Black Kid Joy and other emotions: A social - emotional learning guide and journal

This book is for young people like you, to help increase your social and emotional literacy (eq). Specifically, you will learn (or better understand) the concepts of safety, boundaries, consent, how to use "I feel..." statements, how to be a better listener, and the power of silence. You will also learn why gossip is harmful, the importance of self-awareness, and what to do when you have harmed someone or when you have been harmed by someone, and what to do when harm becomes abuse. Also included are emotion word definitions in alphabetical order. Coping and relaxation skills are spread throughout the book for you to learn as you go and not just in one specific section.

Coping skills: journaling and reflection sheets after every concept, where you can write about how the concept has shown up in your life, or to just write whatever you're thinking and feeling.

Relaxation skills: breathing exercises (deep breathing and triangle breathing), mindfulness exercises (using your five senses, the noun exercise, two questions exercise and the Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired (HALT) exercise) movement reminders, body response awareness exercises, coloring sheets, word searches, word jumbles.

*Parents are also welcomed to buy their own copy of this book to better understand how to communicate with one another and their kids. This book is the first of its kind. And we can all benefit from better emotional intelligence.

Finally, this book will help walk you through the process of understanding, defining and expressing your emotions, while using they / them pronouns throughout the text.