THE SESSION - "A Basic Guide to Grief & Loss in Children and Teens" The PD session aims to provide Staff with the necessary information and ‘tools’ to assist children transition back into the classroom and school life following the death of a significant loved one, or family breakdown through separation or divorce.
------- FOCUS The focus of the PD session is to enhance the ability of Teachers, ESO’s and Admin Staff to support children as they return to school after the death of a family member or support strategies following the separation or divorce of a family unit. ‘Loss’ presents in many different ways and often Staff are the frontline workers in managing these ‘big’ emotions in children.
“Grief is not a specific emotion, like anger or depression, but rather is a constellation or wide range of various emotions that can be expressed through many modes and symbols.” (Carbone, 2003; Hilliard, 2008) NOTE: This presentation is NOT designed to take the place of the School Counsellor or Well-Being Program, but is designed to enhance a teacher’s knowledge around this area from an Organisation that specialises in grief and loss.
------- WHEN The session could be delivered onsite, anywhere in South Australia, as part of Staff’s ongoing PD. It is up to the Education Setting to decide where the session best fits into the PD Calendar and we will work around you to present the session. The Red Tree Foundation PD Service provides two options for the presentation of the session: - Face-to-Face – onsite at the designated educational setting
- Zoom Session – after hours (extra costs could be incurred)
------- WHY Understanding grief and loss in children is vitally important in being able to properly support them as they return to an educational setting after a death or change in family structure and is vital for ‘coping’ with the longer term grief journey. As such this session would still be relevant even if the loss was some time ago.
As identified in a Thesis written and submitted by Angela Elizabeth-Grace Wlasenko in 2009, titled “The Good Grief Workshop: A Case Study”, “The death of an important person in a child’s life can be among the most stressful events a young person can experience, and when the death involves a parent or sibling, the potential for an adverse response is compounded." American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000; Tein, Sandler, Ayers,& Wolchik, 2006. "Children can be placed at risk for a variety of psychological, behavioural, and emotional difficulties when a parent dies (Hurd, 2004), and bereavement in early childhood has been implicated as an underlying cause of depression and suicide attempts in later life (Doka,2000). These findings underscore the significance of children’s grief (Balk, 2007) in school and counselling psychology” Page 7, The Good Grief Workshop: Case Study ------- COST The PD Session costs $550.00 + GST, and will add another layer of knowledge and offer a set of ‘tools’ for Staff to utilize when working with children experiencing the emotions of grief and loss. Travel expenses outside of Metropolitan Adelaide are calculated as follows: - Under 25km, return – No charge
- 25km – 49km, return - $50
- 50km - 74km, return - $100
- 75km – 124km, return - $150
- 125km – 174km, return - $225
- 180km + - By Negotiation Only
------- WHO As a qualified teacher of 18 years, bereaved parent with firsthand experience in managing grief and loss in a child, completing the Diploma of Counselling with the AIPC and studying the Masters of Counselling with Torrens University, Kat look's forward to working with teachers and support staff to build the understanding of what to look for and how to practically help students travelling a grief or loss journey. | 
