Understanding the Hand Model of the Brain: A Simple Way to Talk About Big Feelings

At Connect.Ed, we believe that understanding what's happening inside the brain can empower children and adults alike to better manage their big feelings. One of our favourite tools for building this understanding is Dr. Dan Siegel’s Hand Model of the Brain.

This model uses the shape of your own hand to represent different parts of the brain, offering a visual and tactile way to explain how we function when we’re calm ... and what happens when we 'flip our lid'.

In this simple model:

• The wrist represents the brain stem - which is responsible for basic life functions like breathing and heart rate.

• The thumb tucked into the palm represents the limbic system - which we know as the 'emotional centre' of the brain.

• When we fold our fingers over the thumb, we represent the prefrontal cortex - the part of the brain that helps us make decisions, regulate our emotions and connect with others.

When the limbic system becomes overwhelmed, the 'thinking brain' can go offline; the fingers lift, and we 'flip our lid'. This is a powerful way to help children (and adults!) understand why it's hard to think clearly or make good choices when we're dysregulated.

This visual is not only helpful in early childhood education and therapy, but also in classrooms and homes; it gives us language to talk about dysregulation and a roadmap for returning to calm.