Managing Emotions with Twiggle
At Hethersett Woodside, we encourage children to see that experiencing a range of different emotions is a positive thing but we must try to express them in a safe way. Children will be familiar with Twiggle (a small turtle) who encourages children to: stop, breath and say the problem and how they feel. You may find this resource, developed by PATHS, a useful tool: How to do Turtle.
Now and Next
At school, if children are struggling with getting into routines or working to expectation we often use the language of now and next. ‘Now, I would like us to do this. Next, we can do that.’ For younger children we may use pictures to establish this more clearly. It is designed to be create clear boundaries around expectations and settle anxieties over what is coming up.
Resources
You might find these resources useful when thinking about well-being and managing any challenging behaviour.
Organised into a weekly planner, these resources from Thrive are designed to support healthy emotional and social development through creativity, art and play. See the links below, for younger children, up to the age of seven.
Week One. Thrive activities for Parents. 7
Week Two. Thrive activities for Parents. 7
Week Three. Thrive activities for Parents. 7
Week Four. Thrive activities for Parents. 7
Week Five. Thrive activities for Parents. 7
For slightly older children, up to the age of eleven, these might be helpful:
Week One. Thrive activities for Parents. 11
Week Two. Thrive activities for Parents. 11
Week Three. Thrive activities for Parents. 11
Week Four. Thrive activities for Parents. 11
Week Five. Thrive activities for Parents. 11
Week Six. Thrive activities for Parents. 11
Or try some of these resources to promote everything from mindfulness to problem solving.
