Discussing Anger and Fear

We've done a lot in the past few Mind Move Make classes!  Through movement, art, and children's literature we've continued to explore the emotion "anger".  We read When Sophie Gets Angry-Really Really Angry... by Molly Bang.  In the book, a little girl becomes extremely angry when her sister takes her favorite toy.  Then she takes a walk in nature and she is calmed by the act of climbing a tree and listening to the wind and the ocean waves.  We talked in small groups about what we do to calm ourselves down when we feel angry.  It was interesting to hear everyone discussing these ideas with their peers.

We've also tried the "Take Five" breathing exercise.  For this, the students spread their hands in front of them like a starfish.  Then they trace each finger, starting with the thumb.  Sliding their finger up the thumb, the students inhale through the nose.  They pause at the top of the thumb, then exhale through the mouth as they slide their finger down the thumb.  For each finger, the students inhale while tracing up, and exhale while tracing down the finger.  This gives them the chance to focus on taking five good breaths, with the physical object of their own hand to concentrate on while breathing.

During another Mind Move Make class, in celebration of Halloween we looked at the emotion "scared".  I read one of my favorite Dr. Seuss stories, What Was I Scared Of?, then we talked about different things that we are scared of in our own lives.  The students had just experienced an earthquake drill that day and many of them said they were scared by the loud alarm that went off for the drill.  After talking about our fears, each child designed a "scared" monster in his or her sketchbook.

Our last class was a "catch-up" day.  Many students hadn't finished their angry "Bombaloo" masks, so I gave everyone the opportunity to complete the mask.  Also, several students had unfinished monster designs in their sketchbooks, so they had time to go back and work on those.  At the end of the class we took a group photograph of all the children wearing the "angry" masks that they designed.  What a fun bunch of kids!  

Sometimes I'm Bombaloo!

At the beginning of every Mind Move Make class we start with a minute of mindful breathing.  During our very first class, the students learned what a mindful body looks like, feels like, and sounds like.  We practice finding our mindful bodies, focusing on our breath, and listening to the sounds around us.  Afterwards we talk about if mindful breathing was easy or hard that day.  The students' responses to this question change during every class, just as the experience of mindfulness changes each time you practice!

After our mindful breathing work, I explained that we'd look at the emotion "anger" again this week.  I read them the book Sometimes I'm Bombaloo by Rachel Vail.

Sometimes I'm Bombaloo is about a girl named Katie who describes herself as a "really good kid".  She picks up her toys, brushes her teeth, and "gives excellent hugs".  But when her baby brother destroys a castle she worked hard to create, she becomes uncontrollably angry and turns into "Bombaloo".  She pushes her little brother, smashes things, and throws all the clothes out of her drawer.  After she calms down and becomes herself again, she says, "It's scary being Bombaloo".  I think we can all relate to that!  Being angry can feel very scary.

I asked my students if they had ever become "Bombaloo"; if they had ever done something they regretted after becoming very angry.  I told them about a time that I yelled at Harlow, my two-year-old son, when I became angry.  Afterwards I felt awful.  Becoming angry is part of being human, but it can be frightening.  Mindfulness helps us by giving us space between the thing that is making us angry and our reaction to that thing.  Even taking one breath before reacting when we're angry helps us to calm down and gives us space to make a good choice.

I explained that we were going to create masks depicting our inner "Bombaloo".  "What does your Bombaloo look like?" I asked them.  I also asked them to think about the colors they would use to show their angry side, along with the facial expressions.  During our movement time, they had the chance to become "Bombaloo" on their yoga mats.  They made Bombaloo-esque noises, Bombaloo faces, and moved like their version of Bombaloo.  It was fun watching them channel this part of themselves!

During the art portion of the class, the students started designing their masks!  All of them are extremely different, just as our experience of anger is different from anyone else's.  We used pencils to start the design, then we used oil pastels to add color.  I explained that next week I'd bring watercolor paint so that they could add a paint layer.

Here are the artists at work, along with some of the works in progress!