REACHING STUDENTS WHO HURT: Teaching Kids With Trauma & Loss

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

Most students experience some form of loss in their lives, and the grief that results can profoundly affect their academic performance, emotional stability, and social interactions. This class will help educators understand and respond to the extraordinary challenges that children may face when dealing with grief and loss.

You will learn strategies to help students affected by divorce, the death of a parent, relative, friend, or pet; violence; chronic illness, and more.  This class will examine grief experiences at different developmental levels and will give you strategies to:

1. Respond appropriately to expressions of grief from children and adolescents
2. Help students handle some of the emotions associated with loss
3. Determine when to refer a child to a specialist
4. Respect cultural attitudes towards grief and loss
5. Understand and identify risk taking behaviors and suicide

This course is appropriate for those working in all grades, K-12 including teachers, para-educators, counselors, and other support personnel.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Upon completion of this course, participants will have:

1. Understand why as an educator you are qualified to work with children who have experienced loss.
2. Understand the different types of losses and grief reactions.   
3. Understand the cognitive as well as the attachment and psychosocial development of children during the various stages of grief.
4. Understand what students grieve.
5. Recognize risk taking behaviors and the signs of impending suicide. 
6. Access information and resources regarding how to help grieving students.
7. Understand how to develop a school crisis response.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
Completion of all specified assignments is required for issuance of hours or credit.  The Heritage Institute does not award partial credit. 

HOURS EARNED:
Completing the basic assignments (Section A. Information Acquisition) for this course automatically earns participant’s their choice of CEUs (Continuing Education Units), Washington State Clock Hours, Oregon PDUs, or Pennsylvania ACT 48 Hours. The Heritage Institute offers CEUs and is an approved provider of Washington State Clock Hours, Oregon PDUs, and Pennsylvania ACT 48 Hours.

UNIVERSITY QUARTER CREDIT INFORMATION

REQUIREMENTS FOR UNIVERSITY QUARTER CREDIT
Continuing Education Quarter credits are awarded by Antioch University Seattle (AUS). AUS requires 75% or better for credit at the 400 level and 85% or better to issue credit at the 500 level. These criteria refer both to the amount and quality of work submitted.

1. Completion of Information Acquisition assignments 30%
2. Completion of Learning Application assignments 40%
3. Completion of Integration Paper assignment 30%

CREDIT/NO CREDIT (No Letter Grades or Numeric Equivalents on Transcripts)
Antioch University Seattle (AUS) Continuing Education Quarter credit is offered on a Credit/No Credit basis; neither letter grades nor numeric equivalents are on a transcript. 400 level credit is equal to a "C" or better, 500 level credit is equal to a "B" or better. This information is on the back of the transcript.

AUS Continuing Education quarter credits may or may not be accepted into degree programs. Prior to registering determine with your district personnel, department head, or state education office the acceptability of these credits for your purpose.

ADDITIONAL COURSE INFORMATION

REQUIRED TEXT

• Instructional manual When Kids are Grieving: Addressing Grief and Loss in School by Donna Burns.  Approximately $22 at Amazon
• Read one of the books in the bibliography of this syllabus. These books may be obtained from school or public libraries or ordered on Amazon.com

• When Kids Are Grieving: Addressing Grief and Loss in School

  ISBN# 1629147761
  by Burns, Donna M.
  Skyhorse
  
  Buy from Amazon

MATERIALS FEE

Text, When Kids are Grieving: Addressing Grief and Loss in School by Donna Burns, is approximately $22 from Amazon. Read one of the books in the Bibliography of this syllabus. These books may be obtained from school or public libraries or ordered on Amazon.com

QUALIFICATIONS FOR TEACHING THIS COURSE:

Jacquie Johansson graduated with a master’s degree in counseling psychology from Gonzaga University in 1990, and for the past 24 years, she has worked for Spokane Public Schools as an elementary school counselor. During her tenure, she has dealt extensively with students of trauma and poverty, as well as gifted students and those from high income backgrounds.  

