Exploring Emotions through the "Inside Out" films and Readmio Stories

Pixar studio’s film “Inside Out” followed 11-year-old Riley as she moved from Minnesota to San Francisco, leaving behind her friends, hobbies, and familiar surroundings. The film reveals how, inside her mind, Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust take charge of how she responds to these significant changes. Each emotion plays its own particular role: Joy constantly tries to keep Riley happy, Sadness brings her discomfort, Anger ensures justice, Fear keeps Riley safe, and Disgust protects her from undesirable experiences. By bringing Riley’s emotions to life, the film illustrates how the feelings she has are not just momentary reactions, but complex experiences that shape who she is and how she lives her lives

"Inside Out 2", takes its audiences on another exciting emotional journey as Riley transitions from childhood to adolescence. As she navigates the challenges of growing up, her core emotions—Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust—face new challenges as they are joined by new emotions that we didn’t see in the first film. As children grow up, the range of feelings they regularly experience becomes broader. Now that Riley is entering the teenage years, we see Anxiety, Envy, Embarrassment and Ennui (boredom) playing influential roles in her life. With the addition of these new feelings, “Inside Out 2” provides a more comprehensive picture of emotional development.

The “Inside Out” films’ focus on emotions can help viewers to understand themselves, by relating to Riley’s experience, and can also help children to understand others. At Readmio, we have a category in our story library for tales of “Emotions and Empathy”. The stories you’ll find in this category have a similar mission to help readers young and old explore their emotions through stories. Stories are a powerful tool for nurturing empathy, encouraging emotional reflection, and fostering a deeper understanding of what feelings are and how they affect our lives. Children experience emotions deeply from a very young age, when they often lack the language or understanding to express how they are feeling. Storytelling can make those emotions more approachable. The stories in this part of our library present main characters who face various emotional challenges, whether those are handling disappointment or making sense of sadness. By exploring how they approach those challenges, the stories offer relatable, safe and engaging guidance about how to recognise and process emotions. Today, we will take a closer look at how Readmio’s stories can contribute to supporting emotional development. 

Emotions in Readmio stories

1. Sadness and disappointment

One of the most powerful messages in the original “Inside Out” film is about accepting sadness. Riley’s turning point comes when she is finally able to express her sadness about leaving Minnesota. Her parents are then able to acknowledge her feelings and comfort her, and soon she begins to feel better. This emotional catharsis is something that many Readmio stories illustrate and bring to life. 

Some of the stories you can try with Readmio to explore sadness and disappointment, helping children to recognise and talk about their emotional experience, include: 

Falkor’s Journey: Jason and his dog Falkor are inseparable buddies. As their happy years together go by, Jason learns about the never-ending cycle of birth and death, which later helps him understand Falkor’s passing.

Discovering the emotions – Sadness: Martin meets his neighbour Mr Brown, who seems so sad, it’s as though there was a big black cloud inside his flat. Martin remembers a lesson his art teacher once taught them about sadness, and tests out what will happen if he takes the teacher’s advice and does something different… he discovers that by telling jokes, he can help Mr Brown feel a bit less sad. 

Little Blue: One day, Donald discovers he has a new companion, a Little Blue. Being with Little Blue makes him feel very different. He doesn’t want to play or joke with his friends. He bursts into tears. The feelings he has are so unpleasant that although Little Blue is cute and soft and fluffy, Donald has to make the decision to shake him off. 

2. Joy and happiness

Joy’s relentless pursuit of happiness in the “Inside Out” films reflects how children often approach their day-to-day experiences, seeking pleasure and fun in everything. But when things go wrong, they often struggle to understand why they can’t just be happy all the time. This feature of childhood creates wonderful opportunities for stories that explore joy, contentment, and resilience.

