Talking About Emotions
Kōrero mō ngā kare ā-roto
Just like adults, children need to develop strategies for managing their emotions, so that they can build social and emotional skills. When children are more socially and emotionally aware and skilled, they can more effectively navigate relationships, calm down and problem solve when challenges arise. When children experience strong emotions, it’s important for adults to support their efforts to calm down so they will be better able to talk about how they are feeling. After children learn how to calm down and talk about how they are feeling, they can then begin to problem solve. Adults support children’s development when they help children identify, label and talk about emotions.