How to Tame a Tumbletot

In Tiddleton Hollow, feelings don’t just happen.
They bring creatures with them.

When children start to feel wiggly and restless, tiny Tumbletots begin to appear. They roll and bounce and pile up wherever energy starts to spill over. At first they seem playful and silly, but when too many gather, the room can quickly turn noisy, tangled, and out of control.

In a cheerful classroom tucked inside Tiddleton Hollow, a group of children discover just how quickly Tumbletots can take over when the wiggles get the better of them.

Chairs scrape.

Feet tap.
Voices rise.

Before long, the Tumbletots are tumbling everywhere.

But their teacher knows something the children are still learning.

Tumbletots are not bad creatures.

They are simply full of energy that hasn’t found a quiet place to land yet.

Through gentle guidance, slow breathing, and a little patience, the children begin to discover that calming themselves doesn’t make the creatures disappear. Instead, it teaches the Tumbletots how to settle, rest, and become part of the calm again.

And sometimes, when the room grows quiet enough, other small helpers begin to glow nearby.

Children carry enormous energy through their days. Sometimes that energy bursts out in laughter and play. Other times it spills into restlessness that even they don’t fully understand.

At its heart, How to Tame a Tumbletot helps children explore:

• Self regulation and calming skills
• Understanding energetic feelings without shame
• How breathing and slowing down can change a moment
• The idea that excitement and calm can live in the same room

All of this unfolds through imagination and story rather than instruction.

Children don’t need to be told to calm down.
They need to see what calm can look like.

Too often, the answer children hear is simply "sit still."

But learning to settle the body and quiet the mind is something that must be practiced, not demanded.

How to Tame a Tumbletot was written to give children a playful way to understand that feeling wiggly is not wrong. It is simply a signal that their energy needs help finding balance.

By giving that energy a name and a creature, the story allows children to recognize their own feelings with curiosity instead of frustration.

When the Tumbletots appear, it becomes an invitation to pause, breathe, and try again.

Children carry enormous energy through their days. Sometimes that energy bursts out in laughter and play. Other times it spills into restlessness that even they don’t fully understand.

Too often, the answer children hear is simply "sit still."

But learning to settle the body and quiet the mind is something that must be practiced, not demanded.

How to Tame a Tumbletot was written to give children a playful way to understand that feeling wiggly is not wrong. It is simply a signal that their energy needs help finding balance.

By giving that energy a name and a creature, the story allows children to recognize their own feelings with curiosity instead of frustration.

When the Tumbletots appear, it becomes an invitation to pause, breathe, and try again.

“But calm is a promise that comes and then goes,
Especially after the playground, it knows.”

“Tiny and jiggly, they winked into view—
The Wigglewinks came when the bodies all moved.”

“They tumbled and twisted with round little grins,
Following laughter and leftover spins.”

“Chairs stayed in rows.
Voices stayed low.
But inside the room there was nowhere to go.”

• Children ages 3 to 8
• Parents and caregivers teaching calming skills
• Teachers and classrooms practicing self regulation
• Anyone who knows that wiggles are part of growing up

This story works especially well for classrooms, circle time, bedtime reading, and moments when children need a gentle path back to calm.

Children often feel the wiggles long before they know why.

This story doesn’t ask them to sit still.

It helps them discover how to settle.