Showing results by author "Shona Innes" in All Categories

Going into the playground can be like setting off on an adventure in the jungle – exciting, a little bit wild and filled with lots of different creatures. You’ll meet lots of people having their own adventures in the playground, and sometimes you might want to play together. There’s a lot to learn, but there’s also lots of fun to be had.

Families come in all shapes and sizes. They are the people who help us feel that we belong. Families give us help, support and love, even when we are apart from them. When we are with our family, we feel like we are home.

Worries are like clouds. Some days are so wonderful we wish we could bottle them. But other days we don’t feel like getting out of bed. Worries are like clouds that float in and take the shine out of our day. Moving worries away can make even the toughest day feel a little better.

The life inside your body is tricky to see, but you can feel it. Life lets you run and laugh and play – like how the wind helps kites to fly across the sky and leaves to dance across the ground. But where does the wind go when it stops blowing? And where does life go when it leaves the body?

You are the only you there is. There are many amazing and special parts that go into making you who YOU are. Your amazing body has many parts that you can move and feel and see, and even more parts deep inside where you can’t see. All these parts – the big ones and the little ones – all work together to make the amazing unique person that is YOU …

The internet can be amazing – it helps you talk to friends and family that live far away, and you can also play games and learn all sorts of fun things. The internet can also be a bit like a puddle – there are some puddles that are fun to play in, but others are much too deep and aren’t safe. It is important to stay in the right part of the internet.

Friendship is a very special thing. It’s great to have a friend, and being a friend to someone else is a good feeling too. Sometimes getting along with your friends is easy, and other times it can be a little trickier, but there are lots of ways to keep your friendships balanced and fun for everyone.

Anger is a strong and powerful thing. It brings us lots of energy, and it can tell us when something is not right or when we have a problem. Anger is something that can protect and take care of us. Anger is a bit like armour.

Love is a special and growing thing. It's a little bit like a tree – a special magical tree – that you can climb up into, nest comfortably in its big branches and safely watch the world go by. Love can come in different shapes and sizes. Like a tree, love can grow and grow.

Your mind is a bit like an amazing garden. A garden has lots of tracks and paths that lead in different directions. It has wide open spaces where we can create and play. A garden has places to grow things and do work. It has clever parts that help us to grow and learn.

The Big Hug Collection comprises of ten enlightening tales that offer gentle explanations of emotions and relationships through analogies children can relate to. Each story in the collection has grown from psychological sessions with children (and sometimes with grown ups) to help them understand and talk about complex emotional situations in simple, approachable ways. The Big Hug Collection acknowledges that some moments in life are tricky and encourages acceptance, problem solving and help-seeking as needed.