Resources for R15 families
during times of international crises
R15 is sharing this guide to support your conversations with children about the recent events in the Middle East and in other times when our country and nations across the world are faced with a crisis.
Region 15 students, staff and community members have family or cultural ties to the Middle East. Please know that we are committed to ensuring that our schools are safe spaces for all members of our community. We welcome resources and ideas to continue the conversation.
Our children are looking to us to know that home and school are places of safety, routines, and connection. As families and educators, we need to listen to our children. They need a safe space to share their feelings. They may wonder about their own safety, the safety of their families in the U.S. and abroad, and the safety of the people in the Middle East. They may be seeking facts or information. They may rely on us to offer hope.
Most children, including adolescents and teens, will trust family members more than anyone else to talk about these recent events. Teachers and other adults are a second trusted source of information. (Source: https://www.commonsensemedia.org/research/news-and-americas-kids-infographic)
What can families and educators do?
A first step is the acknowledge and understand our own adult emotions and responses to the situation. We can then better listen to our children and respond based on their emotions and needs.
The advice offered to educators and families from children’s media experts in the January 20, 2020 NPR piece, What To Say to Kids When the News is Scary, (article and audiocast format, provides a starting point:
Limit young children’s exposure to breaking news.
Ask: "What have you heard and how are you feeling?"
Give kids facts and context.
When they ask why something happened, tell the truth. Avoid labels like "bad guys." "It's not helpful, and it may increase fear and confusion.”
- Encourage kids to process the story through art/creative expression. This helps children make meaning of what they are hearing or seeing.
- "Look for the helpers." Fred Rogers, children's TV host, shared this advice from his mother: "When something scary is happening, look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”
- Take positive action together.
"Anything that is human is mentionable, and anything that is mentionable can become more manageable. When we talk about our feelings, they become less overwhelming, less upsetting, and less scary." - Fred Rogers
Resources for Adults in Supporting Children
Our students need guidance and support from adults in their homes and at school to navigate their emotions and questions in a healthy and productive way. We offer the following resources to support parents/caregivers:
- Explaining War to Children: 6 Tips: Article from Marsha Richardson, UPENN Graduate School of Education, provides guidance to parents and educators now in the position of having to explain the "enormously complex emotions and realities of war to children who have already had a deeply traumatic couple of years."
- Talking to Your Kids About War: VeryWell Family explores ways families can speak with young people about war, including tips on sharing information and restricting media coverage.
- Resilience in a time of war: Tips for parents and teachers of elementary school children: This article from the American Psychological Association can help adults guide their young children beyond fear and to resilience.
- Resilience in a time of war: Tips for parents and teachers of middle school children: The American Psychological Association breaks out tips and strategies for parents and teachers of middle school-aged children.
- How to Talk to Kids About Violence, Crime, and War: Common Sense Media gathers tips and conversation starters to help you talk to kids of different ages about the toughest topics.
- Helping Your Students Cope With a Violent World: Edutopia article features strategies for helping children make sense with historical perspective, feel empowered, and inspire them to feel hopeful.
- How to Talk to Kids About Scary or Tragic Events in the News- Connecticut Children’s developmental pediatrician Robert D. Keder, MD, shares advice.
Resource for Elementary Aged Children
The Breaking News
by Sarah Lynne Reul
Illustrated by the author
Click here for read aloud by the author
From GoodReads.org
When devastating news rattles a young girl's community, her normally attentive parents and neighbors are suddenly exhausted and distracted. At school, her teacher tells the class to look for the helpers—the good people working to make things better in big and small ways. She wants more than anything to help in a BIG way, but maybe she can start with one small act of kindness instead . . . and then another, and another. Small things can compound, after all, to make a world of difference.
Crisis & Community Resources
As a reminder, adult and child Mobile Crisis Intervention Services can be accessed by school staff and families by dialing the United Way 2-1-1 Infoline. Additionally, the Department of Children and Families (DCF) has recently launched Urgent Crisis Centers in four locations around Connecticut that are available for families whose children may need additional behavioral health supports.