My Mixed Emotions

July 23, 2018
Learning to identify and acknowledge emotions is the first step to navigating them, suggests Healy, a children’s emotional coach. Using cube-shaped figures that display a range of facial expressions, Healy introduces the four basic emotions: happiness, anger, fear, and sadness. Each section features a variety of familiar circumstances that might elicit a particular emotion—the death of a pet may cause sadness, while parental separation or divorce may make kids fearful. Healy offers suggestions for dealing with overwhelming emotions through affirmations, mindfulness exercises, or by speaking to an adult. Photographs of children in various emotional states offer visual examples of how strong feelings might be expressed, while infographics demonstrate the brain science behind emotions. A useful handbook for readers struggling to productively express themselves. Ages 7–10.