ABSTRACT
The school-age years, between five and eighteen, are a period of rapid, accelerated, physical and emotional development. For many students this is a period in which the constraints of the socialising process can produce confusion, frustration and guilt. In addition, the hormonal surges that characterise the onset of puberty produce an emotional see-sawing between highs and lows which can create problematic situations in classrooms. Although teachers are aware of and understand these issues at an intellectual level, many find it hard to address the question of how to facilitate students’ appropriate expression of feelings in the classroom.
