Science | Timbi Talks

Explore the Roots of Timbi's Science

Behind Timbi’s gentle stories is a framework shaped by decades of research in neuroscience, trauma, and prevention science.
Timbi helps children build and grow the skills that protect their developing brains from the effects of stress — connection, regulation, and resilience — in ways that feel safe, fun, and natural.
Below you’ll find the science that guides our work, organized by the same branches that make up our framework, shown below.

The branches above connect Timbi’s framework to the wider world of prevention and brain science. Each link leads to organizations and research that have helped shape our understanding of connection, safety, and healing.

Our Framework

Psychoeducation
Timbi introduces children to simple truths about addiction and emotions in language they can understand. By naming what’s happening around them, children learn that they are not responsible for an adult’s behavior — and that understanding itself can reduce fear and shame.

Safety and Emotional Support
Before a child can learn, they must first feel safe. Timbi creates that sense of safety through story, tone, and repetition. When adults read alongside children, they provide co-regulation — the shared calm that helps the child’s nervous system settle and feel secure.

Positive Thinking and Neuroplasticity
Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to change through experience. Timbi helps children practice positive thoughts and actions that build new, healthier pathways in the brain — strengthening attention, empathy, and emotional control. Repetition, kindness, and connection are all forms of “brain training” for resilience.

Coping Skills and Emotional Regulation
Through Timbi’s examples, children learn simple self-regulation tools — breathing, naming feelings, asking for help — that activate the body’s calming system. Over time, these coping skills become automatic supports for stress and recovery.

Neuroplasticity in Action:
How Timbi Builds New Pathways

Neuroplasticity isn’t just theory — it’s visible in every Timbi interaction.

When a child reads Timbi Talks or Timbi Colors with a supportive adult, the simple sequence of connection, story, and reflection activates the same neural systems involved in attachment and emotional learning. Over time, these moments of shared safety build new patterns in the brain — ones that favor calm, trust, and optimism.

With Timbi Talks and Timbi Colors, children and caregivers can practice small, repeatable skills that change the brain from the inside out.

Labeling Emotions reduces intensity and builds awareness.
Breathing and Grounding activate the parasympathetic nervous system and restore physiological calm.
Gratitude and Visualization train attention toward positivity.
Smiling and Play release endorphins and engage the brain’s self-healing circuitry.
Nature and Movement regulate energy and strengthen body-based resilience.

Each of these activities reinforces the message:

“I can calm myself. I can change how I feel. I am safe.”

The Science We Draw From

Timbi_10_edited_edited_edited_edited_edi

Neuroplasticity

Children’s brains are continually reshaped in response to experience. Every caring interaction, every moment of safety, and every shared experience of calm helps wire the brain toward connection and resilience.

When children practice emotional regulation, grounding, and positive self-talk alongside Timbi, they’re literally strengthening the neural circuits that help them cope, recover, and thrive.

Over time, these small moments add up. The brain learns that safety is possible, hope is real, and connection can be trusted — the foundation for lifelong healing and growth.

Polyvagal Theory

Developed by Dr. Stephen Porges, Polyvagal Theory helps us understand how the nervous system responds to safety and threat — and how connection itself can restore balance. When children feel safe and connected, their “social engagement system” turns on, allowing learning, empathy, and curiosity to flourish.

Timbi isn’t just a calm voice in the story; he models everyday practices that help shift both children and caregivers into states of safety, connection, and healing. Activities like spending time in nature, creating art, dancing, practicing yoga, breathing exercises, or simply sharing quiet, caring moments with others all help regulate the nervous system and support recovery from stress.

6-timbi teacher spread_edited_edited.jpg

Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs)

Research from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the CDC shows that positive experiences — like having caring adults, feeling heard, and knowing you belong — can buffer the effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and promote lifelong health.

Timbi helps build these protective factors by modeling empathy, communication, and safety in relationships. Through story and play, children experience what it feels like to be understood, comforted, and valued — experiences that strengthen their sense of self and their trust in others.

From Science to Practice: Trauma-Informed Care

Trauma-informed practice recognizes that behavior is often a reflection of what a child has experienced, not who they are. When adults respond with curiosity and compassion instead of punishment or blame, children begin to feel safe enough to trust and learn.

Timbi’s approach focuses on creating predictable, empowering experiences that support regulation and connection. By modeling calm responses and providing clear, consistent messages, caregivers help children rebuild a sense of safety — the foundation for confidence, growth, and healing.

**Use the links on the tree at the top to learn more about these topics.

Explore the Roots of Timbi's Science

Neuroplasticity in Action: How Timbi Builds New Pathways

The Science We Draw From

Neuroplasticity in Action:
How Timbi Builds New Pathways