Help young readers talk about what makes them mad, upset, frustrated, or sad and encourage them to try different calming techniques with these One Mad Cat calming cards.
Suggested Use
1. Read One Mad Cat together. (Book 1 or Book 2)
Afterward, talk about the book.
– What makes Cat mad in the book?
– Do you ever feel anxious or worried or irritated or mad?
– How does Cat calm herself down?
– What other ways could Cat try to calm down?
2. Hand out the calming cards.
Explain that each card gives a suggestions on a way to calm down. Go through each card one by one, asking kids to say what they think the card is suggesting and talk through how to use the card. Try to encourage slower, thoughtful use of the cards. For example, for “Find Colors Around You,” encourage them to find as many objects of each color as possible. For “Think of Something Happy,” encourage them to think of an experience and to imagine themselves living that experience.
3. Have kids fill out the What Makes You Mad? worksheet.
Help them reflect on what makes them mad and how they might calm down. If you print some extra blank cards (backs only), you can also have kids create their own calming cards to add to the stack!
4. Keep the cards in a calming corner or other known spot in the room.
Let kids know that they can access them when they need ideas.
Card printing instructions:
– Print double-sided (preferably on cardstock OR on regular paper to be laminated.) You will need 2 sheets of paper, for twelve different calming cards.
– Use crop marks to cut the cards out (these are the small black marks in the corners of the cards)
– Laminate, if desired
– The cards have been designed with blank space in the upper left corner, so that you may punch a hole and put them on a ring, if desired.
If you want to print extra blank cards, select and print page 2. Print single-sided.
About the Series
Cat is mad – a lot (after all, she’s a cat). But when a friend needs her help to solve a mystery, she puts her irritation to the side…
Cat’s friend Hedgehog has lost his favorite book. Unfortunately for Cat, searching for her friend’s book means navigating annoying messes, smells, and crowds as she hunts for clues. When a particularly sticky clue (yuck!) leads her to the book at last (it was in Hedgehog’s locker all along?), Cat is mad, but Hedgehog is thrilled—and that’s what really matters, right? Vicky Fang, a rising talent in the kid-lit world, delivers an original take on the graphic-reader format—one whose dryly humorous storytelling and illustrative style hold appeal for both beginning and newly independent readers and adult caregivers alike.
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