The Worry Wars: An Anxiety Workbooks for Kids and Their Helpful Adults!

The Worry Wars: An Anxiety Workbooks for Kids and Their Helpful Adults!

 

Worry Wars cover-smallI receive frequent referrals for children who experience some type of anxiety, and I found a wonderful resource by Paris Goodyear-Brown titled, The Worry Wars: An Anxiety Workbooks for Kids and Their Helpful Adults!. In this book there are three stories addressing three different types of anxiety children might struggle with ; “Daniel the Dragon Slayer,” “Polly vs. Princess Perfect,” and “Oscar and Clyde, the Clinging Octupus.” The illustrations are black and white color-book style and fun, so you could easily have your child color the pages as you read. After that, there are many techniques, activities and reproducible pages that therapists can use, to help their clients cope with anxiety. Some of the activities include shields, bubble blow, and my favorite, the worry worms. I have used the stories over and over with children. They are really helpful metaphors explaining anxiety in a way that children can grasp. I would recommend this resource to others who help children work through anxiety issues, and look forward to trying other recourses by Paris Goodyear-Brown. You can purchase this book, other resources, read her biography, and find out about her counseling services at her website, Paris and Me

Dolls help Women in Kenya Support their Families

I want to introduce you to Garry and Brenda Kean. Garry and Brenda Kean are missionaries in Nairobi, Kenya. You can see more of their story and ministry here. A part of there mission there is through their sewing ministry, Jacaranda Creations, helping women earn a living. Often these women would otherwise turn to prostitution or homemade beer making. Instead these women sew beautiful creations such as dolls, animal toys, bags, and purses.

They recently launched a children’s sponsorship program. For $35.00 per month a family or individual can sponsor a child from the slums to go to school. The sponsorship amount includes funds that will allow us to purchase a uniform and shoes for the child, school supplies, school fees and one meal per day. We follow up with the children in the program as well., Jacaranda Kids in this area as well.

I have posted several pictures where you can see the beautiful mother carrying her baby, and if you look closely you can see the baby peeking out from behind her mother. What a beautiful way to show the bond between a mother and child. I wanted to purchase these beautiful dolls they make which is a mother carrying a baby. I can feel confident that not only do I have a great, nurturing toy for my play room, I am also helping other women and children have better lives. Please take a look at their website and check out the Kean’s full ministry in Kenya. If you are interested in ordering their beautiful dolls please email me and I will send you Brenda Kean’s contact information. They do not have a website where you can order online. These dolls are handmade and are shipped from Kenya. To email me, you can find my address under the Referral Info tab of my blog, or if you click on my profile there is an “email me” button.

Dealing with Dyslexia: Horatio Humble Beats the Big “D,” by Margot Finke

Dealing with Dyslexia: Horatio Humble Beats the Big “D,” by Margot Finke

“When Horatio has difficulty reading, his parents meet with the teacher to discover why. Horatio hears the words Dyslexia and Special Ed. “No way! Kids will think I’m dumb.” But he does go and with amazing results.”

I just received a new book by Margot Finke, Illustrated by Ellen Gurak. Horatio Humble Beats the Big “D,” is a book for children dealing with dyslexia. Dyslexia is a common learning disability among children where the brain has difficulty processing written words.

Horatio is an intelligent boy who makes good grades and many school subjects, except for reading. He just can’t make since of all the words. Horatio and his parents go to meet with his teacher and he finds out he has dyslexia. Horatio has many thoughts and emotions about this, and also is worried about what others will think when he has to attend a special class. To his delight, Horatio begins learning ways to read books and even begins to write!

I enjoyed reading this book. The rhyming has a comfortable pace, and the illustrations are colorful and vivid. Margot does a wonderful job of including the symptoms of dyslexia along with common emotions and thoughts a child might have when discovering they have this problem. It also includes a teacher, parent guide in the back with resources and also signs a child might be experiencing dyslexia. I would recommend this book for anyone working with children who have learning disabilities, and plan to use it for my own clients.

Where to buy

Margot’s Book Page

Autographed books available here.


Amazon


Powells


Guardian Angel Publishing


Links

Book Trailer

Margot Finke’s Website

Reviews

View a Play Room

You may be wondering what a play therapy room looks like. Click on this link for the University of North Texas Center for Play Therapy and experience what a play therapy room can typically look like. Their website also is a good resource for parents who may have questions or concerns about play therapy. You may also view photos of a play room from Pam Dyson’s website. There are links to her website and blog on the right hand side of this page.

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