Overcome Tough Feelings While Making Donkey Hodie’s Beach Bongos

As your child grows, so will their emotions. Things might not always go as planned, and there will be occasions where they find themselves feeling frustrated and wanting to quit. It’s important that they find their own ways to help them overcome those feelings of frustration, help themselves feel better, and learn to try and try again! Just like Donkey Hodie and her pals at the beach!

Donkey Hodie heads to the beach with her pal, Purple Panda, and her special beach bongos. They find King Friday there, who is planning to build a royal sandcastle. They offer to help! After a few unsuccessful attempts to build the castle, they all find themselves feeling frustrated and wanting to give up. King Friday explains that he uses a “Royal Runaround” to help shake off those frustrated feelings and calm down. Donkey Hodie then finds her own way to feel better and plays her beach bongos to help work through her frustration. What works for one person, might not work for everyone, but they all find ways to help themselves feel better — and reach their goal of building the sandcastle! Together with your child, make beach bongos just like Donkey Hodie’s and discuss ways that they can overcome their frustrations and keep going!

Directions

After you’ve finished cutting, paint each half the color of your choice (we chose green like Donkey Hodie’s) with 2 or more coats of paint. If possible, place the halves outside or near a window to help them dry quicker. While waiting for the paint to dry, discuss feelings with your child and ask them if they can remember a time when they felt frustrated. Ask them if they can think of things to do when they feel frustrated. Explain how we can choose to stop and try something else to help us work through those feelings. It might help to do a little silly dance, sing a short song, or simply take several breaths to help them feel better and refocus just like King Friday did. Talk with your child about what kinds of things they might try when they feel frustrated.

Once the two halves have been painted and are dry, add some fun designs of your choosing! If you want to mimic the design on Donkey Hodie’s bongos, use the dark pink paint first and paint small, thick dots randomly or in a pattern around each half. Before the dark pink paint dries, add a small dollop of light pink paint on top of each dot and drag the brush downward which will mix the two colors slightly. Allow to dry.

After your two halves are completely dry, it’s time to add the foam top in a color of your choice (Donkey Hodie’s was yellow). Place each half on the yellow craft foam. Using a pencil, trace around the bottom of each half. Draw a second circle slightly larger around the first circle. Cut around the bigger circle carefully with scissors. If your child is comfortable using scissors, encourage them to do this part. If they’re still learning, encourage them to take their time or to watch as you carefully cut the foam.

Cover the rubber bands with decorations. Place a small bead of glue over the rubber bands and cover with yarn, pom poms, or any kind of fun string you might have around the house. Use scissors to trim any excess. Wait for the glue to dry and then have fun playing with beach bongos just like Donkey Hodie!

Explore Further

Helping your child learn to overcome feelings of frustration at an early age will help them in many ways in a home, school, or with friends. Whether they need to look away from something that is scary, take a few deep breaths to help them calm down when they’re angry, or take a break from a challenging task, you can help them discover many different ways to explore and process their feelings. What works for some, may not work for others, and you can be supportive by explaining that it’s okay to feel different feelings. Discuss ways that they can work through different feelings and come up with strategies for handling different situations together!