Elementary Secondary Higher Ed Common Reads
0 0
Download high-resolution image

Under Deadman's Skin

Discovering the Meaning of Children's Violent Play

Author Jane Katch
Paperback
$19.00 US
Beacon Press
5.56"W x 8.19"H x 0.31"D  
On sale Feb 18, 2002 | 144 Pages | 9780807031292
Add to cart Add to list Exam Copies

The five-and six-year-olds in my class have invented a new game they call suicide. I have never seen a game I hate so much in which all the children involved are so happy.

So begins Under Deadman’s Skin, a deceptively simple-and compellingly readable-teachers’ tale. Jane Katch, in the tradition of Vivian Paley and Jonathan Kozol, uses her student’s own vocabulary and storytelling to set the scene: a class of five-and six-year-olds obsessed with what is to their teacher hatefully violent fantasy play. Katch asks, “Can I make a place in school for understanding these fantasies, instead of shutting them out?”

Over the course of the year she holds group discussions to determine what kind of play creates or calms turmoil; she illustrates (or rather the children illustrate) the phenomenon of very young children needing to make sense of exceptionally violent imagery; and she consults with older grade-school boys who remember what it was like to be obsessed by violence and tell Katch what she can do to help. Katch’s classroom journey-one that leads her to rules and limits that keep children secure-is an enabling blueprint for any teacher or parent disturbed by violent children’s play.

“Jane Katch is a gutsy teacher and she has written a fascinating book about the obsessions and fears of boys in elementary school. Under Deadman’s Skin makes it clear why school boards and politicians cannot legislate boy violence away. We all need to understand boys the way Jane Katch does’ - Michael Thompson, Ph.D., author of Raising Cain and coauthor of Speaking of Boys

“Like Vivian Paley before her, Jane Katch takes us inside the minds and hearts of young children. She suspends judgment and her own fears to walk alongside her young students.” - James Garbarino, author of Lost Boys: Why Our Sons Turn Violent and How We Can Save Them

“[Katch] tackles many of the most perplexing questions about classroom violence: Do violent movies make violent kids? Are boys more violent than girls? And how does the act of exclusion lead to a cycle of violence?” - New Orleans Times-Picayune
Jane Katch is the author of Under Deadman's Skin: Discovering the Meaning of Children's Violent Play and and They Don't Like Me: Lessons on Bullying and Teasing from a Preschool Classroom. She is a regular contributor to Educational Leadership magazine. A veteran teacher, she counseled emotionally disturbed children with Bruno Bettelheim at the Orthogenic School and taught kindergarten with Vivian Paley at the University of Chicago Lab School. She now teaches young children at the Touchstone Community School in Grafton, Massachusetts, and lives in Connecticut with her family. Find her online at www.janekatch.com. View titles by Jane Katch
Jane Katch is a gutsy teacher and she has written a fascinating book about the obsessions and fears of boys in elementary school. Under Deadman's Skin makes it clear why school boards and politicians cannot legislate boy violence away. We all need to understand boys the way Jane Katch does. --Michael Thompson, Ph.D., author of Raising Cain and coauthor of Speaking of Boys

"Like Vivian Paley before her, Jane Katch takes us inside the minds and hearts of young children. She suspends judgement and her own fears to walk alongside her young students." --James Garbarino, author of Lost Boys: Why Our Sons Turn Violent and How We Can Save Them

"[Katch] tackles many of the most perplexing questions about classroom violence: Do violent movies make violent kids? Are boys more violent than girls? And how does the act of exclusion lead to a cycle of violence?" --New Orleans Times-Picayune

About

The five-and six-year-olds in my class have invented a new game they call suicide. I have never seen a game I hate so much in which all the children involved are so happy.

So begins Under Deadman’s Skin, a deceptively simple-and compellingly readable-teachers’ tale. Jane Katch, in the tradition of Vivian Paley and Jonathan Kozol, uses her student’s own vocabulary and storytelling to set the scene: a class of five-and six-year-olds obsessed with what is to their teacher hatefully violent fantasy play. Katch asks, “Can I make a place in school for understanding these fantasies, instead of shutting them out?”

Over the course of the year she holds group discussions to determine what kind of play creates or calms turmoil; she illustrates (or rather the children illustrate) the phenomenon of very young children needing to make sense of exceptionally violent imagery; and she consults with older grade-school boys who remember what it was like to be obsessed by violence and tell Katch what she can do to help. Katch’s classroom journey-one that leads her to rules and limits that keep children secure-is an enabling blueprint for any teacher or parent disturbed by violent children’s play.

