Emotion Coaching
From reacting to responding
How one cohort of educators changed the way they meet children — and meet themselves — in just six weeks.
At a glance
6 weeks
live, facilitated sessions
~30
educators, across four kinds of setting
100%
now pause before reacting when a child is dysregulated
88%
want to continue their learning with us
By the end of the programme, 100% of participants said they now pause before reacting when a child is dysregulated, think about behaviour as communication rather than a choice and understand what co-regulation means and why it matters.
But the numbers only tell half the story. This is what changed for the educators behind them.
“I have found taking part in this course really transformative of the way I understand my students, myself and the way we interact in the classroom.”
The before
Great teachers, tough moments
The educators who joined this programme were not struggling for lack of care. They were teachers, SENDCos, phase leaders, counsellors and senior leaders who already gave enormously to the children in front of them. What they described, again and again, was a quieter kind of frustration.
In their own words before the course began, they wanted help with the moments that catch you off guard and the reactions that happen before you have had time to think.
What they were up against
Reacting in the heat of the moment, then wishing they had responded differently
Struggling to stay regulated themselves and knowing that when they became overwhelmed, they were less able to help the child
Wanting to tell the difference between a child who won’t and a child who can’t
Working with students they felt they could not reach
Big and small emotions impacting everyday teaching
Having good instincts but lacking the theory and language to understand why they worked, or to share them with colleagues
Many had attended behaviour training before. But conventional CPD often stops at strategies without ever addressing the adult’s own nervous system — the piece that quietly determines whether any strategy will hold under pressure. As one participant put it, they wanted to learn how to stay more present, grounded and available to co-regulate a child, even while carrying difficult things in their own life.
The turning point
Why a live, six-week format changed things
The Foundations of Emotion Coaching programme was built around a belief its two facilitators, working together across the UK and Australia, hold firmly: the most powerful way to support a child is to support the adults around them. That belief shaped a format very different from a one-off training day.
Rather than delivering theory and leaving educators to apply it alone, the programme unfolded live over six weeks — long enough for new habits to take root, and social enough to keep people going when the work got hard.
Three design choices made the difference
It began with the body
Every session opened with a moment of ‘arriving’ — a breath, a settling. Educators didn’t just learn about regulation; they practised feeling it in themselves first.
It was a conversation
Breakout rooms and live discussion turned the group into the curriculum. Educators tested ideas against their own settings and learned as much from each other as from the facilitators.
It made space for real life
Participants brought genuine situations from their own classrooms into the sessions and worked through them together, safely and without judgement.
The live element mattered more than anyone expected. What could have felt exposing became safe, and then energising.
“I really enjoyed ‘arriving’ at the beginning of each session. At first, it felt a little uncomfortable with the camera on, but once I felt safe, I was happy to truly relax in the moment.”
“What I valued most was hearing from practitioners and teachers from different settings. Listening to their experiences made the learning feel real and helped bridge the gap between theory and everyday practice.”
About the cohort
Who took part
Around thirty educators took part, drawn from a deliberately varied mix of settings. This spread made the shared discussion one of the programme’s greatest strengths.
The settings
- International schools across a range of countries and phases
- UK independent and preparatory schools
- Early years and pre-school settings
- Specialist, SEND and whole-school inclusion provision
The roles
- Class and Subject Teachers, Early Years to Secondary
- Year and Phase Leaders, Heads of Key Stage
- Assistant Principals, Senior Leaders and Head Teachers
- SENDCos, Inclusion Coordinators, Pastoral Leads and Counsellors
The journey
The messy middle and the lightbulb moments
Real change is rarely tidy. Around the middle of the programme, as the neuroscience deepened, educators hit the point where old habits and new understanding collided — and this is exactly where the live format earned its keep.
The breakthroughs didn’t come from a slide. They came from a concept clicking into place against a real child, a real moment, a real memory, through content and discussion.
What made educators think differently
Rupture and repair
The idea that relationships don’t need to be ‘perfect’, and the importance of repair.
Behaviour as a nervous system event
Not a choice to be managed, but communication to be understood.
The 90-second emotion
Learning that a feeling passes in about 90 seconds, and that what lingers afterwards is the story we tell ourselves about it.
Neuroception
One educator noticing that simply narrowing their eyes at a struggling student could trigger a stress response — and choosing differently.
Crucially, these weren’t abstract insights left at the screen. Educators took them straight into the week ahead and came back with stories.
“A child began ripping his work out of his book. Instead of sanctioning him, I took him for a walk to co-regulate. I responded like this consistently and the change in him was clear.”
“I checked in with myself when I was about to react and stood back — deep breath. My nervous system was calm, so I was better able to be the calm adult and help the child.”
And the format didn’t just support learning, it sparked its own momentum. So many educators were so gripped that they went off between sessions to read and research further, then brought their findings back to share with the group. A pilot course evolved into a community of practice.
The after
The everyday difference
By the final session, the shift was measurable and consistent across the whole cohort. These are self-reported changes from the anonymised end-of-programme questionnaire.
“The insights I have from this course have already changed my interactions with the students for the better, as well as giving me greater insight into my own. Incredibly powerful!”
“I don’t beat myself up at the end of the day as much when I reflect. I’m more aware of the ruptures but also more mindful to make sure I repair them.”
What changed, in their own reporting
100%
pause before reacting when a child is dysregulated
100%
now treat behaviour as communication, not a choice
100%
use different language when responding to emotions
100%
see the link between emotional safety and children’s capacity to learn
92%
are more curious and less reactive in difficult moments
83%
rated it “much better value” than other CPD they have attended
Just as telling were the shifts that change how it feels to walk into a classroom each day. Educators described being calmer under pressure, more curious about what sits beneath a behaviour and kinder to themselves at the end of a hard day.
“It was exceptionally well planned, engaging and packed with valuable insights and practical strategies. I completed the course feeling inspired and more confident in my approach.”
“It’s mainly the focus on how important it is for us as teachers to be regulated in order to support effectively — my focus before has always been on how to regulate the child.”
What happened next
Momentum beyond the course
The surest sign a course has landed is what people choose to do next. This programme was designed as a foundation, the first step of a longer journey, and the cohort overwhelmingly chose to take further steps in their learning.
“It has increased my self-awareness and helped me look more at my own responsibility in terms of supporting others.”
Where the cohort wants to go next
88%
want to engage in further CPD with us
88%
want to join our network of educators
82%
want to take the course to their school
82%
want to progress to Train the Trainer
“This course will change your life, your understanding of others and of yourself. Enriching, enlightening and totally addictive. I wish I could do it all again.”
Bring emotion coaching to your school
Foundations of Emotion Coaching is open to schools and to individual educators. If you recognise your own staff in this story — skilled, caring, and ready for something deeper than another behaviour-management session — let’s talk.