teacher.
Watch for
- Making the steps too big. If a step takes more than about 10 minutes, split it.
- Taking away a reward that was already earned. Once it's earned, it stays earned.
- Using a break as a punishment or taking it away. Breaks help the brain get ready to work.
- Changing the routine every day. The same plan each day lowers stress.
- Treating trouble with focus as laziness. Your child is working hard to pay attention.
It's free to print, as many copies as you need. See the full focus helpers (adhd-friendly) guide for 2nd grade.
More sheets in this set
1. Mission MapOne of ten everyday jobs (like cleaning a room or doing homework) broken into four small steps on a winding path, with a time guess, a real time and a reward at the finish.
2. Must, Should, CouldSix picture jobs from a real part of the day (like after school or Saturday morning) to sort into Must do it first, Should do it today, and Could do it if there's time.
4. Stop, Reset, GoA traffic-light plan for stuck moments, with feelings faces, six picture resets and a big line for the next tiny step.
5. Finish-Line CheckA five-step check for one of ten kinds of work (like writing, a math page or clean-up), with two boxes for a first and second look.
6. Sticker Reward BoardA goal to write in, numbered sticker spots, a reward box halfway and a big reward box at the end. Fewer, Standard or More give 6, 10 or 20 sticker spots, with the first reward halfway.
7. Me vs. the ChallengeA line to write the challenge, a Me side and a Challenge side to color, and lines for what happens when one side gets to the end first. Fewer, Standard or More give 5, 10 or 15 spots on each side.