Seeing Red - by Jennifer Simmonds (Paperback)

About the Book

Seeing Red is a curriculum designed to help elementary and middle-school aged children better understand and deal with their anger so they can make healthy choices and build strong relationships. This completely revised and updated edition includes a comprehensive anti-bullying component.

Book Synopsis

A unique, proven approach to anger management for elementary and middle-school aged children.

Anger is a natural human emotion, but if it isn't managed properly its effects can be devastating. Seeing Red is a curriculum designed to help elementary and middle-school aged students better understand their anger so they can make healthy and successful choices and build strong relationships. This completely revised and updated edition includes a comprehensive anti-bullying component, complete with cutting-edge material specific to cyber-bullying and social media.

Designed especially for use with small groups, Seeing Red enables participants to learn from and empower one another. Its unique group process helps children and teens build important developmental objectives such as leadership skills (taking initiative, presenting in front of the group), social skills (taking turns, active listening), and building self-esteem (problem solving, interacting with peers). Key concepts and activities include:

• Spotting anger triggers and taking responsibility for mistakes
• Finding healthy ways to deal with provocation and avoiding losing control
• Identifying feelings, learning steps to control anger and exploring consequences.

Facilitators will learn how to empower participants through role playing, helping them to identify associated feelings and recognize negative behaviors. Each session includes objectives, a list of supplies, background notes and preparation tasks for the leader, a warm-up activity, an explanation of the various learning activities, and a closing activity. See for yourself why Seeing Red remains one of the most highly-regarded resources among professionals in the field of children's anger management.

From the Back Cover

"Anger management is one of [the] crucial skills and Seeing Red is a wonderful step by step program to teach children how to do it."
--David Walsh, PH.D., President, National Institute on Media and the Family

"...everyone gets angry and it is a normal feeling. This curriculum helps [students] understand different and more positive ways of expressing their anger"
-- Leslie Colerin, School Social Worker, Anne Sullivan Communication Center

Anger is a natural human emotion, but if it isn't managed properly its effects can be devastating. Seeing Red is a curriculum designed to help elementary and middle-school aged students better understand their anger so they can make healthy and successful choices and build strong relationships. Designed especially for use with small groups, this completely revised and updated edition guides facilitators in supporting children and teens as they build social and leadership skills and enhance their self-esteem.

Key concepts and activities include:

• Finding healthy ways to deal with provocation and avoiding losing control
• Spotting triggers and taking responsibility for mistakes
• Identifying feelings, learning steps to control anger and exploring consequences
• comprehensive anti-bullying component, complete with cutting-edge material specific to cyber-bullying and social media.

Seeing Red's unique group process enables participants to learn from and empower one another through role playing, helping them to identify associated feelings and recognize negative behaviors. Each session includes objectives, a list of supplies, background notes and preparation tasks for the leader, a warm-up activity, an explanation of the various learning activities, and a closing activity. See for yourself why Seeing Red remains one of the most highly-regarded resources among professionals in the field of children's anger management.

"...offers interactive activities to bring about discussion on a very serious topic, and does so in a fun and effective manner. Each lesson builds upon the others, creating a comprehensive and thorough curriculum that fosters learning and an understanding of anger as an emotion, and that it is how we deal with anger that makes a difference."
-- Julie Neitzel Carr, Resolution and Prevention Program, YWCA of Minneapolis

Jennifer Simmonds is Lead Program Coordinator at Fairview's Youth Grief Services and the author of Children in Change.

Review Quotes

Seeing Red is an excellent resource for anyone working with children who need help self-regulating their emotions. As a busy professional, it is often difficult to find the time to create lessons and do the planning necessary to run quality groups. Jennifer Simmonds has done the work for you! You can open up the Seeing Red curriculum and follow it each week with confidence. The kids grow from the quality experiences and practice they get from participating in the program. The lessons are creative and will hold their attention while providing real skill building. This resource should be in everyone's professional tool box! I wouldn't dream of doing my job without it.
---Lisa Hansen, school counselor

Seeing Red offers a roadmap for steering our children through the scary and misunderstood feelings of anger. Clear lesson plans, clues for the leader, and a simple supply list make this curriculum accessible for even the busiest school social worker or group facilitator. Jennifer Simmonds has provided an invaluable curriculum for teaching angry kids how to hold onto their best selves during times of stress and emotional dysregulation.
---Chris Dooley-Harrington, LICSW, Children's Grief Specialist

We teach kids important skills like reading and writing so they can get along in the world. We also need to teach kids the key skills needed to get along with other people. Anger management is one of those crucial skills and Seeing Red is a wonderful step by step program to teach children how to do it.
-- David Walsh, PH.D., President, National Institute on Media and the Family

The Seeing Red curriculum has been helpful for my students, enabling them to think about specific situations, to break them down, and to recreate new ways of handling their anger. Students have an opportunity to learn that everyone gets angry and that it is a normal feeling. This curriculum helps them understand different and more positive ways of expressing their anger.
- Leslie Colerin, School Social Worker, Anne Sullivan Communication Center

The Seeing Red curriculum is very well laid out for the facilitator. It offers interactive activities to bring about discussion on a very serious topic, and does so in a fun and effective manner. Each lesson builds upon the others, creating a comprehensive and thorough curriculum that fosters learning and an understanding of anger as an emotion, and that it is how we deal with anger that makes a difference.
- Julie Neitzel Carr, Resolution and Prevention Program, YWCA of Minneapolis

About the Author

Jennifer Simmonds is Lead Program Coordinator at Youth Grief Services, a nonprofit program serving grieving children and families. She holds a Masters of Education in Youth Development Leadership, and has facilitated hundreds of educational and support groups as well as workshops on peace-making, children in change, grief, social skills and LGBT support. In addition to over two decades of experience facilitating small groups, Jennifer has served as adjunct faculty at the University of Minnesota in the Youth Studies Department and is also author of the popular resource Children in Change .