Social-Emotional Adjustment

Social Emotional Adjustment

Strategy: Using Picture Books to Help Young Students with Special Needs Regulate Their Emotions
Appropriate Grade Level: Kindergarten-5th grade
Procedures/Steps:
1.  Identify emotions students are demonstrating in class. (ex. Anger)
2.  Choose a picture book about that emotion. (ex. When Sophie Gets Angry by Molly Bang).
3.  Before you read ask students what the story may be about. Make observations from cover, title etc.
4.  During reading stop to talk about how character feels and why. Have students demonstrate feelings with face/body. (ex. Scrunch up face, pout, furrow brows for anger)
5.  After reading summarize emotions character was feeling and how character dealt with emotions. Have students talk about a time they felt that way and how they dealt with it. Offer some examples of replacement skills such as using your words to express feelings instead of hitting.
Comments and/or tips:
A list of picture books about emotions can be found on page 35 of this article. Please see the source below for more information.
Source:
Zambo, D.M., (2007). What can you learn from bombaloo? Teaching
Exceptional Children, 39(3), 32-39.

Picture Books About Emotions

When Sophie Gets Angry-Really, Really Angry (Bang, 1999)

Sometimes I’m Bombaloo (Vail, 2002)

Franklin’s Bad Day (Bourgeois & Clark, 1997)

Parts (Arnold, 1997)

Owen (Henkes, 1993)

Wemberly Worried (Henkes, 2005)

Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale (Willems, 2004)

Everyone Poops (Gomi & Stinchecum, 1993)

Walter the Farting Dog (Kotzwinkle & Murray, 2001)

That’s Disgusting! (Pittau & Gervais, 2004)

There’s a Nightmare in My Closet (Mayer, 1968)

Sheila Rae the Brave (Henkes, 2003)

Hooway for Wodney Wat (Lester, 1999)

Jamaica Tag-Along (Havill, 1990)

Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse (Henkes, 1996)

It Wasn’t My Fault (Lester, 1985)

ABC I Like Me (Carlson, 1997)

Chrysanthemum (Henkes, 1991)

The Rainbow Fish (Pfister, 1992)

Leo the Late Bloomer (Kraus, 1971)

No, David! (Shannon, 1998)