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Teaching kids to care, share and express themselves!


By The Basic Fun team


With the uncertainty and the additional pressures of the past year, the topic of mental health has never been so pertinent. This has been a tough year for all, including for children, who may not have fully understood the situation, but who have still lived through these uncertain and unusual times.


As adults, we know that talking about our feelings and the things that are impacting on our emotional wellbeing can help us to maintain a healthy state of mind. But this might not be so easy for children, who may still be learning to identify and express their emotions. This is why, as teachers, parents and carers, it is important to listen to children and create opportunities for them to explore their feelings and express themselves. It is also essential that children are taught effective strategies to help manage their stress, and it’s key that they understand how to take care of themselves, whilst also having compassion for others.


And, with their caring and sharing message, who better than the Care Bears to help children (and adults) understand the importance of sharing a problem and talking it through, whilst also promoting the message of being kind to one another?


These lovable characters are perfectly placed to help students address their social and emotional development, and they are ideal for encouraging connection and creativity in the classroom.


But why should teachers take a social–emotional teaching approach?


A social–emotional teaching approach offers teachers a way of accessing the heart and mind of a child. This in turn allows educators to shape the growing brain in a more meaningful and effective way. So, what’s the best way to kick off a meaningful social–emotional conversation?


Ideas for teaching children about emotions:


Before we dive in here, the one thing to remember is that there is no one right way of leading these types of discussions. They just need to be kept fun and accessible, with the aim of generating some good discussions within the class. This is about sharing, caring, and normalising discussions around emotional health.


Puppet play Puppets can be used to act out different situations to generate discussions about feelings. For instance, if one puppet took a toy from another puppet, the children could be asked what emotions the puppet might be feeling.


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