Art Therapy Lesson Plans for Special Education Autism SEL & Emotional Regulation
Not sure how to support your students with emotional regulation and self-expression in a meaningful way?
These art therapy lesson plans give you a simple, structured way to run calming, creative sessions that help students express themselves, regulate emotions, and feel successful.
Support your students’ emotional wellbeing with these ready-to-use art therapy lesson plans designed for autism and special education classrooms.
If you’ve ever wondered:
- How do I run art therapy sessions in my classroom?
- What activities should I include?
- How do I support students who struggle to express their emotions?
This resource gives you everything you need to get started.
What makes this different?
These sessions are designed to:
- Encourage self-expression
- Support emotional regulation
- Provide calming, structured opportunities
- Allow flexibility for student-led creativity
Each lesson includes multiple activity ideas so students can rotate through different centres and engage in ways that feel right for them.
What is Art Therapy in the Classroom?
Art therapy allows students to:
- Express emotions they may not be able to verbalise
- Explore creativity in a safe, low-pressure environment
- Build confidence and independence
The focus is not on “perfect work” – it’s about process, expression, and engagement.
What’s Included?
- A wide variety of themed lesson plans
- Clear guidance on how to set up each session
- Equipment lists for each activity
- Flexible ideas for rotating activity stations
Themes include:
Currently, the following art therapy lesson plans are included;
- 4th July
- Apples.
- Arctic Animals.
- Autumn / Fall.
- Beach.
- Bugs and Insects.
- Camping.
- Chinese New Year.
- Colors / Colours ; Black, Blue, Gray / Grey, Green, Orange, Pink, Purple, Red, White, Yellow.
- Dinosaurs.
- Earth Day.
- Easter.
- Farm.
- Father’s Day.
- Forest.
- Gardening.
- Gingerbread Man.
- Groundhog Day.
- Halloween.
- Ice Cream.
- Jungle.
- Me & My Body.
- Monsters.
- Ocean.
- Penguins.
- Pets.
- Pirates.
- Pumpkins.
- Reindeer.
- Royal Kingdom.
- Snowman.
- Spiders.
- St Patrick’s Day.
- Summer.
- Thanksgiving.
- Transport.
- Turkey.
- Valentine’s Day.
- Weather.
- Zoo.
How It Works
- Print or view lesson plans digitally
- Set up simple activity stations
- Allow students to rotate and explore
- Step back and support student-led expression
These sessions are intentionally flexible to meet a wide range of needs and abilities.
Why Teachers Love This
- Supports emotional regulation in a natural way
- Encourages creativity without pressure
- Easy to implement with minimal prep
- Flexible for different ability levels
- Perfect for calm, low-demand sessions
Best For:
- Autism classrooms
- Special education settings
- Sensory and calm-down spaces
- Students with emotional regulation needs
- Early years and primary students
Click below to find:
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