This Week at The Emotions Lab: Why Our Tools Work So Well for the Early Years

We recently received some heartwarming feedback from a teacher we trained almost a year ago. She shared how well our tools have been working with her Reception-aged children—and we can’t tell you how lovely it is to hear that. It also prompted us to reflect on why our approach is so effective for this age group—and why these early years are such a crucial time to introduce emotional tools.

Children under the age of seven are in a powerful stage of development. At this age, they’re still building the foundations of their subconscious mind—the part of the brain that, once fully formed, will quietly steer around 95% of their behaviours as adults. This is a very sobering thought! What children absorb, feel, and learn during these early years literally shapes how they respond to life later on.

This is exactly why we’re so passionate about giving young children the tools to recognise, name, and work with their emotions. At this age, children are still deeply connected to their bodies. They don’t overthink their feelings yet—they feel them. They can often describe where an emotion lives in their body without needing to analyse it.

As adults, many of us lose that skill. We learn to disconnect from our emotions, to stay in our heads, and to ignore what our bodies are trying to tell us. But for children in Reception, it’s still natural to live from the inside out. That’s why this is the perfect time to gently support their emotional literacy and nervous system regulation.

By offering young children safe, simple tools to process feelings—like tapping, breathwork, and movement—we’re not just helping them in the moment. We’re influencing how their subconscious beliefs form. And those beliefs shape the way they relate to themselves, others, and the world as they grow.

The Emotions Lab