Emotes, a series of children’s books and comics co-authored by Silver Lake’s licensed psychotherapist, Matt Casper, are designed to help kids understand and talk about their emotions and feelings.
Each of the twenty-four Emotes characters represents a different emotion, and therefore becomes a mirror of a child’s own emotions. Characters range from Boom “the angry” and Joi “the excited” to Mixy “the confused” and Bubba “the happy.” Emotes – which also includes toys – show children that feelings are nothing to be ashamed of and that feelings are always changing. Through interaction with a wide range of Emotes books and play therapy toys, children are able to externalize and literally interact with their emotions, helping them to learn about themselves, and discover how to express and channel their emotions in healthy and constructive ways.
The Emotes program consists of fifteen picture books as well as a new series of chapter books for early readers covering topics such as anxiety, death and loss as well as bullying and self-esteem. The books cover a wide spectrum of topics, and include concrete methods to help kids and parents find constructive ways to positively channel and manage a wide array of feelings.
The Emotes products have already won numerous awards including gold medals from the Mom’s Choice Awards, Dr. Toy’s “Best Products of The Year” as well as endorsements from the Anti-Defamation League, Autism Speaks and School Library Journal. Currently involved in a study with Loyola Marymount University, the data has already shown statistically significant improvement in social-emotional vocabulary after using the Emotes program curriculum that was also created by Matt Casper.
Matt has appeared on panels and given presentations at a wide range of conventions and conferences across the country, including The National Association of School Psychologists and ComicCon in San Diego and New York. Through grassroots methods, the Emotes message of emotional health continues to spread, and Emotes are now being used by schools such as the Mayfield School in Pasadena as part of their curriculum. In addition, five Emotes books have already been translated into Spanish and Chinese, with a recent release of the titles by a university in Hong Kong.
“Emotes teach children that bringing emotions into the light of awareness is far healthier than trying to hide them in the dark,” says Casper.
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