| As students struggle to cope with the war in Iraq, terrorism and school violence they may become disturbed and confused by the barrage of images and information.
Adults - parents, teachers and caregivers - may need help to reconcile advocating
non-violence with the necessity for armies and conflict.
Children's age and
personality will influence their reactions to violent events. They may be more
sensitive to them if they know someone involved or have national ties to the countries
or places involved. They will often personalize the news they hear, or at the other extreme,
they may ignore or become immune to reports of suffering. Parents and other
adults can help children cope with war and other violent events in a variety of
ways. The following resources offer guidance, from overviews to advice for different
age groups and reactions.
Overviews
Overviews
Helping Your Kids Feel Safe
Parents Place
http://www.parentsplace.com/features/safety/qas/0,10338,239436_112427,00.html
Nickelodeon Parent Talk, Violence
http://www.nick.com/all_nick/everything_nick/kaiser/violence.html
Talking to Kids About War
AboutOurKids.org
New York University
Child Study Center
http://www.aboutourkids.org/articles/war.html
Talking
with Kids About Tough Issues
TalkingWithKids.org
http://www.talkingwithkids.org/
Talking with Kids about War
The Learning Network
http://familyeducation.com/topic/front/0,1156,62-29610-1,00.html?yf-home When
War is in the News
Purdue University Extension
http://www.ces.purdue.edu/terrorism/children/index.html
[ Top of page ] Helping
Young Children
Confront bullying to help students learn
http://www.reacheverychild.com/feature/bullying.html
Helping Children Deal with their Concern about War and Violence
Mr. Rogers
http://pbskids.org/rogers/parents/war.html
[ Top of page ] Resources
for Caregivers, Teachers, Health Professionals and CommunitiesChild Deaths
Hit Communities Hard: Disasters Demand Psychological Triage
American
Academy Pediatricians
http://www.aap.org/advocacy/disarticle.htm
Crisis Communications Guide and Toolkit
National Education Association
http://www.nea.org/crisis
Helping Children After a Disaster
American Academy of Child and
Adolescent Psychiatry
http://www.aacap.org/publications/factsfam/disaster.htm
Helping Children and Adolescents Cope with Violence and Disasters
National Institute of Mental Health
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/violence.cfm
How Pediatricians Can Respond to the Psychosocial Implications of Disasters
(American Academy of Pediatricians Policy statement)
http://www.aap.org/policy/re9813.html
Psychosocial Issues for Children and Families in Disasters: A Guide for
the Primary Care Physician
(Joint publication between AAP and US Center
for Mental Health Services)
http://www.mentalhealth.org/publications/allpubs/SMA95-3022/default.asp
[ Top of page ] Help
for Older Children and Teenagers
A Guide for Parents: Ten Tips for Talking with Children about Terrorism
Ohio Commission on Dispute Resolution and Conflict Management.
http://www.state.oh.us/cdr/schools/trauma/tentips.htm
Talking to Children about Violence
Educators for Social Responsibility
http://www.esrnational.org/guide.htm
[ Top of page ] Coping
with Loss
Children and Grief
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
http://www.aacap.org/publications/factsfam/grief.htm
Talking to
Children about Death
Hospice Net
http://www.hospicenet.org/html/talking.html
[ Top of page ]
Addressing
HatredPromoting Tolerance and Peace in Children: Tips for Parents and
Schools
National Association of School Psychologists
http://www.nasponline.org/NEAT/tolerance_general.html
Reacting to Anti-Muslim Hate Crimes
Council on American Islamic
Relations
http://www.cair-net.org/ireport/
What to Do about Prejudice? (Addressing anti-Arab and anti-Sikh comments)
Educators for Social Responsibility.
http://www.esrnational.org/guide.htm#bigotry
When Hurt Leads to Hate
New York University Child Study Center
http://www.aboutourkids.org/articles/hate.html | 
