“If you’re ANGRY and you know it!”

By: Cecily Kaiser

Illustrated by: Cary Pillo

If you’re angry and you know it,

STOMP YOUR FEET.

If you’re angry and you know,

STOMP YOUR FEET.

If you’re angry and you know it,

And you really want to show it,

If you’re angry and you know it,

STOMP YOUR FEET

If you’re angry and you know it,

BANG A DRUM

If you’re angry and you know it,

BANG A DRUM.

If you’re angry and you know it,

And you really want to show it,

If you’re angry and you know it,

BANG A DRUM.

If you’re angry and you know it,

WALK AWAY.

If you’re angry and you know it,

WALK AWAY.

If you’re angry and you know it,

And you really want to show it,

If you’re angry and you know it,

WALK AWAY.

If you’re angry and you know it,

TAKE DEEP BREATHS.

If you’re angry and you know it,

TAKE DEEP BREATHS.

If you’re angry and you know it,

And you really want to show it,

If you’re angry and you know it,

TAKE DEEP BREATHS.

If you’re angry and you know it,

TELL A FRIEND.

If you’re angry and you know it,

TELL A FRIEND.

If you’re angry and you know it,

And you really want to show it,

If you’re angry and you know it,

TELL A FRIEND.

Then…

You’re happy and you know it,

Once again!

Then you’re happy and you know it,

Once again!

Then you’re happy and you know it,

You’re not angry and you show it,

Then you’re happy and you know it,

Once again!

THE END

Evaluation by Genre:  Poetry and Verse with condense language with rhyme, sound, imagery, and figurative language. This book of Children’s literature deals with feelings. The subjects it covers are social issues, emotions, feelings, psychology, situations, and real-world. This poem is read in many schools around the world.

Illustration and Art: The illustrations are colorful with children showing all kinds of emotions at school. This book is a charming version of the classic children's song "If you're happy and you know it." It uses darling situations and illustrations to pose various different behaviors children can use to express their anger and frustration. It is a great aid in helping kids get out of a behavior rut.

About the Author: Cecily Kaiser currently lives in Brooklyn, New York, Editorial Director, Appleseed Books, and Abrams. Ms. Kaiser targets children five years old and younger. She is responsible for “conceptualizing, launching, and managing all aspects” of Abram’s new emphasis. Ms. Kaiser is also a published author. Some of her published credits include On The First Night Of Chanukah, Over In The Meadow (Scholastic Hands-on Learning Stacking Ca), Tonka Trucks (Scholastic Hands-on Learning Stacking Ca), and School Reader Level 2: If You're Angry And You Know It: If You're Angry And You Know It (School Reader Level).

Summary: This poem is about a little boy/girl who is angry and he/she shows it. He/she stamped his/her feet, banged a drum, walked away, took deep breaths and told a friend which, made him/her happy again. The poem deals with a child’s anger, and how he tries many ways to deal with his anger issues. First, we look at the front cover and you see the boy with an angry face, eyes are pointed down, lips are turned upside down, and eyebrows are pointed inward. The boy also has his arms crossed as to say he will not budge on his feelings of anger. Second, you see all the other children happily going in the classroom while the angry boy has hit the cat because he was angry that his backpack came open and all his books, crayons, pencils and lunch came out and fell on the ground. Third, the other children and teacher looked in shock as the angry little boy stomped his feet. Third, now a little boy has pulled a little girls hair while in music class, so she takes her angry out on a drum. Fourth, while on the playground a little boy is teasing another little boy by sticking out his tongue. The little boy could not do anything about it so he walked away. While walking away he kicked the ball by accident and splashed mud on a little girls dress. She in turn had to take deep breaths so that she did not get angry. Fifth, a little boy is angry and he starts to throw the building blocks, his friend comes over to ask why he is angry. The little boy finally told his friend why he was angry. Finally, he was happy again. The last pages show how the children have resolved all of the anger issues.

