Vanessa Allen MEd NBCT - Me and My Feelings: A Kids Guide to Understanding and Expressing Themselves

Copyright 2019 by Rockridge Press, Emeryville, California

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without the prior written permission of the Publisher. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, Rockridge Press, 6005 Shellmound Street, Suite 175, Emeryville, CA 94608.

Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: The Publisher and the author make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this work and specifically disclaim all warranties, including without limitation warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales or promotional materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for every situation. This work is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering medical, legal, or other professional advice or services. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Neither the Publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. The fact that an individual, organization or website is referred to in this work as a citation and/or potential source of further information does not mean that the author or the Publisher endorses the information the individual, organization or website may provide or recommendations they/it may make. Further, readers should be aware that Internet websites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read.

For general information on our other products and services or to obtain technical support, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at (866) 744-2665, or outside the U.S. at (510) 253-0500.

Rockridge Press publishes its books in a variety of electronic and print formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books, and vice versa.

TRADEMARKS: Rockridge Press and the Rockridge Press logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Callisto Media Inc. and/or its affiliates, in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Rockridge Press is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.

Interior and Designer: Liz Cosgrove

Art Producer: Michael Hardgrove

Editor: Orli Zuravicky

Production Editor: Andrew Yackira

: Tarsha Burroughs

Illustrations: 2019 Sarah Rebar; Shutterstock/mejnak, .

ISBN: Print 978-1-64152-496-4 eBook 978-1-64152-497-1

To my daughter Domoniqueyou are my dream come true!

HOW TO USE THIS WORKBOOK ON AN EBOOK DEVICE

If youre reading this workbook on a touch-screen device, you can add notes and highlight text just like you would in a physical workbook.

Some sections will prompt you to write in answers or personal responses. Its easygive it a try right here: ___________.

With your finger, tap and hold for a few moments on the line above. Depending on the device youre using, an icon such as a magnifying glass will appear. Lift your finger and youll see an options menu. Select Note (or Notes) to add and save your own text. When youre done, an icon or highlighted area will remain, which you can always return to and tap if you want to reopen and read or edit your note.

The same tap-and-hold options menu offers Highlight or Color, which you can select if you want to highlight a passage or check a box. Experiment with it: By swiping your finger before releasing you can select entire sentences or paragraphs. The options menu also offers Bookmark for when you want quick access back to certain pages.

This method is the same on nearly all touch-screen ebook devices, but some have slight variations. If youd like more information specific to the device youre holding in your hands, a quick online search will yield best results.

Dear Grown-Ups,

I am thrilled that you recognize the importance of kids understanding their emotions and feelings enough to provide the special child in your life with this book. My goal is to help kids feel empowered in knowing how to deal with their emotions and in learning healthy ways to express themselves.

By reading this book, kids will learn that all of their feelings are okay and perfectly natural to have. They will learn to separate their feelings from who they are as a person. Once they learn the best ways to deal with their negative emotions, theyll realize that they have the power to take control of their feelings and no longer be controlled by them.

This book explores many emotions and feelings. Many of the feelings well cover stem from the six big emotions Ill introduce in the . Although theres a lot of information packed into these pages, I also provide a variety of interactive activities that will allow kids to engage as they learn more about themselves, including:

Practices , including visual tools and grounding techniques to use in different situations

Exercises , in which kids can choose specific answers that apply to them, then learn what their responses mean

Quizzes to help kids focus on what they are learning in the chapter

Express Yourself tips that give kids helpful ways to express their emotions and feelings

Love Yourself tips that help kids show self-compassion when dealing with their feelings and emotions

Thank you for sharing this book with the young reader in your life. I hope this book inspires learning, conversations, and actions that strengthen his or her emotional capabilities!

Yours truly,

Vanessa Allen

Dear Reader,

My name is Vanessa Allen and I am a school counselorin North Carolina. I help kids with their emotionsand feelings at my school every day. Its a regular partof what I do, and it is very important. This is why Imso happy that you are reading Me and My Feelings to learn more about your emotions and feelings! Themore you learn about them, the more ready you willbe to handle them in different situations

You will learn about the six big emotions, alongwith lots of other emotions and feelings you mayhave. Youll find out why knowing yourself is so important.Youll learn all about the voices in your headthat sometimes make you feel nervous, or tell you thateverything is fine. I call them Eddie and Thelma, andwell get to know them in this book. They can both sometimes be helpful, but youll learn which one of them should really be in charge!

Youll find out how feelings affect your body. Youllalso learn how your feelings affect different partsof your life, like your relationships and your time atschool. But one of the most important things youll discoverin this book are awesome tips and suggestionsto help you manage feelings when they seem too bigto handle. By the time you finish reading this book,youll know so many tips, youll feel like you have a newsuperpowerand in a way, you will!