Kelly Cleeve, a Langley teacher at Richard Bulpitt Elementary, is celebrating the release of two books she wrote on the topic of resilience.
Her work has appeared Island Parent and B.C. Parent Magazine while Cleeve herself has spoken on education at a TEDx talk held at Fort Langley’s Chief Sepass Theatre.
While studying for her Masters degree at UBC, Cleeve’s research on resilience and the importance of feeling loved when facing adversity sparked a desire to spread the message.
“My goal became to strip the academic language and share the information in a way that was approachable and practical,” Cleeve said. “For the last two years, I have written for parenting magazines and have worked closely with parenting groups and elementary schools, sharing information on how to raise resilient children.”
The first book Cleeve wrote, building on her past articles, is aptly called Raising Resilient Children.
Releasing in December through a New York publishing house, the book provides Cleeve’s tips for creating a resilient environment at home and at school and how to have conversations with children about failure.
“I strongly believe in bridging the gap between home and school. If parents and teachers have a shared goal of creating environments that foster resilience, our children will let go of fear, overcome anxiety, and thrive,” Cleeve added.
The author said she feels that now more than ever, teachers, parents, and children are living busy lives and feeling anxious, creating obstacles for youth to rise above adversity with grace and positivity – a problem she hopes to help address and perhaps one day solve through her work.
The second book Cleeve wrote, entitled Ridiculous, Resilient Me, is being published first, coming out on Sept. 28 – coincidentally on Cleeve’s 40th birthday.
“It is the story of my own resilience. The book was written in the months leading up to my 40th birthday, a time when I found myself exhausted and overworked with my mental health suffering,” Cleeve explained.
Waking herself up bright early every morning to pour a cup of coffee and write for an hour or so, Cleeve penned the autobiographical book to start a conversation.
She enlisted the help of a self-employed woman with her own publish company to release the book and a friend to design the cover.
“I was trying to be everything for everyone and had lost touch with my authentic self. It occurred to me that many women suffer this problem, juggling too many roles and putting their own well-being at the bottom of the list,” she said.
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Cleeve said the idea for a third book has already been set in motion, inspired by her own life once again – this time, covering the trials and tribulations of raising a teenage son.
“The next book will be about raising resilient teens and how to connect with teenagers. I feel that it’s a ways away though – I still have to step back and live that portion of my life,” Cleeve explained.
For now, both books, Ridiculous, Resilient Me and Raising Resilient Children, will be available in ebook and softcover formats through Amazon.
Cleeve added that she is available for speaking engagements and can be conttacted at cleevekelly@hotmail.com.
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Email: ryan.uytdewilligen@langleyadvancetimes.com
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