Assessing the quality in Poetry: Is the content interesting to and understandable by intended readers? Is the language innovative, with careful word choices and use of poetic devices to enhance meaning? Does the form or structure help the reader understand more about the poetic devices to enhance meaning? Is the arrangement logical? Is the range of poetry inclusive? In Chapter 4, it reads, “Poetry is the window to the soul, it stirs the soul of the reader, it echoes the soul of the poet” (Literature and the Child, Figure 4.1. pgs.138 and 144).

Personal Comments: We know as adults that anger is a normal human expression. None of us as adults are born knowing how to deal with negative emotions such as aggression. Our aggressive emotions are not acceptable socially therefore; we are left to work through our own feelings. This poetry book helps children to work through their anger and to finally tell a friend. Handling children’s anger can at times be draining and distressing for adults. One of the major problems in dealing with anger in children is the angry feelings that are often stirred up in us. As parents, and teachers we need to remind ourselves that we were not always taught how to deal with anger as a fact of life during our own childhood. We were led to believe that to be angry was to be bad, and we were often made to feel guilty for expressing anger. It will be easier to deal with children’s anger if we get rid of this notion. My goal is not to repress or destroy angry feeling in children—or in ourselves—but rather to accept the feelings and to help channel and direct them to constructive ends. As parents and teachers must allow children to feel all of their feelings. We can show children acceptable ways of expressing their feelings. Angry outbursts should not always be viewed as a sign of serious problems; they should be recognized and treated with respect. We as parents and teachers need to find out what triggered the outburst. Next, we will want to gain their trust by taking them aside and quietly listen to why they had the outburst in the first place. Our response should have a list on ways they could have avoided the outburst. Finally, we would want to resolve the issues so that the child feels we understood his/her feelings.  

Motivational Activities: In my classroom I would have the children sit on the floor close to me as a read the poem. When I am finished reading the poem I will ask some very important questions.

Reader Response Questions:  (1) have you ever been angry? (2) Have you ever been bullied? (3)Have you ever been angry and took it out on someone? (4) Has someone ever taken their anger out on you? (5) Do you know how to deal with your anger and have you gone to a friend to talk about it?  Next, I had the children go back to their seats and take out a piece of paper and pencil. I had them write down what happened to them and how they felt. I re-assured them that nobody will read what they have written but the teacher.

     Final Comment:  I as a teacher will always address any anger or aggressive behavior that I see in a child. We cannot ignore when we see a usually happy child become angry or aggressive. It is up to the parents and well as the teacher to reach out to that child to help his/her to deal with their issues. This book and many others should always be kept on a bookshelf in your classroom with a post-it saying; tell a friend or teacher. As a teacher we can respond to an angry child in many ways first, we cannot ignore inappropriate behavior by ignoring it, we must deal with this behavior right away. One way we can deal with angry and aggressive behavior is by providing attention or affection through a hug. Sometimes you could ease the tension by humor to take the child out of the tantrum or outburst. As a teacher we must remain calm in all situations and realizes as a role model they are looking to us for guidance.
The Core Value of Respect: Children should learn early to respect themselves and others. They should strive to foster commitment to excellence of learning , living, and working harmoniously with each other. Children should know that everyone in his unique and special. This book strives to let children release their anger in a positive way. It also shows how a child when angry can respectfully talk about their issues. As an activity you could have children get into groups and write the pros and cons about getting angry. Then once the students are done write pro and con on the board and write the children s answer's then discuss all the cons of being angry. 

Cited

Kaiser, C (2004), If You’re Angry and You Know It! New York: Scholastic Inc. Children’s Books.

Whitman Galda, Lee, Bernice E. Cullinan, and Lawrence R. Sipe. "Literature and the Child." , 7th Edition by Lee Galda, Bernice E. Cullinan, Lawrence R. Sipe (9780495602392). Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, n.d. &, 1998. Print.

Post by: Terry M. Wheaton