This giveaway is now closed. This month we are giving away the first two books in the new Kids Can Cope series. These inviting picture books offer kids practical strategies for coping with difficult feelings and challenging situations. Three lucky readers will win:
To Enter: Leave a comment below describing how you help kids manage big emotions.
For additional entries, leave a separate comment below for each of the following tasks you complete:
Each comment counts as a separate entry. Entries must be received by midnight, October 18, 2019.
The winner will be contacted via email on or around October 21, 2019, and will need to respond within 72 hours to claim his or her prize or another winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way affiliated with, administered, or endorsed by Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram. Winners must be US residents, 18 years of age or older.
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© 2019 by Free Spirit Publishing. All rights reserved. The view expressed in this post represent the opinion of the author and not necessarily Free Spirit Publishing.
Teaching self regulation is a huge part of my job. These books would be a super added addition to my resources. The student love listening to the stories and we can learn something also.
Awesome contest idea…These are skill-sets that while we are frustrated with kids that don’t possess them, we forget the need to explicitly teach them.
I’m currently a stay-at-home mom to a 3 year old daughter, but prior to that, I was an elementary school counselor for 9 years. I taught kids in a variety of settings ranging from small groups and individual students to class lessons. I taught anything and everything related to socio-emotional health and behavior, as well as basic life skills and behavior. Now I’m teaching those same skills to my young daughter! Love Free Spirit Publishing books, they’re the best books for school counselors and parents!
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I teach feeling identification, body sensations, calming strategies and coping strategies.
I like to share stories and experiences with kids. Talking to kids about other people’s experiences shows them that they are not the only ones experiencing the situation. Others go through it the same and listening about the way others deal with challenges teaches strategies to kids to deal with their own.
I followed on Twitter. My handle is @ShauntrellLeaks
Thanks for the opportunity to win these two books. In my first grade classroom we have a peace corner where students can go if they are feeling overwhelmed. It has a stress ball and child’s chair with signs on the wall. One sign is a song from Daniel Tigers Neighborhood to help them calm down. The other poster is a list of 10 Ways to Calm Down.
We love to read any of the Fred Roger’s series on feelings and friendships. We also have a quiet corner in our library with strategies/pictures on what to do when upset.
I started a anti bullying campaign that gets out in the community spreading awareness.. I have have a cool paper where i allow kids to express themself with stickers markers giltter and beads. I’ve learned it helps express there feelings better than talking to me
I teach kindergarten. I use a puppet called Polly the Worry Monster.
I work with students in Grades 5-8 who go back and forth from a behavioral school to a regular ed setting. These students have very poor coping skills and sadly have to be put into isolation often because they cannot deal with overstimulating situations and have no control over their anger. It would be like a slice of heaven to find something that would reach these students to assist them in getting back on track and to help them feel successful for once in their lives.
Thank you for this wonderful opportunity! I am a mobile therapist and a behavioral specialist consultant with children that have mental health disorders. I am constantly working with kids to help regulate their emotions and cope with the stressors of their life. I feel that these books would be very beneficial to the kids that I work with and will help improve many lives. I truly enjoy helping others and I try to find every way possible to do that. I have my masters degree in social work and mental health is my absolute passion. Im only 28 years old, so these books would get many years of great use. 🙂 Thank you so much for your time.
Carli Kenyon
I am a mom blogger and I believe that making kids aware about the big emotions is utmost important then only they can manage it. I communicate with them and try to read them books that talk about emotions. I recently read a book with a great teaching for kids that since we are alive, we all have emotions and feelings. Feeling and emotions come and go like breathing if we notice carefully. So while we face strong emotions, we must breath in and out. This will help up to attain peace. I think this is very effective way.
I am teaching SEL lessons in a Title I school, Gr. VPK-5. Poverty leaves kids feeling anxious, unsure, angry, sad- these big emotions can lead to big behaviors. We could use these books at my school- specifically, I could use them! I love to incorporate literature in my lessons. The kids don’t often have someone reading out loud to them other than in the school setting. It’s a win-win! Thank you for this opportunity. 🙂
I work at a unique campus where the entire school is dedicated to pre-school. This means that for most of my population this is their very first time to be in a school environment with peers.
Worry and anger are continual themes we discuss in the classrooms and that I teach in my guidance lessons. These books would benefit our kiddos greatly as we teach them to handle these big feelings and set the foundation for their futures.
We use deep breathing, matching the energy of the big emotion and bringing it back down to size. I help students identify their feelings by offering several possible feeling words for what they are demonstrating. Then we move to “how do you WANT to FEEL? What helps you feel that way?
I have been integrating mindfulness practices and skills into the curriculum. Things like belly breathing , listening meditation and body scans are some I have done in my early childhood classroom .
I teach a social-emotional learning program to students in grade K-4. These books would a wonderful supplement to our unit on feelings – naming them and managing them. It is so helpful for students to have stories they can identify with.
