As Families Navigate Summer Stress, Experts Remind Parents: Anger is a Feeling, Not a Failure

The Kids Mental Health Foundation offers free resources to help adults teach emotional regulation rather than punish emotions

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Summer brings family vacations, changing routines, increased screen time, and long days spent together—conditions that can also lead to more emotional outbursts from children. Experts at The Kids Mental Health Foundation are encouraging parents and caregivers to view these moments not as signs of bad behavior, but as opportunities to build lifelong emotional resilience.

"Children aren't born knowing how to regulate big emotions," said Whitney Raglin Bignall, PhD, associate clinical director of The Kids Mental Health Foundation and pediatric psychologist at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. "Learning to manage anger is a developmental skill that requires patience, practice, and supportive adults."

Experts at the Foundation also note that anger is a normal human emotion that helps children communicate frustration, disappointment, or perceived unfairness. Rather than focusing solely on stopping the behavior, parents can use these moments to help children identify, express, and manage their emotions in healthy ways.

Dr. Raglin Bignall recommends several evidence-informed strategies that can make a meaningful difference:

• Stay calm during emotional outbursts, as children often mirror adult reactions.
• Wait until everyone has cooled down before discussing what happened.
• Acknowledge a child's feelings while reinforcing appropriate behavioral expectations.
• Recognize common triggers such as hunger, fatigue, overstimulation, and frustration.
• Praise children when they use healthy coping strategies, communicate respectfully, or recover from difficult moments.

“As awareness of children's mental health continues to grow, emotional regulation is one of the most important life skills parents can teach,” said Dr. Raglin Bignall. “Helping children understand that all feelings—including anger—are acceptable, while guiding them toward safe responses, strengthens emotional intelligence, resilience, and family relationships.”

Parents seeking additional resources can find practical guidance, activities, and age-appropriate strategies through the Kids Mental Health Foundation's online mental health resource library. Visit kidsmentalhealthfoundation.org.

The Kids Mental Health Foundation is the leading organization promoting mental health for children in the United States. To achieve its vision to build a world where mental health is a vital part of every child’s upbringing, nearly 1,000 mental health professionals and researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, in partnership with other trusted experts, provide real-world knowledge and expertise to power the Foundation’s free educational videos, guides and curriculum. To date, more than 33 million people have engaged with the Foundation’s materials, helping parents, educators and coaches be a guiding force for children all across the United States.