Books That Heal Kids: aggression

Showing posts with label aggression. Show all posts
Showing posts with label aggression. Show all posts

Book Review: Sam's Pet Temper




















Author: Sangeeta Bhardra
Illustrator: Marion Arbona
Interest Level: Ages 3 and Up
Free Activity Page Click HERE

From the Book Jacket: Sam has a new pet. It's a TEMPER, and he found it on the playground. At first, the Temper is great company. But before long, it becomes hard to handle, and Sam starts to wish it would leave him alone. One dreadful day, the Temper takes things TOO FAR, and Sam knows he has to do something. He tries one thing after another, but the Temper won't back down. Will Sam find a way to tame his Temper?

Why It's On My Bookshelf: This is a great book for kids who are struggling with emotional regulation. Especially those kids who are really trying and frustrated with their anger because they feel like they can't control it. I liked all of the examples of how the anger pops up in his life at home and school and one day it goes too far. Sam is sent home from school. At the end of the story Sam is able to handle his anger and stop the misbehavior cycle. He tells the Temper he is stronger and does breathing. This is an awesome resource for helping kids manage their anger. 

A Link to This Book and Others You Might Find Helpful: 
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Book Review: Moody Cow Meditates
















Author/Illustrator: Kerry Lee MacLean
Interest Level: Ages 4 and Up

From the Book Jacket: It all started one stupid, rotten day when everything went wrong…
Peter the cow is having a BAD day. After missing the bus and wiping out on his bike he loses his temper and gets in trouble. To make matters worse all the other kids are teasing him, calling him Moody Cow. Peter’s day just seems to get worse until his grandfather comes over and teaches him how to settle his mind and let go of his frustration through a simple and fun exercise. This vibrant and funny children’s book is a playful way to introduce children to the power of meditation. With full color illustrations by the author, Moody Cow Meditates is a wonderful book for parents and children to share together.
Why It's On My Bookshelf: At the beginning of the school year I attended a district counselor meeting to share what successful resources we have been using. A few counselors gave praise to the book Moody Cow Meditates and how the use of Mind Jars in their schools was impactful with kids. I kept thinking - how can I not have this book yet?? 

I bought it after the meeting and can't wait to put it to use. This is a great book to teach kids calming skills through the use of a Mind Jar. Moody Cow is lacking the tools on how to deal with anger and frustration. He also says 'okay, maybe I overreacted.' I was really glad this concept was introduced because we have a lot of kids that treat small deals like huge ones. Moody Cow also says he does things on purpose. What a great way to open up the discussion about making good choices. Can't wait to make Mind Jars with our students!





I also love this video on Mindfulness. If you don't have time to make a Mind Jar....just use a glitter ball. Love!



A Link to This Book and Others You Might Find Helpful:
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Book Review: Millie Fierce

Author/Illustrator: Jane Manning
Interest Level: Ages 5 and Up

From the Book Jacket: Millie is quiet. Millie is sweet. Millie is mild. But the kids at school don't listen to her. And she never gets a piece of birthday cake with a flower on it. And some girls from her class walk right on top of her chalk drawing and smudge it. And they don't even say they're sorry!

So that's when Millie decides she wants to be fierce! She frizzes out her hair, sharpens her nails and runs around like a wild thing. But she soon realizes that being fierce isn't the best way to get noticed either, especially when it makes you turn mean. So Millie decides to be nice--but to keep a little of that fierce backbone hidden inside her. In case she ever needs it again.

With bright art and an adorable character, it's easy to empathize with Millie. Because everyone has a bad day, once in a while.


Why It's On My Bookshelf: Millie Fierce is a great example of positive and negative ways to get attention from others. I see children having negative (purposeful) interactions with others on a daily basis in my school. I just love books like this that open up dialogue and help us get to the root of what's really going on...maybe they are having a bad day, could something be going on at home, are they feeling excluded. Millie has a change of heart when one of her actions causes a boy to cry. She reflects and begins to start doing things with kindness. Can't wait to focus on this character trait this year!

A Link to This Book and Others You Might Find Helpful:
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The Zach Rules Series: Zach Apologizes & Zach Gets Frustrated

Author: William Mulcahy
Illustrator: Darren McKee
Interest Level: Ages 5-8 
Publisher: Free Spirit Publishing (lots of great resources on their website)

A family counselor and psychotherapist teaches kids how to tame their frustration and how to deliver a proper apology in the first two books of the newly released Zach Rules series.

