Helping Children Manage Emotions: Breathe, Think, Do

The Little Children, Big Challenges initiative by Sesame Workshop aims to help children (ages 2 to 5) develop resilience and cope with everyday challenges. It provides resources for parents and caregivers to support children through difficult situations like divorce, incarceration of a loved one, and general stressors. Research has shown that using the Little Children, Big Challenges digital media toolkit in preschool classrooms can significantly improve children’s social-emotional skills, such as emotion regulation, self-control, and adaptability.

Breathe, Think, Do

Breathe, Think, Do is an approach used in this program to help children manage frustration and solve problems. It involves three steps:
Breathe: Encourage children to take deep breaths to calm down.
Think: Help them identify their feelings and think of a plan to solve the problem.
Do: Encourage them to try out their plan and, if it doesn’t work, think of another solution.
These strategies can be particularly useful for helping children develop emotional regulation and problem-solving skills from a young age.

Sesame Street “Breathe, Think, Do” is available via an app or there are YouTube videos with it available as well. It can be helpful to watch or play it with your child. Even playing it in the background can be helpful to help your child automatically remember how to use the skill. This is one of my go-to choices for teaching children to make safe choices. It gives explicit instruction, models and explicitly practices calming down, and how to problem solve. Many times just telling a child to take deep breaths does not help because they still have a problem and don’t know how to solve it. It also does not tell what not to do, it only models safe choices so it removes shame. It encourages thinking of your own plan instead of the only options they provide. I have seen it help kids as young as 1.5 years old. Watch it together and role play again and again. I like to practice coming up with 1 “not so good plan” and 2 “good plans” and talk about how sometimes our first plan is not the best way to handle a problem.

About Devina: Devina is an autistic occupational therapist with over 17 years of experience working with children, specializing in behavioral regulation and neurodivergence. As both a clinician and a parent, she combines professional expertise with personal experience raising neurodivergent children who previously struggled with behavioral disorders. This unique perspective allows her to bridge the gap between science and real-world application, offering compassionate, evidence-based strategies that empower children to thrive.

Her book, From Surviving to Thriving: The Art and Science of Guiding Children to Develop Behavioral Regulation, provides actionable insights for parents, educators, and professionals looking to support children in building essential self-regulation skills. Available in multiple formats you can find it on Amazon. 

Devina also shares her knowledge through expert-led webinars, where she delivers practical guidance tailored to the needs of caregivers and professionals. Stop by her store to explore her latest resources, workshops, and training sessions designed to help children succeed in their behavioral development journey!