LESSONS of a LAC - How do you explain anxiety to children? Meet 'Loppy the LAC' and 'Curly Calmster.' 'Loppy,' a Little Anxious Creature (LAC) and 'Curly' who creates calm and peace, are the two key characters in the Lessons of a LAC book series, an innovative series to help children manage anxiety.
Written specifically by a clinical psychologist Lynn Jenkins, and illustrated by illustrator/art therapist Kirrili Lonergan, Lessons of a LAC provides children a very simple way to understand their anxious thoughts and feelings. Childhood anxiety can manifest itself with varying levels of intensity. Whether they’re little worriers or more prominent anxiety sufferers, this early intervention picture book series, aimed at preschoolers to Year 6 students, gives kids tools to manage anxiety.
The Lessons of a LAC series is ideal for parents, caregivers and teachers to manage kids’ anxieties. It is also the focus of a unique school program to assist kids’ emotional and social development.
Written specifically by a clinical psychologist Lynn Jenkins, and illustrated by illustrator/art therapist Kirrili Lonergan, Lessons of a LAC provides children a very simple way to understand their anxious thoughts and feelings. Childhood anxiety can manifest itself with varying levels of intensity. Whether they’re little worriers or more prominent anxiety sufferers, this early intervention picture book series, aimed at preschoolers to Year 6 students, gives kids tools to manage anxiety.
The Lessons of a LAC series is ideal for parents, caregivers and teachers to manage kids’ anxieties. It is also the focus of a unique school program to assist kids’ emotional and social development.
LESSONS of a LAC offers SCHOOL VISITS, ONLINE TALKS, WORKSHOPS and STORY TIME SESSIONS
Please contact us for more information |
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'WHAT IF...?'
***Latest Release*** Issy uses the words ‘What if …’ a lot. What if there is a monster in my cupboard? she wonders before going to sleep. Or What if my floor turns into quicksand and swallows my bed? For her, these two little words start worries and lead to uneasy feelings. But maybe they can be used in a better way … Share Issy’s wonder and excitement as she flips her fears into fun, and learns that by choosing how she thinks she can choose how she feels! |
What if... Craft Printables - Click on our YouTube link for drawing and craft videos that link to printable templates.
'TREE'
The fifth book in the popular ‘Lessons of a LAC’ series, Tree is a gentle story of loss that helps children to learn how to say goodbye and process grief. Tree is the much-loved centrepiece of the community. But one day Curly and Loppy notice that Tree’s leaves are starting to fall — at the wrong time of year — and Tree’s bark is flaking. It’s Tree’s time to leave. Fortunately Curly is able to teach Loppy how to accept that Tree is leaving, say goodbye, and commemorate Tree’s life. |
GREY GLASSES-ITIS
Grey Glasses-itis will give your child a way to think about mood. Specifically, how the way they feel is influenced by how they are viewing things. As always, early intervention is our aim. Educating children early about how thoughts affect feelings is taking great steps forward! For them to tune into their feelings and wonder what glasses they are wearing in order to feel those feelings develops important emotional skills. For example, self-awareness, self-reflection, self-enquiry and puts them in a position of choice: to change feelings, change the colour glasses they are wearing (i.e., the way they are viewing things/thinking). |

PERFECT PETUNIAS
Perfect Petunias is a book especially for those little people who find it hard to make mistakes, designed to ’shape’ perfectionistic tendencies towards being a little more self accepting and flexible. Loppy LAC is very worried about not doing his homework well enough. He is always focusing on what he hasn’t done rather then what he has, and he becomes very frustrated. So, his friend Curly teaches him about how petunias grow — in lots of different, imperfect directions that we can’t control! Loppy learns that by trying to control whether he makes mistakes or not it’s as if he’s always trying to grow ‘perfect’ petunias. Sometimes he just needs to accept that things go a certain way and to change his definition of ‘perfect’ to mean trying his absolute best.
Perfect Petunias is a book especially for those little people who find it hard to make mistakes, designed to ’shape’ perfectionistic tendencies towards being a little more self accepting and flexible. Loppy LAC is very worried about not doing his homework well enough. He is always focusing on what he hasn’t done rather then what he has, and he becomes very frustrated. So, his friend Curly teaches him about how petunias grow — in lots of different, imperfect directions that we can’t control! Loppy learns that by trying to control whether he makes mistakes or not it’s as if he’s always trying to grow ‘perfect’ petunias. Sometimes he just needs to accept that things go a certain way and to change his definition of ‘perfect’ to mean trying his absolute best.

BRAVE
Brave gives your child a strategy to do things they are worried about doing. Imagination is a very natural ‘go to’ for children. It can be a source of terror (as in anxiety), BUT it can also be tapped into to help them to feel calm, confident and BRAVE!
The technique of helping children to ‘find their BRAVE’ when faced with a challenging situation can be applied to whatever the difficulty might be. We hope you enjoy empowering your child with the tool of finding their BRAVE!
Brave gives your child a strategy to do things they are worried about doing. Imagination is a very natural ‘go to’ for children. It can be a source of terror (as in anxiety), BUT it can also be tapped into to help them to feel calm, confident and BRAVE!
The technique of helping children to ‘find their BRAVE’ when faced with a challenging situation can be applied to whatever the difficulty might be. We hope you enjoy empowering your child with the tool of finding their BRAVE!

LESSONS of a LAC
Lessons of a LAC is a 'resource tool' picture book to help children manage anxiety. From little worriers to more prominent anxiety sufferers, this book gives children a very simple way to understand their anxious thoughts and feelings. Being in a picture book format, it is suitable for ages 4 to 10, although the concept and message suits any age range.
LESSONS of a LAC
Lessons of a LAC is a 'resource tool' picture book to help children manage anxiety. From little worriers to more prominent anxiety sufferers, this book gives children a very simple way to understand their anxious thoughts and feelings. Being in a picture book format, it is suitable for ages 4 to 10, although the concept and message suits any age range.
This gorgeous series, by an author and illustrator who are passionate about giving children ways to think about and manage common emotional difficulties, is a valuable resource for every child to help guide their emotional development.

OLLIE'S TREASURE
Ollie's Treasure is an additional title by the Lessons of a LAC duo. It is a tale of mindfulness for young, developing minds. It’s a story about how simply noticing and taking in what is on offer to our senses can lead to the Holy Grail of treasure — happiness. Shortlisted for the Speech Pathology of Australia Awards 2018.
Ollie's Treasure is an additional title by the Lessons of a LAC duo. It is a tale of mindfulness for young, developing minds. It’s a story about how simply noticing and taking in what is on offer to our senses can lead to the Holy Grail of treasure — happiness. Shortlisted for the Speech Pathology of Australia Awards 2018.