How Parents Help Children Regulate Emotions

14 de marzo de 2026

When children experience strong emotions, they often look to the adults around them for guidance.

Young children are still learning how emotions work and how they can calm themselves when feelings become overwhelming.

Because of this, emotional regulation is not something children develop alone.

It develops through relationships.

Parents play an important role in helping children gradually build these emotional skills.

Children do not learn emotional regulation alone

Emotional regulation develops slowly throughout childhood.

In the early years, children rely heavily on adults to help them manage difficult feelings.

This process is often called co-regulation.

Co-regulation means that an adult helps the child calm down during moments of stress or frustration.

Over time, repeated experiences of calm support help the child develop their own ability to regulate emotions.

You can read more about this process in our guide on how children learn emotional regulation.

Children are very sensitive to the emotional signals of adults.

If an adult reacts with anger or frustration, the child’s emotional state often becomes more intense.

But if the adult remains calm, the child’s nervous system can begin to settle.

This is why calm responses often help children calm down more quickly.

When adults acknowledge a child’s feelings, the child begins to understand their emotional experience.

Simple responses such as:

“That was frustrating.”
“I can see you're upset.”

help children recognize what they feel.

Over time, these experiences support emotional awareness and regulation.

Children do not learn emotional regulation overnight.

The process happens slowly through many everyday experiences.

With calm support from adults, children gradually develop stronger emotional skills.

These skills become an important foundation for future relationships, learning, and wellbeing.