Publication Date: April 30, 2024
It’s spelling test day and Katie feels anxious…
Cheerful fun-loving Katie sometimes gets anxious before tests, even when she knows the answers. One day Katie’s feelings were so enormous, she panics and can’t seem to do the test at all. She even disrupts the entire class. Luckily, with the guidance of her teacher, Katie discovers calming tools to soothe her nerves. Pretty soon the whole class is joining Katie to beat that test stress!
A beautifully illustrated relatable story with teaching points and practical advice for anxious kids.
A modern dilemma for school children and teachers is test anxiety. Kathleen Jeffery’s Katie’s Really Bad Day is a practical tool to address this.
Katie is a second grader, enjoying recess with her friends when this story opens. But the fun quickly turns as the class readies for a spelling test once back in the classroom. Katie’s inability to cope with these feelings pushes her to scribble on her desk rather than attempt the test. Finn alerts the teacher, who offers gentle guidance on how to quell her emotional and physical reactions to a test.
The author and the illustrator do a good job of making this picture book multilayered as a teaching tool. Katie describes her physical feelings in a way that elementary children could easily understand. Then the teacher supports these feelings by suggesting breathing techniques, which are becoming increasingly common in a supportive classroom.
Test anxiety is often brushed off by parents and teachers who don’t really know how to address the issue. The author not only describes what to do but also includes a visual for practicing deep breathing. More books like this are needed in modern classrooms, so I would recommend adding this title to a classroom library shelf. The cover includes a “Mom’s Choice” seal, which means this group has given it a thumbs-up. Although there is a subtitle, “A Story About Test Anxiety”, which could be pulled up in an internet search, a catchier title would draw more attention to students.
Katie’s Really Bad Day draws on the author’s childhood experience to offer a practical picture book for classroom read-aloud that helps young children address a modern issue.
Kathleen Jeffrey grew up in Rhode Island and holds a BA in Elementary Education/Psychology. After a career in US & international publishing, Kathleen left the corporate world to work for Glastonbury Abbey Bookstore in Hingham, MA, where she enjoyed learning the independent bookstore business, especially researching children’s books! She is now writing children’s picture books to fulfill her vision to bring, “Love, Light, Spirit, Truth, Joy,” to little one’s beautiful hearts.
