Early Years Emotional Wellness
Learning the life lesson of how to manage emotions and self-regulate
Why it is so important to embed emotional wellness skills in Early Years settings
Every early years provider wants to provide a safe, calm and positive setting for staff and children. Happy staff = happy children! Children especially absorb all the energy around them like sponges as energy is contagious!
From the ages of 0-7, children receive their ‘programming’ from parents, other key people in their lives, nursery staff or childminders, teachers, their experiences and the environment around them. This can be a blend of positive, comforting thoughts and can also include restricting, limiting thoughts like not feeling good enough, fear of failure, feeling vulnerable and unsafe.
If a child does not feel safe, they are unable to relax, trust, fully focus and thrive. Insecurity, fear and lack of self worth will continue to affect children’s behaviours, beliefs and thought processes unless they find a way to release the emotional connection with the limiting thoughts and beliefs.
That’s why it’s so important for Early years providers to optimise children's feeling of safety and self-worth by developing and embedding their ability to self-soothe, co-regulate and self-regulate.
We teach children to read and write. We must also give teach them simple tools to feel safe, to relax, be able to learn optimally, thrive and enjoy life, in the present and in the future.
Behind every child’s behaviour, there is an emotion
The stress and emotions that staff and children experience today are immense, particularly within the turbulent, and uncertain world we care currently living in. Children arrive at the early years setting with an invisible rucksack of daily stresses or anxieties, worries or fears.
Even with loving parents and caring staff, children (especially babies and younger children) do not know how to access and release daily stresses, anxieties, worries or fears. You don’t know what you don’t know or have never been shown! Without expert emotional wellness training, early years staff are unlikely to know, and cannot be expected to know, optimal ways to help babies and children to do this.
Behaviour management is emotion management
Behind every episode of unwelcome behaviour, there is an emotion which is outwardly displayed when children become angry, upset or sad. This means the child is also likely to be feeling scared, worried, fearful, anxious or vulnerable and can be viewed as a clear cry for help.
The more we understand children’s emotions, show them ways to feel safe and understand, reduce and manage their daily stresses and self regulate, the more we are able to encourage and see positive outcomes resulting in happier, more confident, healthier children, in the early years setting and at home.
Stresses to Smiles® for Early Years Settings Programme Summary
4 hours of online or in-house staff training to learn effective, emotional regulation skills for personal use and to share with the children .
One year access to the training support and dynamic content portal, full of fun, creative and engaging activities (rhymes, songs and activities) to embed the learning for staff and children (renewal option available).
Ongoing expert email support for three or six months (depending on package choice).
Optional Nursery Management one to one support available.
Data showing the need for emotional wellness tools and support for Early Years staff and children
Child Wellbeing
Teachers reported that 66% of children got overly upset when away from their parent.
33% of children were not school readyChild Wellbeing
Source: Kindred² study in January 2026
Staff Wellbeing
27% of nursery managers rated their mental health below 5 out of 10
43% if Early Years practitioners rated their mental health below 5 out of 10
28% have taken time off for mental health or wellbeing issues
80% say mental health impacts their ability to do their job effectively
Source: Connect Childcare survey October 2024
What staff say about the Stresses to Smiles® training and programmes:
“If you want to empower your staff to enrich emotional regulation for children – this is a must. I left with a practical tool kit that I can use for a lifetime” Nursery owner
“Fabulous, releasing, enjoyable, inspiriring” Nursery manager
“A new way/new understanding of how to manage emotional mindset and regulation through touch and safe space” Early Years Practitioner
“Empowering, reflective and emotionally intelligent” Early Years Practitioner
“Really informative but fun – it didn’t really feel like ‘training’” Early Years Practitioner
“It was amazing, it was one of the best things that I’ve done in all my 32 years of teaching." Teacher
“I have found the techniques very helpful when feeling stressed or experiencing pain or discomfort. Something you can do discreetly when you find yourself in a stressful situation. The course is good for stress and refocusing.” ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant)
“It ticked the boxes for all the children, from the children who have SEND (additional needs) right through to the children who are high performing.” Teacher
“By the end of the programme, I was looking at their work thinking they have done much better work than they have for a long time. There were 4 children where they had been borderline on attainment, but I was able to clearly see evidence of progress which I had been looking for a while, and all of sudden, they had more resilience to work independently, and show this in their work, so I was able to move them up a level.” Teacher
What children say about the Stresses to Smiles® programmes
Dear Lou and Stanley,
… I really liked it all because it is calming.
… I don’t feel sad anymore when I tap. I am so happy and proud to be part of Team Stanley!
… tapping helps me when I am stressed or angry.
… I loved tapping, it calmed me down and helped me.
… it really helps me when I’m worried.
… the superpowers help me get to sleep
What to do next:
Please get in touch if you are an Early Years setting manager, owner or childminder, and would like a no obligation discussion where you can find out more about my exciting, empowering programme. Also visit Stresses to Smiles for Families for a free support video that you can share with the parents at your setting.
The next available bookings for the Stresses to Smiles® for Early Years programme are from mid April 2026. Contact me to secure your date.