Working with Children After Crisis/Disaster

By: Lindsey Sterrett, R2S Elementary Literacy Director

As we return to tutoring, or for some, begin new tutoring relationships with students, I wanted to share key takeaways from a recent training, "How to Competently and Confidently Connect with Children After Crisis/Disaster." The session was facilitated by Child Life Disaster Relief, a group of clinical professionals who founded their nonprofit after recognizing the need for trauma-informed community support in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

Here are some insights I’d like us to carry forward in our practices and relationships as we resume tutoring:

Our students, like us, have experienced the trauma of this natural disaster in various ways. It has been a lot to process, and for many in our community, this remains a time of uncertainty and hardship. As we get back to learning and connecting, our relationships with students become even more essential. Your time together can be a source of predictability and consistency for them.

Here are some ways to support our students in this process:

• Be present with your full awareness and attention. Many families are under extreme stress right now, and your presence and focused attention are a true gift.
• Let them share experiences on their terms. Children need to feel in control of what and how much they share. Some children may have a lot to say, while others may not want to discuss it at all. Avoid leading conversations or asking direct questions about how the hurricane impacted them. Research shows that it can take 9–18 months after a trauma for children to process these events cognitively.
• If they do share, reflect and validate their experience without probing further. Acknowledge what you hear, but give them space to open up at their own pace.
  
• Be mindful of potential triggers to their stress response. These might include rain, thunder, wind, clouds, loud noises, safety drills, or sirens.
• Monitor your own emotions. Your emotional regulation can significantly influence children, just as their emotions can affect ours.
  • One easy way to support regulation is how we breathe. When you exhale longer than you inhale, you activate your parasympathetic nervous system, which can help you feel calmer and more relaxed
    • Slows your heart rate: Exhaling longer than you inhale signals your vagus nerve to release acetylcholine, which slows your heart rate.
      
    • Reduces stress and anxiety: This breathing technique can help you feel more relaxed and reduce stress and anxiety. 
      
• Handle big questions with care. If a child asks a challenging question or shares a difficult issue, validate their feelings, respond honestly, and acknowledge the significance of their question. If it feels beyond your expertise, reflect what you hear and suggest, “I wonder who you can talk to about big questions. Is there someone you trust?”
  
• Build relationships through play. Play is the language of children. As we return to our work, let’s create space for play. The R2S resource library offers many useful resources for this.
• Offer choices in your routine or lesson plan. For example, let them choose a book or decide if they’d like to play a game at the beginning or end of the session.

If you’d like to learn more about Child Life Disaster Relief (CLDR) and its resources click HERE.