Heart & screen

Social, Emotional, and Digital Life

Focus emotional literacy & online habits Age 6–15 Style case-based reflection

Books in this strand

These companions connect social and emotional life with both Montessori insights and modern neuroscience.

Feelings as information, not enemies

Montessori guides are trained to observe behaviour with calm curiosity. We can offer the same stance for emotions: “Something important is happening; let us find out what.”

Simple tools include:

  • emotion charts that show many feelings, not just “happy” and “sad”,
  • short check-ins (“What colour is your day today?”),
  • quick regulation tools (water, movement, breath, silence).

Digital conflicts as practice ground

Group chats, comments, and shared videos can become painful very quickly. Instead of only banning, we can treat them as practice spaces for repair.

  • “If a message would hurt you, do not send it.”
  • “Screens off during conflict repair.”
  • “When we make a mistake online, we clean it up and learn.”

Mini case template

Use this three-step, iterative template with children or teens when something happens on or off screen:

  • See: What exactly happened? (No judgement yet.)
  • Feel: How did each person feel?
  • Do: What repair or boundary is needed now?

Over time, this becomes a shared language the child can use without you.