Helping Students Deal with Anger

1. Helping Students Deal with Anger By: Kelley Dawson Salas

2. Michael • “Michael was normally an outgoing, upbeat kid who was well liked by his classmates and teachers. But from time to time he would just ‘drop out’ of what the class was doing. Sometimes he would simply put his head down and withdraw. Sometimes he would start pushing and shoving his classmates. And sometimes he would escalate to a full-blown tantrum, which would grind the entire classroom to a halt”.

3. Is Outside Help Enough? • She referred Michael for Collaborative Support Team action. • Michael visited a psychologist a few times. • The teacher and social worker made calls to his family.

4. Lessons on Anger • Do not teach about anger after an outburst, all eyes will be on that student. The problem could escalate or the student may be labeled as an angry person. • Plan a few simple lessons that would help all students consider what anger is, what other emotions or experiences anger is linked to, and how we can respond.

5. Safe Responses to Anger • Help your students recognize that when we are upset, we can either choose a course of action that is unsafe or unhealthy for ourselves and others, or we can choose a course of action that is safe and healthy. • Help students to identify and practice safe responses when they feel angry.

6. Discussions • One- make a list of “things that make us angry” • Two- make a list of “things people do when they’re mad” • Talk about whether the examples are safe or unsafe • Three- make a poster to hang in the classroom that showed different responses to anger. In the center, the question “what can you do when you feel angry?”Take time to discuss that each person makes a choice when angry about what course of action to take.

7. Source of Anger • Rather than just telling students to respond “safely” to a situation that makes them mad, they need to be taught to consider the source of their anger and to develop a response that is not only safe but also effective. • Students should be encouraged to see the difference between a response that simply helps them blow off steam, and one that actively seeks to address the cause of their anger and solve the problem.

8. Why Do Adults Do It? • How can teachers tell students that they should choose safe responses to anger when so many adults choose verbal outbursts or even physical violence?

9. More Questions to Think About. • Was it really anger? Was he expressing other feelings such as frustration, loneliness, or pain? • What would you do for these students? • How do you explain why some adults express anger, but we try to teach students not to.