Faced with a daily onslaught of news, many have become used to hearing about war, shootings, bombings, and crime.
Though many become immune to this information, others take it very seriously and have a difficult time venting that frustration.
Coupled with increasing violence in schools, many children find themselves angry about these situations. Anger management for kids is an essential skill – without the ability to control their anger, children will become part of the anger problem.
Dr. Michele Borba, an anger consultant to schools and an author, says of the hundreds of schools she has consulted over ten years, that the “single greatest trend…is the marked increase of stress and anxiety in our children.” Anger management for kids is a problem, but there are solutions. Teaching anger management for kids will last them a lifetime as well as impress the importance of self improvement at an early age.
Anger management for kids emphasizes the importance of learning self control. Anger management for kids can be headed off before it even starts with some self control.
Children that know how to calm themselves down will handle their anger better. The most important way to start teaching anger management for children is for the parent to manage anger. Parents should behave as the model of calm when teaching anger management for kids. Children will observe their parents’ behavior and will follow their example.
Anger management for children involves learning about feelings. Developing a vocabulary for feelings with children is a way for them to better identify why they are feeling a certain way. Many times, anger management for kids can be controlled just by the child learning how to express feelings.
By knowing words like “upset,” “frustrated,” “tense,” and “irritated” children will be able to tell the difference in their own feelings.
Anger management for kids becomes even more successful when a child knows what to expect when they get angry. Many people talk louder or faster, some become quieter, while others perspire. Anger management for kids can be achieved by teaching kids how to calm down before their anger gets out of control. Prevention is the best medicine – a child who knows what happens to their body when they get angry will be able to anticipate the emotion, and be able to calm down easier.
Anger management for kids includes learning a phrase that can be repeated under stress.
Self-talk phrases like “calm down” or “take a deep breath” work when children are in situations that cause anger to bubble.
Giving them a specific phrase to use for practice provides kids with control. Deep, cleansing breaths work to calm anger. Counting to five in between inhale and exhale gives the body a few seconds to relax.
Exhaling just as slowly continues the relaxation. Anger management for teens is also very important.
Though many of the tips are the same as anger management for kids, like learning feeling vocabulary and self control, anger management for teens goes a step further and involves more problem-solving and critical thinking skills.
Self improvement at this older age require some different approaches. TeensHealth suggests that teens contemplate actions more, reflecting on how they acted and how they can act differently in the future. Aditional anger management techniques for teens include activities that can take one’s mind away from anger such as exercise, writing, or drawing. It’s essential for parents to be supportive and understanding.
Without support, it is hard for anyone to change a behavior.
Anger management for kids and teens has to involve consistency.
Consistently having a calm role model, learning feeling words and anger warning signs, and using self-talk and breath control are the key to succeeding in anger management for kids.
Self improvement doesn’t happen overnight, but with consistency and patience, anger management for kids will become more automatic.