In an age where youth violence is a worrying social reality, it is important to reflect on the importance of teaching adolescents to recognise emotions. This is not merely an exercise in personal growth, but a real pedagogical and social imperative, capable of influencing the prevention of violent behaviour and the construction of a more empathetic society. Adolescence is a period of intense change, characterised by profound cognitive, emotional and social reorganisation, in which young people find themselves having to manage a whirlwind of feelings without always having the appropriate tools to understand and modulate them. This is where school plays an irreplaceable role. Teaching adolescents to recognise their emotions means providing them with an internal compass to navigate their inner world. An unrecognised emotion can lead to impulsive and aggressive reactions. Youth violence takes many forms, such as bullying and physical aggression, and is often rooted in poor emotional intelligence. The inability to verbalise and process negative emotions can lead to externalising them in ways that are harmful to both oneself and others. Emotional education is not limited to recognising one's own emotions, but extends to understanding and empathy towards others. Through targeted activities, such as guided discussions and role-playing, students can learn to put themselves in someone else's shoes. At the same time, learning conflict management strategies is essential. Teaching children to negotiate, find peaceful solutions, mediate and express their dissent in an assertive and non-violent way means equipping them with vital skills for adult life and civil coexistence. This article illustrates the characteristics of the emotion recognition and conflict mediation workshops that have been offered for over ten years by an Italian association that deals with conflict mediation in secondary schools in the municipality of Florence. The workshops, which consist of five two-hour sessions, allow participants to approach and develop the principles underlying mediation: conflict, how it originates, how it develops, how it is managed and how it can be resolved. They also provide theoretical elements on conflict dynamics and mediation strategies, together with the opportunity to experiment with them in practice. The sessions use theatrical techniques for role-playing, improvisation, simulation of negotiation techniques and conflict management exercises. Particular attention is paid to the recognition and conscious management of emotions in conflict dynamics. The experience of the workshops shows how this type of project teaches adolescents to identify, express and manage their own emotions and to recognise those of others. Thanks to what they have learned, at the end of the workshop, students are able to reinterpret conflict situations that have occurred within the classroom. Investing in emotional education and conflict mediation at school therefore means providing adolescents with concrete tools to build a more conscious, empathetic and peaceful future.

Keywords: Adolescents, school, emotional education, violence.