Daniel Goleman claims in his ground-breaking book ‘Emotional Intelligence – why it can matter more than IQ’, that emotional intelligence is a greater predictor of success, both academically and for life in general, than traditional measures of IQ. But what exactly is emotional intelligence, and how does it link to the positive attitude that we call the ‘can-do’ attitude? And how can fiction help us to equip our children with this emotional literacy that has recently become one of the buzz-words in education?

The word ‘emotion’ is derived from the Latin word ‘motere’, meaning ‘move’, with the prefix ‘e’ to create the meaning ‘move away’. Therefore emotions are to make us move, or act. In their most primitive state, this is what humans do in response to their emotions – they take action. As we become adult, ideally we learn to control our impulses and to react to situations in a way deemed by society as ‘appropriate’. This is what we want to help our children to do – to learn how to respond to their emotions in ways that are socially acceptable and that lead to successful, positive outcomes for themselves and others.  

When a child is emotionally intelligent, he has what we call the ‘can-do attitude.’ He is self-aware. He manages his emotions appropriately. He is self-motivated. He forms good relationships and has empathy and respect for others. These are the five main aspects of emotional intelligence: self-awareness, management of emotions, self motivation, handling relationships and empathy. When a child has the can-do attitude, learning becomes easier for him. He will tackle new activities enthusiastically and will persevere in the face of challenge. He will have good social skills and will be able to work with others to maximize each learning experience. 

Some children enter our education system with a good grounding in emotional literacy. Others, for a variety of reasons, have more skills to learn. A high-quality, stimulating and appropriate curriculum will go a long way towards helping children develop emotional intelligence. The personal relationships, the language, the interactions in the setting, and the quality of work and play will have an impact upon children’s emotional growth. But we can do more. We can actually teach with emotional intelligence for emotional intelligence. 

This is what The Can-Do Club™ is about. We know that children learn from fantasy, from the use of imagination, from role-play, and from stories. The Can-Do Club™ is a series of stories and related activities that can be actively used to help children to explore important issues and so develop greater emotional intelligence. When the children in the story books act with emotional intelligence, the Can-Do Lion welcomes them into the Can-Do Club™. This is our aim: that the Can-Do stories and activities will help children to develop emotional intelligence and so themselves join the Can-Do Club™.

To receive updates about the new Can-Do Club series, click here.