“Jane Katch is a gutsy teacher and she has written a fascinating book about the obsessions and fears of boys in elementary school. Under Deadman’s Skin makes it clear why school boards and politicians cannot legislate boy violence away. We all need to understand boys the way Jane Katch does’ - Michael Thompson, Ph.D., author of Raising Cain and coauthor of Speaking of Boys

“Like Vivian Paley before her, Jane Katch takes us inside the minds and hearts of young children. She suspends judgment and her own fears to walk alongside her young students.” - James Garbarino, author of Lost Boys: Why Our Sons Turn Violent and How We Can Save Them

“[Katch] tackles many of the most perplexing questions about classroom violence: Do violent movies make violent kids? Are boys more violent than girls? And how does the act of exclusion lead to a cycle of violence?” - New Orleans Times-Picayune

Author

Jane Katch is the author of Under Deadman's Skin: Discovering the Meaning of Children's Violent Play and and They Don't Like Me: Lessons on Bullying and Teasing from a Preschool Classroom. She is a regular contributor to Educational Leadership magazine. A veteran teacher, she counseled emotionally disturbed children with Bruno Bettelheim at the Orthogenic School and taught kindergarten with Vivian Paley at the University of Chicago Lab School. She now teaches young children at the Touchstone Community School in Grafton, Massachusetts, and lives in Connecticut with her family. Find her online at www.janekatch.com. View titles by Jane Katch

Praise

Jane Katch is a gutsy teacher and she has written a fascinating book about the obsessions and fears of boys in elementary school. Under Deadman's Skin makes it clear why school boards and politicians cannot legislate boy violence away. We all need to understand boys the way Jane Katch does. --Michael Thompson, Ph.D., author of Raising Cain and coauthor of Speaking of Boys

"Like Vivian Paley before her, Jane Katch takes us inside the minds and hearts of young children. She suspends judgement and her own fears to walk alongside her young students." --James Garbarino, author of Lost Boys: Why Our Sons Turn Violent and How We Can Save Them

"[Katch] tackles many of the most perplexing questions about classroom violence: Do violent movies make violent kids? Are boys more violent than girls? And how does the act of exclusion lead to a cycle of violence?" --New Orleans Times-Picayune

Related Articles

English Language Arts Social Studies Sociology

Books for LGBTQIA+ Pride Month

In June we celebrate Pride Month, which honors the 1969 Stonewall riots in Manhattan and highlights the accomplishments of those in the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, and Asexual + (LGBTQIA+) community, while recognizing the ongoing struggles faced by many across the world who wish to live as their most authentic selves. Browse our

Read more

Books for LGBTQIA+ Pride Month

English Language Arts Social Studies Sociology
Social Studies Books in Spanish The Arts History High School Middle School General Education & Professional Learning Graphic Novels English Language Arts Environmental Science Favorite Authors & Series Science

2024 Middle and High School Collections

The Penguin Random House Education Middle School and High School Digital Collections feature outstanding fiction and nonfiction from the children’s, adult, DK, and Grupo Editorial divisions, as well as publishers distributed by Penguin Random House. Peruse online or download these valuable resources to discover great books in specific topic areas such as: English Language Arts,

Read more

2024 Middle and High School Collections

Social Studies Books in Spanish The Arts History High School Middle School General Education & Professional Learning Graphic Novels English Language Arts Environmental Science Favorite Authors & Series Science
new penguin random house education high school collections sixteen thematic collections and resources for grades 9-12 curated by lorena german cicely lewis morgan taylor julia e torres and ronell whitaker
General Classroom Libraries English Language Arts Advanced Placement High School Graphic Novels

PRH Education High School Collections

All reading communities should contain protected time for the sake of reading. Independent reading practices emphasize the process of making meaning through reading, not an end product. The school culture (teachers, administration, etc.) should affirm this daily practice time as inherently important instructional time for all readers. (NCTE, 2019)   The Penguin Random House High

Read more

PRH Education High School Collections

General Classroom Libraries English Language Arts Advanced Placement High School Graphic Novels
education translanguaging collections affirming bilingual and multilingual learners
General Graphic Novels Education & Professional Learning English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series Classroom Libraries References Science Translanguaging Collections Social Studies The Arts History High School Middle School

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

Translanguaging is a communicative practice of bilinguals and multilinguals, that is, it is a practice whereby bilinguals and multilinguals use their entire linguistic repertoire to communicate and make meaning (García, 2009; García, Ibarra Johnson, & Seltzer, 2017)   It is through that lens that we have partnered with teacher educators and bilingual education experts, Drs.

Read more

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

General Graphic Novels Education & Professional Learning English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series Classroom Libraries References Science Translanguaging Collections Social Studies The Arts History High School Middle School

Penguin Random House Secondary Education

© 2025 Penguin Random House

Back to Top
0
    • 0
    Wish List (0)