I work with 4th graders, who are becoming more independent and figuring out their emotions. To regulate their big emotions, I start with a conversation with what they are feeling. We dig deep sometimes. This may incorporate their breathing and walking about from the situation. I’ve also created a zen zone (calming center) for students to use when they want to self-manage their emotions. In this area, students start by identifying their emotions, then picking an activity they will do to help with their emotions, and finally filling out a “chill sheet” to reflect where they started and ended at in the zen zone.
I help kids manage emotions and feelings through activity sheets, coping skills practice and role plays in Counseling lessons, individual counseling sessions, and small counseling groups.
We are a community base Preschool and have always been very inclusive. We believe in helping children become more aware of their emotions and providing them with ways that they can understand them and control them. For the past 5 years or more we offer children yoga, relaxation time. This year we have had Hearts and Heads come into our Preschool twice a week and do a 30 minute mindfulness program with the children. This has incorporated focused points on Big Feelings, Bounce Back when things go wrong and a lot more.
Each day we have yoga time and meditation time where children are able to select their breathing buddy from its castle to lay with them We have some stories that children can relate too, these help children become more aware of their own emotions and resilience.
I teach students self-talk and let them know that their feelings are typical, not strange or “weird”, but human, and that there are coping strategies: breathing exercises, self-talk, talking it out, drawing how they feel, distracting themselves with a relaxing activity
I teach parenting and healthy relationship skills classes, learning to deal with emotions is so important to adults and children of all ages. I like to read books like these to groups and give them away as door prize. Look gorward to readibg your books.
I work with Deaf and Hard of Hearing students. Often these children miss out on many things and sometimes that is how to deal with emotions. I also work with children that have a hearing loss and another exceptionality so we do a lot of deep breathing and also talking about our feelings.
We work on naming our feelings so we can tame our feelings. We practice deep breathing and mindfulness to help reframe uncomfortable moments and feelings.
We use your books, of course! We also help kids by labelling their feelings while they’re experiencing them. Thanks for the chance!
I am an elementary school counselor and I help students cope with big emotions by modeling deep breathing. We also read books or social stories together about other ways to handle strong emotions.
I worked with elementary gifted students and have a child with “big feelings”. I incorporate the SEL part of gifted into whole group lessons. I try to teach strategies for recollecting ourselves and a positive way to move forward- take a breath, notice things through the senses, talk through your feelings & emotions, how did they impact others, etc.- and we have a “take a break spot” in the classroom.
I work with 3- and 4-year-olds and teach them strategies such as taking deep breaths. I also help them redirect their negative emotions in positive ways – bite an apple instead of your friend, punch a pillow instead of your friend, etc.
I teach in an inclusive classroom of 3-5 year old children. We use the Second Step Curriculum. The books would go along with the feelings books we use.
I often use Julia Cooks books in 1:1 sessions and groups. I primarily work with 2nd – 4th grades students and know that will appreciate your stories that will help us address (SEL).
I help manage big emotions by coming down to their level, talking in a calm voice and waiting for them to respond. It is hard for them when they do not know how to self-regulate, so I do a simple breathing exercise and wait for a response. Talking about what happened once their emotions are regulated and they are calm and able to process what happened helps them to understand themselves better. Giving praise for helping themselves get through the emotion helps them to feel more confident.
I provide play therapy & mental health services to preschool children, toddlers, and their families. Supporting children (and their caregivers) with their big emotions is a multifaceted process of naming, validating, accepting, practicing and playing with it. Books and social stories are sometimes helpful with reminders and getting an idea about what might work next time. I have been finding that the first step into the world of feelings is to accept and allow them to be just they way they are. That’s a very big step for most of us because the tendency is to vanquish, hide or squelch them because they are messy and get in the way of the status quo –for the most part. The next step once you agree to have these feelings is to explore some ways to live with them as they grow and change.
As an early childhood consultant, I go to many child care settings (centers and homes) throughout the month coaching teachers on interacting in positive ways with young children. Much of my coaching involves modeling with children and embedding skills needed for social-emotional development. In today’s face-paced moving world, it appears I see more and more children having BIG emotions and needing nurturing guidance to deal with them. I regularly include some type of deep breathing or mindfulness activity whenever working with children because it seems everyone could use more helpful strategies and time to slow down, relax, reflect, etc. What a nice edition these books would make to my work with children and teachers! Very meaningful tools …and right on time!
I enjoy the quality of the guidance books through Free Spirit. I serve as a counselor in a Title 1 school. It is critical for our students to learn about anger and ways to cope those strong feelings. The books provide a safe way to talk about the subject . It offers a way to learn in a non-threatening way,
As a teacher assistant in the SPED classroom, we often see our students with different emotions, my way of helping them cope is just talk to them briefly about the situation and leave them alone until they calm down. It is rather difficult to pacify them while they are in the midst of anger. W hff on the anger subsided, I sat with them and talk.
I work with children of all ages as an in-home clinician and foster care supervisor. The kiddos typically have difficulty with social interactions and emotional regulation. I have a love affair with books and use them to help kids learn pro-social skills that support their safety and well-being. I also use games and other activities.
