March 26, 2009

Today we start the last unit in our Second Step lessons. These lessons are all about handling anger. There is important information in the planner pocket today. This adds to what is in the planner.

Anger is neutral. It is neither good nor bad. It is simply a signal that something is wrong.

We feel anger when we are frustrated or feel threatened in some way. It is important to know when we are angry so we can fix whatever is wrong. Our lessons will be helping children to calm down, not because the anger itself is bad, but because we don't think well when we are at the top of Anger Mountain.

In his excellent book, Make Anger Your Ally, Neil Clark Warren says that anger is like nuclear power, it can blow up a city or light up a city. Learning how to identify and harness our anger is one of life's most important lessons.