Zach Apologizes
From the Publisher: In Zach Apologizes, when Zach shoves his little brother to the floor, he knows he did something wrong. Even so, it's hard to apologize - especially when he feels Alex kind of deserved it! With his mom's help, Zach learns the "four-square" apology: (1) say what you did; (2) say how it made the other person feel; (3) say what you could have done instead; and (4) make it up to the person.

Why It's On My Bookshelf: Coaching students when it comes to an apology is so important. Otherwise we'd probably just hear a lot of quick "I'm sorry's." We know that kind of apology does more harm than it does good. Reading Zach Apologizes reopened my eyes to how absolutely critical it is to help kids go deeper when they are making amends. Author William Mulcahy introduces kids to the "four-square" apology. This approach helps kids to be remorseful and have empathy about their actions. 


Kids are very visual so this is really going to stick with them. Cannot wait to teach this to the students and staff! Plus the kids play four-square out at recess so their ears will REALLY perk up.

Make sure to read the WONDERFUL advice in the back of the book for adults. There are some great tips on how to guide children through the four squares. Download a printable copy of the four-square apology HERE.

Zach Gets Frustrated
From the Publisher: In Zach Gets Frustrated, Zach is having a lousy day at the beach. Zach kicks sand, yells angry words, and asks his dad if they can just go home. Instead, his dad teaches him the "frustration triangle" - a simple, three-step approach to get a handle on frustration: (1) name it; (2) tame it; and (3) reframe it. Each book concludes with a short note to adults to help parents, teachers, counselors, and other grown-ups reinforce the book's messages and practice the skills with their kids. 

Why It's On My Bookshelf: This is SUCH a helpful resource to the students in my school. So many kids don't know what to do with their frustration and often times this leads to a negative behavior choice. Zach Gets Frustrated teaches children frustration doesn't need to ruin their day and it can even be channeled into something positive if they take the time to understand it. The frustration triangle technique is a new discovery for me and it's going to definitely have an impact.

The Frustration Triangle
Name it!
Tame it!
Reframe it!

Download a printable copy of the frustration triangle HERE

I CANNOT RECOMMEND THIS SERIES ENOUGH! IT'S AWESOME!!!!!

A Link to These Books: 

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Lively Elizabeth! What Happens When You Push

Author: Mara Bergman
Illustrator: Cassia Thomas
Interest Level: Ages 4-7

From the Book Jacket: Lively Elizabeth lives up to her name - in fact, she's a little bit of a handful! She doesn't mean to hurt anyone, but one day at school she finds out that one little push can lead to BIG problems!


Why It's On My Bookshelf: Let me set the scene for you: It's recess. Children are playing joyfully. The recess bell rings. The students run towards their line and all of a sudden the joy is GONE. There are some kids crying, some on the ground holding scraped knees, others arguing and pointing at each other, and then I get to come over and sort it all out. 



Now granted this does not happen all of the time because we work really hard on having students line up safely - but these are kids - they are not perfect. My saving grace is always a social skills book. I've found a new one, Lively Elizabeth! What Happens When You Push, to help teach self-control and reinforce being safe in school.


Little Miss Lively Elizabeth is not in the same scenario at recess but she does decide to push another boy in class. Which causes a whole domino effect of kids falling into one another. Great illustrations showing cause and effect. 








She experiences the social consequences of kids being upset with her but is forgiven after making an apology for her behavior. Loved the making amends part. Although I've been reading it this Spring, I plan on re-reading it at the beginning of the school year next Fall. It's such a great addition to my library. I'm hoping it will help decrease my "Lord help me" moments at recess.


A Link to This Book:

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Book Review: Two New Howard B Wigglebottom Books

Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns It's OK to Back Away
Author: Howard Binkow
illustrated by Susan F. Cornelison
Interest Level: Ages 4-8

From the Book Jacket: This fun and entertaining illustrated picture book shows children how to handle anger issues and back away from conflicts. The story teaches important skills through humor and real life situations with which young children can immediately identify. There are several suggestions for lessons and reflections at the end of the book. This is the fifth in the award winning, teacher endorsed Howard B. Wigglebottom series.  

