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Music for Big Feelings

Feel Better Music Therapy

A professional learning workshop equipping educators with music-based strategies to support children’s emotional regulation. Participants learn evidence-informed ways to help children recognise, understand and regulate emotions through songs, movement and sensory musical play.

  • Online
  • Vic

Pricing: Paid

Origin: Developed in Australia for Australian schooling contexts

Affiliations: Registered Music Therapist with the Australian Music Therapy Association (Member No: 1498)

Product type: Program; Activity sheets; Student activities; Professional learning; Learning modules; Class lesson plans

Contact details

Feel Better Music Therapy
ABN: 14683135442

www.feelbettermusictherapy.com.au/wellbeing

ajay@feelbettermusictherapy.com.au

Focus areas

  • Positive relationships

  • Mental health literacy and life skills

  • Self-regulation and engagement

Curriculum alignment

  • Health and PE

  • The Arts

Prospective users

Audience: Whole school universal (Tier 1)

Communities: Neurodiversity or disability

Context: School or centre-based, Outside School Hours Care (OSHC), E-schools

Main beneficiaries: Early learning, Foundation/Prep, Year 1, Year 2, Year 3, Year 4, Year 5, Year 6

Delivery style: Classroom teacher is trained

Aims & approach

Music for Big Feelings is an interactive professional learning workshop that equips early childhood and primary educators with practical, music-based strategies to support children’s emotional regulation. Delivered by a Registered Music Therapist, the workshop builds educator confidence and capability in helping children:
• recognise emotions in themselves and others
• understand emotional cues, context and causes
• respond and self-regulate through musical, sensory and breathing strategies
• build connection, empathy and prosocial behaviour

The workshop models a clear, evidence-informed framework educators can embed across daily routines:

1. Identify Emotions (Recognition)
Workshop participants learn songs, movement activities and musical cues that help children explore what emotions look and sound like. Participants practise guiding children to match musical elements, facial expressions and body language to emotional states.

2. Understand Emotions (Meaning & Context)
Using age-appropriate song examples and scenarios, workshop participants discover ways to help children connect emotions with experiences, triggers and perspectives. Activities support emotional literacy, perspective-taking and expressive language.

3. Respond to Emotions (Regulation)
Workshop participants learn practical co-regulation tools such as rhythmic tapping, music-based breathing routines, sensory musical play and collaborative musical expression, to support children during heightened emotional states. Strategies are designed to be simple, repeatable and compatible with everyday routines.

Duration
The program is delivered as a 4-hour onsite workshop (or as a multi-session online series), with optional ongoing mentoring depending on the selected package.
 
Resources Provided
All required materials are supplied, including a comprehensive digital resource pack featuring:
• step-by-step activity instructions, song recordings and song-based regulation routines.
• ready-to-use visual supports (emotion cards, musical cue cards, breathing visuals).

Requirements
To deliver the workshop, the service requires only an indoor space suitable for group professional learning.
All musical instruments and program materials are provided by the facilitator.

Implementation support

  • Access to professional facilitator, instructor or mentor
  • Regular webinars or access to community of professional practice

Evidence

Music for Big Feelings is grounded in peer-reviewed research by Dr Ajay Castelino — showing how structured musical experiences and therapist-composed songs support emotional recognition, regulation and co-regulation in young children. The workshop also draws on established frameworks such as music therapy principles, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, self-regulation theory, social–emotional learning (SEL), and polyvagal-informed rhythmic regulation — making it suitable and effective across early childhood and primary settings.

Reference
Castelino, A. (2024). The role of music therapist composed song recordings in supporting families to independently use music with preschool children with complex needs: A case study. New Zealand Journal of Music Therapy, 22(1), 7–21. https://search.informit.org/do...