Readmio’s stories often depict characters who learn that happiness doesn’t always come from external success, material possessions or constant positivity. Instead, the stories show how joy can come from simple, everyday moments or from helping others. Here are a few examples:

Discovering the Emotions - Joy: On his journey to his neighbours’ apartments in the quest for feelings, Martin has one more floor of the building left to visit. Let’s see who lives on the fifth floor. And let’s hope that it will be a pleasant experience, maybe even Joyful!

The Heart that wanted to jump for joy: An elderly man, living alone, has lost joy in everything, even his once-beloved guitar. However, fate brings someone into his life who lifts his spirits. Though he initially resists, it becomes clear that deep down, no one truly desires to be alone.

3. Fear and anxiety

When Riley feals scared or anxious, it’s usually a sign that there’s something not quite right. Fear in the films is a cautious, careful guardian, protecting her from dangers, whereas anxiety is an interfering tyrant who overpowers all the other emotions’ work and affects Riley’s character.

Readmio stories depict fear and anxiety both as protective forces and as bothersome feelings that get in the way of characters’ lives. They look at the benefits of these feelings but also at ways of reducing the negative influences they can have on us and our relationships. Here are a few examples:

Little Sophie and the great Fear talks about a little girl Sophie who gets into an unfamiliar and worrying situation. The story teaches children what to do if they end up in such a situations and how to process the emotions they might feel if they do.

Meanwhile, The Snow Monster presents a character who is afraid of snowmen because of something she heard one day at nursery.  Luckily, she trusts her father, and he sets things straight. This story helps very young children to cope with fear, showing how acknowledging her fear and talking about it helps Elizabeth to feel safe. 

4. Anger and frustration

In “Inside Out”, Anger plays a crucial role in protecting Riley from injustice and ensuring she can stand up for herself. But it’s also a strong emotion that if left unchecked can negatively affect Riley’s behaviour and knock the other emotions off course.

Many Readmio stories also emphasise the important role that anger plays in achieving justice, while highlighting the importance of understanding and managing it. They demonstrate how to frustrations can be channelled into something positive, like problem-solving or creativity. These stories help children to cope with feelings that might otherwise overwhelm them, and so help them achieve a better emotional balance.

Here are a few examples:

Maya Goes into a Rage: Maya's day starts off badly, leaving her overwhelmed with anger after a series of unfortunate events. Luckily, her dad helps her manage this intense emotion. Join Maya to see how they handle anger together!

Discovering the Emotions: Anger: Young Martin is puzzled by emotions, especially anger, and decides to investigate what they are and where they come from. He embarks on a quest through his apartment building, hoping his neighbors can help him solve the mystery of these powerful feelings.

5. Envy and jealousy

In “Inside Out 2” we see how Envy exerts pressure on Riley to be like those around her, rather than who she really is. Riley and her core emotions have to adjust to control Envy’s responses and regain emotional balance. Readmio’s stories that focus on envy and jealousy not only highlight the challenges these emotions can bring but also demonstrate effective ways to manage them.

The story of Daedalus and Icarus teaches kids about envy and the importance of listening to good advice. Daedalus, a clever inventor, makes wings for himself and his son to escape from an island. He warns Icarus not to fly too high, explaining the dangers. But Icarus, eager to go higher and curious to see more, doesn’t listen to his father. His jealousy of the freedom he wants and his desire to fly higher lead him too close to the sun, where the wax on his wings melts, and he tragically falls. This story reminds us that ignoring wise advice because of envy or overconfidence can have serious consequences.

The Fox Who Wanted a Prettier Tail: In this tale, Sophie the fox feels insecure about her bushy tail because it doesn't meet the beauty standards set by others, particularly when other foxes tease her. However, a surprising accident helps her realize that she has overlooked the beauty and uniqueness of her own tail.

The story teaches kids important lessons about self-acceptance and the dangers of comparing themselves to others. It emphasizes that everyone has their own special qualities, and instead of focusing on what we think is lacking, we should learn to appreciate and celebrate our individual traits. Through Sophie’s journey, children learn that true beauty comes from embracing who they are, rather than conforming to others' expectations.