Why It's On My Bookshelf: As the school year progresses and new friendships are formed between students something else starts to form....conflicts. And they don't always end nicely. Anger can really mess the whole thing up. So this is the time of year I start teaching A LOT of lessons on how to deal with your anger without hurting other kids. Howard B Wigglebottom Learns It's OK to Back Away is new to my shelf and fits in beautifully with my lessons on learning to get calm and walk away from situations. It's also a good way to demonstrate self-talk. Howard uses the phrase, "Stop, it's OK to back away." Really like that....calming statements work wonders!

Howard B. Wigglebottom and the Monkey
on His Back: A Tale About Telling the Truth 
Author: Howard Binkow
illustrated by Susan F. Cornelison
Interest Level: Ages 4-8

About This Book: Even though Howard's conscience tells him lying is wrong - he chooses to lie anyway - why not? It's so easy and he can get away with it most of the time. Soon he realizes he feels sad and uncomfortable with himself. How can he make this bad feeling go away?

Why It's On My Bookshelf: Oh happy day!! A new book about honesty and the MAJOR problem with lying!! I only have a handful of books addressing this issue. Newsflash: 99.9% of kids know lying is a big NO NO. But all of a sudden they find themselves in a chronic pattern of dishonesty. That's why I dig the metaphor of the monkey (so get your monkey props ready) on the back. Because lying can feel like a horrible burden being carried around. After many incidents of lying Howard starts to feel plain awful about himself. To the point where he can't sleep because of the stress of his bad choices. It's not until he makes a brave decision to tell the truth that the monkey (bad feelings, guilt) leaves. I really love the message at the end....lying makes a person feel completely unhappy. You may be fooling the people around you but deep down you know the truth - and have to live with that knowledge. Whoo! Good stuff.

Check out more Howard goodness at The We Do Listen Foundation

A Link to These Books:  
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Book Review: I Call My Hand Gentle


Author: Amanda Haan
Illustrated by Marina Sagona
Interest Level: Ages 4-9

About This Book: In a book about empowerment and choice, an unidentified narrator catalogs some of the wonderful things a hand can do: pick up things, throw, hold, write, draw, push. Fluid, expressionistic illustrations in Day-Glo colors, some full page, some small and square, add potency to the brief words. After exploring what hands can do, the narrator moves to bigger issues--honorable behavior and choice ("I choose not to steal, push, hurt"), with the accompanying illustration, in garish hues, on a background of orange and yellow flames. The book concludes as the narrator recounts good choices (using a hand to pet, cuddle, tickle, and share), which leads to the final statement, "So I'll call my hand gentle." An elegantly simple lesson that will work well at home and in the classroom.


Why It's On My Bookshelf: I've had a lot of success with this book in the younger grades. It is a simple and concrete message. We can use our hands to help or hurt. It's a choice. How will you choose to use your hands? How will you choose to solve your problems? I often read I Call My Hand Gentle a few times throughout the school year. Kids need a lot of reinforcement from adults to choose a non-violent way to deal with problems. I love this activity a teacher did with her students. Go get this wonderful book for your shelf.


A Link to This Book:



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Book Review: The Recess Queen

Author: Alexis O'Neill
Illustrator: Laura Huliska-Beith
Interest Level: Ages 4-8

From the Book Jacket: Mean Jean was Recess Queen and nobody said any different. Nobody swung until Mean Jean swung. Nobody kicked until Mean Jean kicked. Nobody bounced until Mean Jean bounced. If kids ever crossed her, she'd push 'em and smoosh 'em, lollapaloosh 'em, hammer 'em, slammer 'em, kitz and kajammer 'em...until a new kid came to school...

Why It's On My Bookshelf: Trying to find books dealing with bullying in younger grades is often a frustration of mine, until I discovered The Recess Queen. The little girl on the cover looks like the meanest baddest bully you have ever seen. Based on the title and the cover illustration alone, I was sold. As I read through the story at home, I was expecting the book to teach strategies on how to deal with mean behavior at recess. But, The Recess Queen uses a different take on bullying. The strategy is to turn the bully into a friend (and we all know how hard it is to respect someone when they are disrespecting you) with kindness. Yes, there is a moment of standing up for oneself during the story, but it ends with kindness. I really appreciate the author using another child to turn Mean Jean's behavior around. It's been impactful in our K-2 grades. The illustrations are awesome and the kids love all the rhyming. I suggest this book to help children see the bully through a different perspective.

A Link to This Book and Others You Might Find Helpful:
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