As parents and caregivers, we’ve all seen those moments, a child overwhelmed, emotions bubbling up, tears or tantrums when things just feel a bit too much. Whether it’s starting school, navigating friendships, or simply an off day, children aged 4–8 are still learning how to regulate their emotions. The good news? Play can be a powerful way to help them feel safe, seen, calm and ready to learn.
At Edx Education, we believe in the power of play based learning to support every aspect of a child’s development. When a child feels overwhelmed, it’s not always about the activity at hand it’s about how secure they feel in their environment. That’s where Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs comes in.
Safety First: Understanding Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Maslow’s model reminds us that children (like adults) can’t learn or thrive unless their basic needs are met first — from food and sleep to emotional security and belonging. Before they can concentrate on spelling or counting, children need to feel safe, loved, and supported.
So, how do we create that sense of safety? Through connection, remember connection before correction. Through play. And through providing calm, simple activities that meet them where they are emotionally — especially when big feelings take over.
Simple Play Ideas to Support Calm and Communication
Here are a few practical ways to help calm and connect with your child using just one or two toys — like Edx Education’s Linking Cubes and Maths Cubes. These versatile resources aren’t just great for early maths skills — they’re fantastic tools for soothing and communication too.
1. The “Quiet Build” – Creating Calm Together
Sit with your child and simply start connecting cubes together in a pattern — quietly, without instruction. Children often mimic or join in when they feel safe. The repetitive click of cubes being joined can be surprisingly soothing and gives their hands (and minds) something to focus on. Keep your tone soft and allow space for silence. Just being present is powerful.
2. “Tell Me How You Feel” Towers
Create colour-coded emotion towers. Ask your child to choose colours to represent different feelings (e.g., red = angry, blue = sad, yellow = happy). Then let them build a tower using those colours to show how they’re feeling. It opens a non-verbal channel for expression — especially helpful when they’re still learning to identify or talk about emotions.
3. Breathing & Building
Teach simple breathing techniques using cubes. For example, “Let’s breathe in as we add a cube, then breathe out as we add the next one.” A tower of 10 cubes becomes a mindfulness activity in itself — helping them to self-regulate through rhythmic, purposeful motion.
4. Story Building
Create simple characters or shapes with cubes, and build a story around them. Ask questions like, “Where is your cube person going today?” or “How is the yellow cube feeling?” It turns play into a gentle way to process their day, explore emotions, or make sense of something that’s worrying them — all while keeping their hands busy.
5. Name the Need
If your child is really overwhelmed, ask, “What do you need right now — a cuddle, some space, or a game?” Keep some soft mats or cubes in a designated “calm corner” they can retreat to when needed. Sometimes knowing there’s a place to go is all they need to feel in control again.
The Role of the Grown-Up
Your presence and calmness matter more than perfect words or flashy toys. Simple, repetitive, hands-on activities help children reset, re-centre, and reconnect. As adults, we model emotional regulation, and through play, we show them it’s okay to feel — and that there are safe ways to explore and express those feelings.
At Edx Education, we’ve seen time and again how educational toys like Linking Cubes and Maths Cubes aren’t just tools for academic learning — they’re tools for life. When we meet children with compassion and creativity, we help them build more than just towers or patterns — we help them build resilience, confidence, and trust.
Explore our free downloadable resources and tune in to our Play, Learn & Create with Edx Education podcast for more tips on how to support your child through play.
Because happy children play — and through play, they thrive
By Heather Welch, Author of “Happy Children Play” and General Manager, Edx Education UK