EMOTION COACHING

Emotion Coaching in everyday interactions with children and young people

Emotion Coaching is a universal communication strategy based on research by US Psychologist Dr John Gottman (1996) which supports children and young people to self-regulate and manage their stress responses. Gottman observed that children who thrive in their emotional and social development have parents who respond positively to the behaviour of the children, who helped their child to understand the different emotions they experience, why they occur and how to handle them. These children were better able to control their impulses and delay gratification, self soothe when upset, have better attentional capacity and increased motivation, performed better academically and were better able to function in social relationships.

Extensive research has established the characteristics of adult responses that lead to emotional health in children. Emotion Coaching (EC) uses moments of heightened emotion and resulting behaviour to guide and teach the child and young person about more effective responses. Inappropriate behaviours are not condoned in Emotion Coaching and when the child is calmer, incidents are discussed in a more rational and productive manner.  Moves are made to problem solve and engage in solution-focused strategies. Through repetitive, consistent and empathetic engagement the child's emotional state is verbally acknowledged and validated, promoting a sense of security and feeling 'felt'.  This activates changes in the child's neurological system and allows the child to calm down, physiologically and psychologically. The key elements involved in Emotion Coaching are:

• Becoming aware of the child's emotions
• Recognising the emotion as an opportunity for intimacy and teaching
• Listening empathetically, validating the child's feelings
• Helping the child find words to label the emotion
• Setting limits and explore strategies to solve the problem at hand.

These strategies can be learned by parents and indeed anyone who interacts with children young people when they struggle to control their emotional responses. Emotion Coaching has been shown to be highly successful in schools (primary and secondary) and community settings. Research by Emotion Coaching UK (ECUK) took Gottman’s five elements of Emotion Coaching and developed a school friendly program that uses a four step framework to help engender emotional resilience, empathy and problem-solving skills within children and young people. Following successful pilot projects in UK schools, Emotion Coaching has now been communicated to education professionals, health and social care workers, educational psychologists and GPs in the UK, Europe, Asia and Australia.

The workshop includes evidence-based research and practical tips, with signposting to resources, case studies and vignettes to illustrate its practical application in parenting support and educational settings. It supports adults to promote empathetic responses to challenging behaviours and situations, helping children and young people to understand their emotions and learn to manage them and their behaviour in the longer-term. The workshop covers the following:

• Critical overview of recent neuroscientific evidence on how best to support children and young people’s self-regulation

• Insights into the stress-response and social engagement systems, attachment and the foundations for emotional regulation, positive behaviour and well-being

• Research for evidence-based Emotion Coaching practice

• Practical exercises and skill development in Emotion Coaching techniques

Included in the price of the workshop is the opportunity to attend a subsequent online coaching workshop '‘Reflecting on your Emotion Coaching Practice’. These workshops usually take place within a month of the initial training, allowing participants to ‘have had a go’. The 1.5 hour workshops via Zoom offer participants the chance to:

• Share successes and challenges of using Emotion Coaching (EC)

• Engage in discussions to develop EC in practice

• Review personal and collective EC understanding

• Explore the complexities and challenges of EC

Presented by: Licette Gus, co-founder of Emotion Coaching UK is an Educational Psychologist and Secondary School Teacher with over 20 years’ experience working for government and the private sector across the Australia and the United Kingdom (UK).  Licette coordinated the evaluation of the Targeting Mental Health in Schools (TaMHS) one for local authority in the UK. Licette has delivered presentations on Emotion Coaching for national and international conferences as well as Professional Development Events across the UK and has been a guest presenter on the Educational Psychology Professional Training Course at the University of Birmingham and the MA course at Oxford Brookes University.  She has delivered Emotion Coaching training and projects to schools parents and organisations in the UK and internationally. She has researched applying Emotion Coaching in educational settings, written about how to implement Emotion Coaching in Schools and the impact of Emotion Coaching on pupil, staff and family well-being for various publications in the UK. Licette is co-author of Emotion Coaching with Children and Young People in Schools.

Audience: for Education and Mental Health Professionals at All Levels & Any Professional that Applies Behavioural & Developmental Science to their Practice.

Education Professionals: All education professionals who work with children or youth including, but not limited to K–12 Classroom Teachers, School Counsellors, Learning Assistance/Resource Teachers, School Administrators, School Paraprofessionals including Special Education Assistants, Classroom Assistants and Early Childhood Workers and all other professionals who support behavioural challenges and complex learning needs.

Mental Health Professionals: All mental health professionals including, but not limited to Counsellors, Psychologists, Psychotherapists, Psychiatrists, Social Workers, Nurses, Occupational Therapists, Youth Workers, Mental Health Workers, Family Therapists, General Practitioners, and all other mental health professionals looking to enhance their therapeutic skills.

Parents/carers: Parents and caregivers are welcome to attend. We ask that questions of a personal nature be asked to the trainer during break times.