6. Boredom

The last of the new emotions in “Inside Out 2” is one that’s often considered a teenager classic. We see how boredom attempts to keep Riley comfortable by avoiding awkward situations, but also how it prevents her from fully participating in various fun experiences. Readmio’s stories show their characters experiencing boredom in different situations and giving out some tips on how to cope with it. ‍

In Nory, Who Was Never Bored the story follows Nory, a seemingly ordinary boy with an extraordinary trait—his friends believe he has a superpower because he never experiences boredom. Nory himself claims he simply doesn’t know how to be bored. Curious and determined, his friends set out on a playful mission to teach him what boredom feels like. The story captures the lighthearted adventure that unfolds as they attempt to accomplish this fun and unusual challenge.

The Day Roamer Got Bored: The story follows Tomcat Roamer, who is stuck in a day so ordinary and uneventful that it becomes downright boring. As the boredom sets in, Roamer begins to act out. Fortunately, his loyal friend Scoot is there to help, offering Roamer some useful tips on how to deal with his boredom and turn the day around.

Building Emotional Intelligence and Empathy

The underlying theme of the “Inside Out” films and of Readmio’s Emotions and Empathy stories is what is known as emotional intelligence; this means the ability to understand and manage your own emotions and the ability to empathize with others. It’s essential for children to develop their emotional intelligence as they grow up and navigate more complex relationships.

Riley’s journeys represent the development of her emotional intelligence—her emotions are not static or isolated, they evolve and interact in response to the situations Riley finds herself in and the people she relates to. Similarly, Readmio’s stories teach children both to understand their emotional responses to their own experience and to decode how others around them might be feeling. This fosters empathy, an increasingly important skill in today’s interconnected world.

Many of Readmio’s stories depict empathy and demonstrate how validating another person’s feelings can be beneficial to a relationship, as characters learn to listen to and support their friends or family members in moments of need. Stories like these help children learn to better recognize when others need support and how to offer it. Here are a few examples: 

The Apple Pie: Tommy’s mum can see that something has upset him, but he doesn’t want to tell him what it was. She suggests he helps her with some baking. While they bake, Tommy feels comfortable enough to talk about what happened and how he’s feeling. His mum shows that she understands and helps him to think about it from a new perspective. 

High Water: A flood has come without warning, and the rabbits’ burrow has been totally destroyed. When the other animals find them stranded on the nearest dry land, the rabbits are sad and scared and don’t know what to do without their home. Even the fox, who usually chases the rabbits, can see that they need help and comfort. All the animals work together to settle the rabbits into a new, dry home and help them feel safe and comfortable again.

Encouraging Conversations

Both the “Inside Out” films and Readmio’s stories serve as excellent starting points for conversations about emotions and empathy between parents, caregivers or teachers and children. While the films provide a visual representation of human emotions, Readmio stories offer a more personal, auditory and imaginative experience. After reading stories about characters who experienced emotions, children will be empowered to engage with questions such as, “What do you feel like when you’re angry?” or “What can you do to help someone if they’re feeling down?”, to express their own emotions and find solutions to tricky situations they themselves encounter. 

The wide range of stories in Readmio’s collection that address topics related to emotions and empathy make these a versatile toolkit that can be tailored to each child’s specific age group, life situation, and emotional needs. When used as a set, these stories can provide a complex insight into all aspects of emotional development from a variety of perspectives and in numerous contexts, so you can be sure every reader will find one or more they can easily relate to.

Both the “Inside Out” films and Readmio’s Emotions and Empathy stories shine a light on the importance of emotional intelligence. They teach children invaluable lessons in self-awareness, empathy and resilience, and provide children with new tools for better understanding and managing their own emotions. Along with Riley and the main characters in Readmio’s stories, children learn the importance of balancing their emotions and of giving all their various feelings – positive and negative – a place in their lives. The lessons children learn from observing what happens in these stories enable them to develop the emotional intelligence they need as they grow up and form meaningful connections with those around them.