In short, emotionally intelligent individuals are able to recognize, express, understand, control, and eventually learn from their feelings. In infants, the expression of emotions comes naturally: babies cry to show their pain, hunger, exhaustion and frustration. As a child grows, adults and caregivers have an immense responsibility to model and teach recognition, understanding and control of emotions. Children are fierce imitators who constantly observe and imitate the actions of those around them. Parents and early childhood teachers must not only model appropriate expressions of emotion, but also allow children to use a variety of techniques to express their own feelings of joy, fear, anger, and sadness (among many others). 'others). Most importantly, it is crucial that schools and communities provide ways for students to label and analyze the emotions they feel. Giving the emotion a name allows individuals to talk about what they feel, why they feel that way, and, more importantly, what can be done to improve their emotional state. For some students, “counting to ten” may be enough to begin this process. Others will need more support from social workers or school psychologists. Parents and teachers have an obligation to provide safe and open spaces for children to manage their emotions in productive and positive ways. Even negative emotions can benefit a child's development, provided they have the mental and social tools to understand and learn from the emotion and its consequences.