My Body Sends a Signal: Helping Kids Recognize Emotions and Express Feelings

I bought this for my 5 year old who has been struggling with his feelings, and he loves it! We read it at bedtime and then he asked to read it again the next night. Then my 10 year old joined in and she loved it too. It such a nice little story about all of the emotions that a small child might go through in a couple of days, and how their body feels during them, and fits some anger coping mechanisms in as well. I'm SO glad I purchased it.

I really want to like this book, but I really can't recommend it. It's a great idea but there are two major problems. First, while the images are very nice, it's poorly written. Far too many words, inconsistent names for characters (Grandpa/Grandad), etc. Also, the message about how to deal with difficult emotions isn't ideal (apologizing to Grandma for pushing his sister rather than apologizing to sister, having to go to his room until he stops feeling angry). Also, while the idea of having pictures in the back to try to guess the emotion the characters are feeling is a nice one, the images really don't look like the emotions that they are supposed to depict. Too bad.

Great book for children struggling with emotions. Definitely recommend!

Si tratta di una storia articolata sulle sensazioni in vari contesti, presenti al termine attività da sviluppare con bambini, sempre inerenti alla storia. Speravo fosse una proposta diversa di analisi dell'espressione corporea in diverse situazioni

I bought Helping Kids Recognize Emotions and Express Feelings: My Body Sends a Signal back in 2022, and here I am in 2025 still reading it with my son. This book is truly special. It gives so much helpful advice about feelings, emotions, and especially what to do when anger shows up. It teaches positive ways to express anger and helps kids understand what’s happening inside their bodies. The story also shows so much love between a child and his mother, his grandma, and his granddad. It follows a little boy who gets very angry with his sister after she breaks his toy; he uses a bad word and starts yelling and kicking during a meltdown. And then his grandmother gently teaches him ways to self-regulate. It’s realistic, relatable, and so beautifully written. I’ve bought so many children’s books about emotions over the years, and honestly, this one is my absolute favorite. It’s an all-in-one resource. At the end, it even includes emotion cards, feeling cards, short stories, and coloring pages. It truly has everything. My son is about to turn seven, and I still use this book at least once a week as a bedtime story to help him understand and work through his emotions. Natalia Maguire is a genius for creating such a thoughtful, meaningful book. I’m surprised I never reviewed it earlier. I usually don’t leave reviews, but after three years of loving it, I had to share how much it has helped us. Every parent should have this book in their home library, especially if they have children who need support with self-regulation. This book is a treasure.