Dates: Mondays - 15th, 22nd, 29th September, 6th, 13th October 2025
Times: 7.00pm - 8.30pm
Venue: Online via Zoom

Target Audience: Primary & Post Primary Teachers & SNAs.

Emotion Coaching is a four-step, skills-based approach that helps school staff respond to pupils’ heightened emotions and related behaviours as they occur. Originally developed by John Gottman for parenting, this relational method of communication has been effectively adapted by educational psychologists for use in schools. It is increasingly adopted by Primary and Post-Primary schools in Ireland as a strategy to support sustainable emotional health and wellbeing.
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Research shows that Emotion Coaching enhances staff competency and calmness, improves pupils’ emotional literacy and regulation, and fosters stronger pupil-staff relationships. Schools have also reported better pupil behaviour, higher academic achievement, improved staff wellbeing, as well as enhanced family relationships and fewer parental complaints.
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Benefits of Emotion Coaching in Schools:
It can be integrated into existing systems/programmes without additional resources or staffing.It focuses on enhancing the quality of staff interactions with pupils and does not require individual, timetabled sessions.It teaches children and young people about emotions and positive mental health in a structured, sustainable way.Pupils are likely to experience the advantages of Emotion Coaching even if not all staff apply it consistently.

This 5-part online course will cover:

 Basic neuroscience of emotional regulation & the stress-response system

 Background to Emotion Coaching: what it is & why we should use it

 Adults’ emotional awareness and different styles of responding to emotions in children and young people

 How to use the 4 steps of Emotion Coaching

 Practical exercises & skill development activities

 Practice, reflection, peer discussion & problem-solving

 Overview of strategies that complement Emotion Coaching

 Support in starting your Emotion Coaching journey
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PLEASE NOTE: Sessions 2, 3, and 4 will include approximately 20 minutes of breakout rooms for practical exercises and skill development activities. While some may feel reluctant to participate in breakout rooms, feedback from previous courses has been very positive regarding their value for these exercises. To make the most of these sessions, please ensure you access the course on a device equipped with a camera and microphone.
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This course is NOT RECORDED in order to encourage open and honest participation within the interactive elements. Therefore, attendance at all 5 sessions is recommended.