I don’t offer an anger management class for kids, but am very of the need for it and will occasionally post tips on helping kids with anger management.
The most effective way to teach your kids anger management skills is to model coolness. Research has shown that the best way to teach anyone anything is through modeling. This is especially true for kids. While its totally unconscious the primary function of their brain is to figure out who they are, how to survive in the world, and what emotions are most appropriate for what situations. While most of us think of teaching our kids anger management through verbal lessons (e.g “Its not good when you do that”), the most powerful information they absorb is by watching the actions people around them, especially their parents and absorbing the lesson they set for anger management and how to get by in this world. Think back on some of the ways you use your anger management skills. Chances are you will say something like “I am just like my dad” or, “I vowed I would never have an anger problem like my dad”.
Because of this you can use upsetting experiences as “as it happens lessons” of ways to calm down. Here’s an example: suppose your furnace breaks down and the repairman gives you one estimate that seems reasonable only to get halfway through the job and all of sudden say that things are much worse than he originally thought and that your estimate has now doubled. You’re furious! Standing nearby is your child hearing the conversation and watching you very closely. Muster every ounce of calmness and use it as an instant anger control lesson: “I am so angry right now,” you calmly tell your child. “The repairman just doubled the price for fixing our furnace.” Then offer a calm-down solution: “I’m going on a quick walk so I can get back in control.” You’re now a living example of calmness, and that example is what your child will emulate. You’ve shown your child a success story in anger management Your home and the example you set is literally the most important benefits of an anger management class your child will experience.
12 video lessons
