At home, in a classroom or during a therapy session, this child emotional regulation poster can help adults respond when a child is overwhelmed, angry, anxious, tearful or frustrated. It offers a clear reminder that the aim is not to stop difficult feelings, but to help children manage them safely while keeping boundaries in place.
Parents, foster carers, teachers, teaching assistants, school pastoral staff and child therapists are the people most likely to find this feelings poster useful. It is designed for adults supporting children and young people who experience strong emotions, meltdowns, shutdowns, anger, distress or difficulty calming down.
The poster compares two pathways for responding to feelings. One side shows what can happen when an adult tries to stop, dismiss, minimise or distract from an uncomfortable emotion: the child may hide feelings, become more distressed, struggle to understand them, or explode, withdraw or shut down.
The helpful-response side sets out a practical co-regulation framework: notice the feeling, stay calm, accept the child’s emotion, help them feel seen and understood, and support them to find ways to manage it. It makes the useful distinction that all feelings are acceptable, while not all behaviours are okay.
Use it as a visual prompt in a family home, nurture room, counselling space, behaviour support plan discussion or staff supervision meeting. The closing message encourages adults to name the feeling, keep the limit, help the child through the moment, and leave teaching and problem-solving until later, supporting confidence and connection over time.