Teach children that there are “No winners or losers but everyone is a CHOOSER”- Each person chooses and is responsible for their own actions
I do Family Childcare and I have used your books for years and with different age groups. I also share the books with the parents.
I love to use books with children and often change some of the wording to meet their specific concerns.
I do a lot of play therapy with kids that I work with to help them express and learn ways to manage their feelings. I love incorporating books into it as well!
I work with elementary students. The best solution I have found is, to help students talk about their feelings. It makes them more aware of the problem or situation. A teacher facilitated talk or a peer talk helps the student share emotions. Quiet time gives a student a place to think. The school should be a safe place to share and grow.
I love using books and stories with my elementary school students to help them learn new ways of coping with strong emotions. The narratives and pictures help students to connect with the skills in a way that talking does not.
When a student is experiencing a big emotion, I ask them to check in with their body and tell me they feel it. Sometimes it’s their tummy, their chest, their eyes. We do breathing and squeezing exercises to release the feeling.
I work with young children doing in home therapy some evenings. These children have experience with separation anxiety, domestic violence, abandonment.. etc. Books like this have helped me with using appropriate language for some tough subjects.
Explore the strategies that characters use to solve problems.
Working with preschoolers, we help children learn to name or label their emotions and to recognize what different feelings look like in their peers. We read story books about big emotions and discuss how characters handle their feelings. And we help “in the moment”, when children are actually experiencing a strong emotion in the classroom.
I would love to have this at school for my students. As a school counselor, I often see students with anger and worries!
When they are calm, we practice belly breaths, tornado breaths, all different types of breathing for different feelings so they can use them more automatically when they are overwhelmed by their emotions.
Would love to utilize the books to help kids in our school put those big emotions away! Through great books such as these, emotions can be normalized, kids learn to cope and there are people who care and support them everyday.
I am a Special Education teacher and these books would hopefully help my life skills students understand and manage their feelings better.
I am an elementary school counselor with a couple of big emotion kids of my own, and I really work with them on deep breathing when the emotions are not big….in the hopes that they are able to access that action when in the throes of emotion.
We use video and books to identify emotions and establish strategies to help cope with the emotions.
As a therapist in a school setting, we work on emotions ALL the time. I love using books like these in session. It allows students to relate to the characters and takes the pressure off of them. I often encourage student to write their own stories to use to explore their emotions!
My Guidance classroom is set up with areas for calming down, blowing off strong feelings, reading/study areas. I have special lighting, couches, bean bag chairs, exercise ball, glitter jars, crafts, calming essential oils, just to name a few. The most vaualuable tool, though, is being assessable and open to students who need these spaces and opportunities. Usually, they just want to be heard and understood.
We validate the child’s feelings and begin calm down with breathing techniques and some quiet time in the safe place of the room with ways I can help regulate those big feelings. Choosing to read a book is a great way to help children learn to regulate their feelings!
As the parent of children with “big emotions” and as a parent peer specialist, lending support to parents on a similar journey, it’s a multitude of ‘tools’ depending on the day, the child, the situation…constant learning. Sometimes, it’s simply a matter of sitting through the emotions with my child.
I am a special education teacher. I run a comprehensive developmental classroom for students with severe and profound autism and intellectual disabilities. Whom can be injurious to self and others. Would love these books during our story time. I appreciate your consideration and your generosity.
We work together to allow them to feel the emotion, and then use deep breaths, drawing, a tactile fidget, etc. to let the strong emotion subside. We then try to process the cause and “dissect” it discussing usually the all or nothing thinking.
Teaching them to label their emotions!
Giving them time to first recognize what they are feeling and then time to make smart choices about what to do with those feelings.
I am a school social worker in an elementary school and always use books to introduce social emotional topics or reinforce a strategy that we are learning. We then use the information learned in the book to make a classroom resource to refer back to and/or something to send home to reinforce the lesson at home. Anger and Worry/Anxiety are two of the areas my kids seem to struggle with the most.
We go over how they feel right now, being mindful of what their bodies are doing, and what strategy they have to affect positive changes
I help by doing sessions with children in mindfulness and yoga, both in my work as a School Psychologist, and in my “side gig” as a yoga teacher!
We need so many resources on these subjects! Younger and younger children are having difficulty.
As a School Social Worker in an Elementary school, I help students manage their anger by reading books that give examples of skills such as: deep breathing, using your words, mindfulness exercises and stop and think to calm down first and then choose a Safe way to share and deal with their angry feelings. We will role play in Peer Groups these skills also and I may give them a Stress Ball to utilize in the classroom to defuse.
Seeing so many children for anxiety and anger. I would love to have these books!
Reflecting how they feel without judgement or criticism helps kids with big emotions.
I work as a school counselor and also have 3 kids that struggle with managing their big feelings. I love bibliotherapy as a tool and always love additional resources to use to help kids learn to regulate their emotions.
I work with elementary students with learning difficulties and self regulation and self awareness is so important. They respond very well to social stories and books. Our school needs more resources like these.