Building Emotional Literacy in Autistic Children

Why Emotions Can Be Hard to Decode

Autistic children often:

• Feel deeply

• Struggle to identify their emotions

• Become overwhelmed quickly

• Have difficulty verbalizing feelings

Emotional literacy gives children a roadmap for understanding themselves.

Tools We Use

We incorporate:

• Feelings charts

• Color-coded emotion zones

• Social stories

• Visual break cards

• Sensory tools for emotional release

These tools translate feelings into something visible and manageable.

How AutiVerse Builds Emotional Understanding

Example:
A child who couldn’t articulate overwhelm learned to point to the “red zone” to signal they needed a break.

Another Example:
A student who went silent during frustration used a weighted pillow and then practiced naming the feeling afterward with picture cards.

Teaching Emotional Safety First

We never say “calm down.”
Instead, we:

• Validate the feeling

• Model regulation

• Offer sensory tools

• Break tasks into manageable steps

Emotional literacy grows through gentle guidance — not correction.

Why Emotional Literacy Supports Independence

Children begin to:

• Self-advocate

• Recognize sensory stress

• Request support

• Build healthy relationships

This foundation carries into adulthood.