Internationally recognized author & educator for professionals, parents, and kids
anger
5 Steps for Keeping Your Cool and Understanding What’s Really Bugging Your Kid
86714 years
Last weekend, my daughter, her best friend, and I had a full day’s worth of activity and adventure, enjoying thrill rides at a local Summer Carnival, eating cotton candy, throwing darts at a balloon board for prizes, and following it all up with a late afternoon movie. It was Girl Time at its best!
Which is why I was totally blown away when, after dropping off her friend, my daughter’s answer to my innocent inquiry of, “So, what should we do for dinner?” was met with a raging, “Nothing! Can we just go home already! I think we’ve bonded enough for one day.” (more…)
Nothing Comes from Nothing: Looking Beyond a Child’s Surface Behavior
75414 years
I am spending my week with 150+ Trainers from the Life Space Crisis Intervention Institute, for our organization’s Trainer re-Certification Conference. You can not find a more dedicated group of educators, social workers, counselors, or mental health professionals anywhere. What an honor to be spending my days this way.
To celebrate, I am posting an article I recently wrote about using LSCI principles in parenting:
This morning, my 7-year old daughter was playing a game on one of her favorite child-friendly websites, when all of a sudden, the computer froze up. She tried practicing patience, assuming the squirrels who power our older machine were running slowly. She attempted a re-start—Mama’s trick for fixing any piece of technology. She even walked away for a bit, in an effort to soothe her frustrated nerves. Nonetheless, when I came downstairs, fresh from a shower and ready to start a great family weekend, her answer to my question of, “What would you like for breakfast, sweetpea?” was an angry “Nothing. I’m not eating. I don’t like anything we have here! Why can’t you ever buy waffles?” (more…)
Don’t Just Stand There; Do Something
89714 years
I love it when I stumble upon the right article at the right time! I hope I can afford you the same great sanity-restoring experience.
Check out this great article from Daughters.com. The author provides helpful insight into why our kids sometimes act so maturely one day only to follow up with childlike meltdowns the next. Better yet, she gives practical advice on what we can do to keep our own heads from spinning in the process!
Win a copy of How To Be Angry!
914 years
Click below to visit ParentCentral.net and register to win a free copy of my book, How to Be Angry: An Assertive Anger Expression Group Guide for Kids & Teens.
How To Be Angry on ParentCentral
Backhanded Compliments and Sugarcoated Hostility: How to Recognize the 10 Common Passive Aggressive Phrases
58114 years
Is there someone in your life who consistently makes you feel like you are on an emotional roller coaster? Do you know a person who is friendly one day but sulks and withdraws the next? Does a family member or friend consistently procrastinate, postpone, stall, and shut down any emotionally-laden conversations? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, chances are you may be interacting with a passive aggressive person. (more…)
How to Be Angry: An Assertive Anger Expression Group Guide for Kids and Teens
66914 years
Best. Mail Delivery. Ever.
Just got home to find copies of my new book, How to Be Angry: An Assertive Anger Expression Group Guide for Kids and Teens, on my front porch. Please check it out here or at amazon.com.
I wrote it specifically for professionals and parents to help kids learn that having angry feelings does not make you bad; it makes you human. Learning how to effectively cope with and express those feelings in ways that enhance–rather than damage–relationships is the key.
How to Be Angry is packed with discussion-starters, games, and kid-friendly activites to help young people learn how to express their anger in assertive, relationship-building ways. It features two chapters on standing up to bullies, as well as tips on disagreeing without arguing, making and refusing requests, and responding to others’ anger.
I hope you enjoy it…check back and let me know what you think!
5 Steps for Turning Stressful Situations into Learning Opportunities with Kids
117114 years
6-year old Ian’s parents are going through a bitter divorce. With his estranged mom and dad still living under the same roof, Ian experiences a chaotic home environment that includes domestic violence and inconsistent care. At school, Ian often has unexplained meltdowns and major over-reactions to simple requests by his teachers. This morning, when his first period teacher asked him to take out his math homework, he called her a “Bitch” and kicked his chair to the floor. (more…)
What’s Your Anger Expression Style? Take this Quiz to Find Out
73414 years
by signewhitson
in anger, angry smile, assertiveness, Being a Mom, counter-passive aggression, family members, hidden revenge, husbands and wives, intentional inefficiency, kids, Parenting, parents, passive, passive aggression, passive aggression by children, passive aggression in families, passive aggressive behavior in families, passive aggressive behavior in relationships, relationships
Is your child the type to come right out and tell you when he is feeling angry? Does he stuff his anger inside? Perhaps he is most likely to express his feelings in sneaky ways. Or maybe, when he is mad, the whole world knows about it—and better step aside! Whatever your child’s anger style, chances are he has developed it over the years and modeled it after…gulp…much-loved family members.
Take this Anger Styles Quiz to learn about how anger is articulated in your family: (more…)