I Don’t Know + One More Thing Communication Skills Workbook for Kids

Help kids move beyond a stuck “I don’t know” without teaching them that “I don’t know” is the wrong answer.

I Don’t Know + One More Thing is a communication skills workbook designed to help children and young teens better understand and communicate what may be happening when they struggle to answer a question.

“I don’t know” can mean many things: I need more time. I don’t understand. I can’t remember. I can’t find the words. I don’t know how I feel. I’m overwhelmed. Or sometimes, it really does mean I don’t know.

Rather than requiring children to produce an answer they do not have, the workbook teaches a simple communication skill:

I DON’T KNOW + ONE MORE THING

When they can, children learn to add one more piece of information about what is making the question difficult, what they do know, or what might help them respond. “I really don’t know” remains a complete and acceptable response.

The workbook guides children through:

• What Kind of “I Don’t Know”? — Identify whether they need more time, do not understand, cannot remember, cannot find the words, feel overwhelmed, do not know where to start, genuinely do not know, or are experiencing another barrier.

• I Don’t Know + One More Thing — Practice expanding “I don’t know” with one additional piece of useful information.

• What Would Help Me Answer? — Identify supports such as more processing time, choices, clarification, smaller questions, writing or drawing, a break, or returning to the conversation later.

• Practice & Personalization — Apply the skill to real-world questions and identify phrases that work for the individual child.

• Build Your Response — Move through a three-step process: what is making the question difficult, what they can communicate, and what would help.

• My “I Don’t Know” Quick Card — Create a personalized communication reference that can be kept, photographed, or shared with a supportive adult.

• For Adults Helping — Guidance for responding to “I don’t know” without turning communication practice into pressure to answer.

Useful for exploring: communication difficulties, emotional identification, processing time, overwhelm, difficulty finding words, memory retrieval, decision-making, self-advocacy, and situations where children frequently become stuck on “I don’t know.”

Designed for: Mental health professionals, counselors, social workers, school counselors, educators, caregivers, and other helping professionals working with children and young teens.

Format: 12-page downloadable PDF communication skills workbook.

For professional use. Purchase includes use by the original purchaser with their own clients, students, or household. This resource supports communication skill-building and therapeutic discussion and does not replace individualized assessment, professional judgment, or treatment.