Sometimes When Book Set

Sometimes When I’m Bored addresses a common complaint from children: boredom and loneliness. Children learn how to recognize boredom and see the opportunities it might present. Helping young children learn how to redirect feelings of boredom deepens problem-solving skills and builds the ability to shift negative thoughts to more positive ones.

Key Features

• Sometimes When I’m Bored
  • Using gentle and straightforward language, Sometimes When I’m Bored describes a child’s experience with boredom and loneliness and the many fun ways to relieve the feeling of boredom.
  • A special section for adults offers more information on how boredom can be spotted in children of varying ages—including infants—and discusses how to help children relieve feelings of boredom. Especially useful for counsellors, social workers, teachers, parents, and any other adults caring for children who experience boredom and loneliness.
• Sometimes When I’m Mad
  • Award-winning author and psychologist Dr. Deborah Serani and illustrator Kyra Teis team up again for a companion to Sometimes When I’m Sad that tackles the difficult feeling of anger.
  • Anger is often an overwhelming emotion for children. Using gentle and straightforward language, Sometimes When I'm Mad describes a child’s experience with anger and the many ways it can surface, along with ways children can use anger management techniques. For example:
  • When anger leads to stomach-aches or other discomfort, asking for a hug can help.
  • When an angry child yells or stomps, making things right with others can bring some relief.
  • When big feelings create confusion or distress, talking with an adult can provide comfort.
  • A special section for adults offers more information on how anger is expressed by children of varying ages and discusses how to help children manage and express their anger in healthy ways. Especially useful for counsellors, social workers, teachers, parents, and any other adults caring for children who struggle with anger.
• Sometimes When I’m Sad
  • “Now when I get sad, I still cry sometimes. I still hide sometimes. But only for a little while. Because now I know ways to feel better.” Sadness can be an overwhelming emotion, especially for young children. But it’s important to know when sadness can be overcome, and when it’s indicative of a greater problem.
  • Sometimes When I’m Sad is an invaluable self-help resource that helps children identify sadness or depression and offers helpful ways to manage it, such as:
  • Talk about it with a parent or a trusted adult or counselor.
  • Draw the sadness with crayons.
  • Release tension by squishing clay.
  • Run and jump around outside.
  • Observe nature.
  • The word depression is never used in the gentle, child-focused text, but this simple story offers an entrance point for both adults and children to identify and address childhood depression symptoms early.
  • This timely resource is a wonderfully gentle way to take steps toward banishing the stigma around mental illness. A special section at the back of the book provides support for adults, from an explanation of the difference between sadness and depression to helpful tools to manage the illness. Especially useful for counsellors, social workers, teachers, parents, and any other adults caring for children who struggle with dark feelings.
• Sometimes When I'm Worried
  • Children learn practical strategies for coping with worry and anxiety.
  • Gentle, supportive, and straightforward, Sometimes When I’m Worried describes a child’s experience with worry and the many ways it can surface, as well as how her sister and their two dads help her cope with the feeling. “Sometimes when I’m worried, my tummy feels funny. I get hot and sweaty. My legs jiggle like jelly.”
  • Along with the main character, young children learn ways to cope with worry, which can be a challenging emotion. "Daddy says, ‘Sometimes when we’re worried, it’s hard to control our thoughts and feelings.’ He says I might feel calmer if I find something I can control. He asks if I want to count to ten or do some belly breathing.”
  • A special section for adults offers more information on how children of differing ages express worry and anxiety, and how to help children manage these feelings in healthy and empowering ways.

Additional Information

• Sometimes When I’m Bored addresses a common complaint from children: boredom and loneliness.
• Helping young children learn how to redirect feelings of boredom deepens problem-solving skills and builds the ability to shift negative thoughts to more positive ones.