Jacquie is the co-founder and vice-president of Continuing-Credits, Inc., which develops and facilitates dynamic workshops across the Pacific Northwest.  Since the start of the company 14 years ago, she, along with her teaching partner Lori Gibson, has created and taught a vast variety of courses; the emphasis is counseling skills aimed at working with both students and staff.

Jacquie’s overarching mission, both as a counselor and an educator, is to produce classes that support knowledge and develop strategies necessary to work successfully with the entire spectrum of students and parent community with an end goal of constructing a safe, welcoming, and optimal learning environment for everyone.  As test scores become increasingly important in the school setting, educators need skills to build relationships quickly and effectively with students and staff. 

Drawing upon her experience as an elementary and secondary school counselor as well as an instructor at the university level, Jacquie is able to connect to students, parents, and staff.  Her fresh, fun approach to practical problem-solving provides useful techniques that can be implemented immediately.  Jacquie keeps current on new research, which she synthesizes with time-proven information to help educators structure a high-achieving classroom, and in turn, produce high-achieving students.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

REACHING STUDENTS WHO HURT: Teaching Kids With Trauma & Loss

Burns, Donna M. (2008). When Kids Are Grieving:  Addressing Grief and Loss in School.  New York, NY: Corwin Group. This book will help teachers, counselors and administrators understand the extraordinary challenges that children and adolescents face when dealing the trauma and loss.  There are lots of charts, activities, case studies etc., that act as a resource book to help students handle emotions associated with loss and when intervention is most effective.

Cohen, Judith & Mannarino, Anthony (2006).  Treating Trauma and Traumatic Grief in Children and Adolescents.  New York, NY:  The Guilford Press. This book provides a comprehensive framework for assessing posttraumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety.  Specific guidance is offered for responding to different types of traumatic events.

Craig, Susan E. (2008). Reaching and Teaching Children Who Hurt: Strategies for Your Classroom.  Baltimore, Maryland: Paul H. Brooks Publishing Co. This is a wonderful book that researches the affects of trauma and poverty on children in the school system. There is also some tips that allow for a deeper understanding of basic differences and the “baggage” that often travels to school with students. Recognizing the signs of a student that is hurting and effective strategies that will allow you to reach and teach them.

Doka, Kenneth (2000). Children, Adolescents and Loss: Living with Grief. San Francisco, CA:  Brunner/Mazel. This book features articles by leading educators and clinicians in the field of grief and bereavement.  It has a comprehensive resource list of national organization.

Faber, Adele & Mazlish, Elaine (1999). How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk. New York, NY:  HarperCollins Press.  This is still one of the best books around for skills on how to talk with kids so that they feel listened to and understood. It has great examples of how to handle those difficult conversations and end with a win/win on both sides. This book has stood the test a time and as a school counselor for 24 years I still recommend it to both teachers and parents.

Goldman, Linda (2000).  Life and Loss:  A guide to help grieving children. Philadelphia, PA: Accelerated Development.  This book looks at the issue of children denying or ignoring grief which leaves them feeling alone.  However, dealing with loss in productive ways is sometimes easier said than done. For decades, Life and Loss has been the book clinicians have relied on for a full and nuanced presentation of the many issues with which grieving children grapple with loss.

Greene, Ross (2008).  Lost at School: Why our Kids with Behavioral Challenges are Falling through the Cracks and How We Can Help Them.  New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.  This profound and fascinating work by Ross Greene tackles the tough subject of why behaviorally challenged students are often the ones that need our help the most. Regardless, they are often viewed as highly disrespectful, out of control, and beyond help. These students are also the ones that receive our most ineffective and most punitive interventions. This is an informative view of students that are hurting and how they let us know what is going on inside of themselves through the eyes of the educational system.

Hughes, Lynne (2005).  You Are Not Alone- Teens Talk About Life After the Loss of a Parent. New York, NY: First Scholastic.  This is a wonderful book about the Comfort Zone Camp (CZC) which was founded as a safe place for grieving children.  Through frank and accessible testimonials, Lynne Hughes and the kids of CZC share the most difficult parts of their losses and offer their own experiences of what helps, what doesn't, what "stinks," and ways to stay connected to their loved ones.