NORWALK, Conn. — Are you looking for a way to help your little one understand their big feelings?
SoNo Branch Library, Norwalk ACTS, and the Family and Children’s Agency will hold a free Feelings Festival next Tuesday, May 20, from 4 to 5 p.m. at the library at 10 Washington St.
According to an event flyer, the event, which is for children ages 3 months to 5 years, will help them “build emotional awareness, expression, and regulation through hands-on activities.”
The Feelings Festival is “a fun, free one-hour event made just for young children and their caregivers!” said Eve St. Surin, the early childhood community advocate at Norwalk ACTS and one of the festival’s instructors.
“Explore games, stories, crafts, and tools that build confidence and emotional smarts. Meet other families, learn through play, and walk away with resources you can use every day!” added St. Surin.
SoNo Branch Manager Marcus Eason observed, “This is exactly the kind of program I wish had been available when I was younger. It’s fun, engaging, and educational—designed to help children and families explore the wide range of emotions we all experience.”
Eason said kids often feel things they don’t yet have the words for, and that can be confusing or overwhelming for them.
“The Feelings Festival is here to change that. It helps children recognize their emotions and gives families tools to talk about those feelings in healthy, constructive ways,” he said.
On May 20, St. Surin explained that there will be “a few different age-appropriate activities for both caregivers and children” who will be separated into groups at different stations.
There will be emotion exploration stations where participants “match faces to feelings, sort emotion cards, and use mirrors to practice different expressions,” said St. Surin.
There will also be “create-your-feelings art,” where participants will “paint with colors that show how you feel. Red for energy? Blue for calm? It’s all up to them,” she said.
There will also be “wiggle and breathe breaks,” where attendees will “dance out energy and learn kid-friendly ways to breathe and calm down,” she added.
St. Surin said that each activity is based on the ASQ (ages and stages questionnaire), which “provides reliable, accurate developmental and social-emotional screening for children between birth and age 6,” according to agesandstages.com.
The ASQ is given to incoming kindergarteners in Connecticut.
“It has five different dimensions, and emotional intelligence is one of those dimensions,” said St. Surin of the ASQ.
Through the various activities at Tuesday’s festival, kids will learn to identify their feelings.
Festival leaders will also be “introducing them to self-regulation with tips for parents as well, since the ASQ helps a little one in growing at home. It’s a playful step forward,” said St. Surin.
Eason said there is no limit to the number of people who can attend the program, though “we do ask that each child be accompanied by a parent, as the program is designed to engage both children and their parents together.”
Eason also encouraged families to sign up in advance as a precaution, “but if they haven’t registered, they are still more than welcome to join us,” he said.
“Everyone will be invited in with open arms! The event is completely free—our only ‘admission fee’ is that you come ready to have a great time. That’s all we ask,” he added.
To register for the program, visit https://www.norwalklib.org/104/SoNo.
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