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Anger: Friend or Foe?

Lesson Plan

Anger: Friend or Foe Lesson Plan

Students will express their understanding of anger and its triggers through visual art and reflect on healthy coping strategies.

Art provides a powerful, non-verbal outlet for expressing complex emotions like anger. This creative approach helps students process feelings, identify triggers, and visualize healthy coping mechanisms, fostering self-awareness and emotional regulation.

Audience

8th Grade

Time

30 minutes

Approach

Creative art expression, guided reflection, and class sharing.

Materials

Art supplies (paper, markers, crayons, colored pencils), Artful Anger Reflection Sheet, and Slide Deck: Artful Anger Expressions

Prep

Prepare Materials

15 minutes

Step 1

Introduction: Art & Emotions

5 minutes

  • Display the first slide of the Slide Deck: Artful Anger Expressions and introduce the idea of using art to understand emotions, specifically anger.
    - Ask students: 'How can art help us express feelings that are hard to put into words?' Facilitate a brief discussion, emphasizing that art is a safe space for expression.

Step 2

Art Activity: Visualizing Anger

15 minutes

  • Explain the activity: Students will create an artwork that represents their experience with anger. This could be what anger feels like, what a trigger looks like, or how they cope with it.
    - Distribute art supplies and the Artful Anger Reflection Sheet.
    - Encourage students to think about colors, shapes, and images that come to mind when they think of anger. Remind them there's no right or wrong way to express it.
    - Play calming background music if appropriate. Circulate and provide support without directing their artistic choices.

Step 3

Reflection & Share Out

10 minutes

  • Once art is complete, instruct students to fill out the 'Reflection' section of their Artful Anger Reflection Sheet.
    - Bring the class back together. Invite volunteers to share their artwork and discuss what it represents and what they learned about their anger.
    - Use the final slide of the Slide Deck: Artful Anger Expressions to guide a brief discussion on the power of creative expression and the importance of healthy emotional outlets.
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Slide Deck

Artful Anger Expressions

How can art help us understand and express feelings that are hard to put into words?

Today, we'll explore anger through the power of art!

Welcome students and introduce the topic of using art to explore emotions. Ask a question to spark thought about non-verbal expression.

Anger: An Emotion to Express

Anger is a normal human feeling.

Art can be a powerful tool to:

  • Understand: What does your anger look like or feel like?
  • Express: Get it out in a healthy way.
  • Cope: Find creative ways to manage strong feelings.

Explain that anger is a natural emotion and that art can be a healthy way to process it. Emphasize that there's no 'right' way to express anger through art.

Your Anger Canvas

Activity: Visualizing Anger

  • Create an artwork that represents your experience with anger.
  • Think about:
    • What does anger feel like?
    • What are your anger triggers?
    • How do you calm down?
  • Use colors, shapes, and images to show your feelings. There's no right or wrong!

Introduce the art activity. Clearly state the objective and encourage creativity without strict guidelines. Provide examples of what they might depict.

Reflect & Share

Now, let's reflect on your art:

  • What did you create?
  • What colors or shapes did you use and why?
  • What did you learn about your anger through this process?

Share your art and reflections with the class!

Guide students to complete their reflection sheets after the art activity. Then, invite volunteers to share their work and discuss their artistic choices and insights.

Art for Emotional Well-being

Art is a powerful way to understand and manage your emotions.

Keep exploring creative ways to express yourself and build your emotional tool kit!

Conclude by reiterating the main message: creative expression is a valuable tool for emotional health. Encourage students to continue using art or other creative outlets.

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Activity

Artful Anger Reflection Sheet

Art can be a powerful way to understand and express your emotions. After creating your artwork about anger, take some time to reflect on your process and what you learned.

Part 1: My Artful Expression

  1. What did you choose to represent in your artwork?






  2. What colors, shapes, or images did you use? Why did you choose them?






  3. How did creating this artwork feel? Did it help you understand your anger differently?






Part 2: Understanding My Anger

  1. Based on your art and reflection, what are one or two common 'triggers' (situations or feelings) that tend to make you angry?



  2. What is one healthy way you can use to respond to anger, inspired by or related to your artwork?






Part 3: Art for My Tool Kit

How could you use art or another creative activity in the future to help you manage anger or other strong emotions?











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