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Children, Stress, and Natural Disasters:
School Activities for Children

Examples of Activities That Promote the Sharing of Experiences and Expression of Feelings

Contents

Overview
Methods and Techniques
The Talking Method
The Drawing Method
The Writing Method

Overview

The Process of Diffusing

Experiencing a disaster might cause some children to show a variety of symptoms of distress or problems. Teachers can help these children by assisting them in expressing their experiences and feelings. This is called DEFUSING.

DEFUSING is a supportive, personalized, safe interactive process between individuals in a small/or large group. The teacher provides clarity and complete expression of the event/experiences. It can be emotional. It can help children to develop coping skills and heal. Why encourage expression?

• Expression often relieves tension, fear, or anxiety
• Expression can help children "create a story" or "create meaning" out of an event and may give them a sense of coherence or control over their lives or the events in their lives
• Expression allows children to make their needs known to others

The defusing process is most effective when you focus on the disastrous event(s) in this sequence:

1. General events
2. Event-specific experiences
3. Personal experiences

EXAMPLE: If the event was an earthquake, then do the following:

1. General: talk/draw/write about disasters in general: "Earthquakes happen when...," "Floods happen when...", etc.
2. Event-Specific: talk/draw/write about the local disaster you just experienced.
3. Personal: talk/draw/write about each person's personal experience in that disaster. NOTE: This process needs to conclude with quiet, reflective time.

Remember! You can use this after ANY KIND OF DISASTER.

Methods and Techniques

In using the General to Specific Approach, many methods and activities may be effective. Three suggested methods/techniques to use in your class to help defuse children after a disaster are:

1. The Talking Method
2. The Drawing Method
3. The Writing Method

Examples of each of these methods are presented later in this guide.

Questions and Themes

There are some LEADING QUESTIONS and suggested themes you can use to help children to express themselves in the talking method, the drawing method, or the writing method:

• How have you gotten through rough times before?
• What would you do differently if it happened again?
• How did you help others? How would you help next time?

As the teacher, you might think of more leading questions to ask the children. Be sure that your questions are OPEN - ENDED, which means that they can not be answered by a "Yes" or "No" only. Open-ended questions facilitate verbal expression. Most of these questions would be helpful at any time after a disaster/event, from one day following, to one or more years later. Remember to use the previous questions as the basis for the activities that follow.

Here are some questions/themes that can be used with either the talking, drawing, or writing methods:

• Where were you when it (the disaster/event) happened?
• What were you doing?
• Where were your friends?
• Where was your family?
• What was your first thought when it happened?
• What were you thinking during it?
• What did you see?
• What changed? (Include lifestyle/living conditions!)
• What did you hear?
• What sound did it make?
• What did you smell?
• What did you do after it?
• What did you "lose"? (Misplaced or broken, destroyed, etc.)
• How did you feel?
• What did other people around you do (during, after)?
• What happened to the animals around you? (Pets, too)What do you do differently since the (disaster/event)?
• How do you feel now?
• What makes you feel better?

The Talking Method

Materials

Procedure

1. FIRST, introduce talking as a way of:

• expressing thoughts and ideas
• letting people know your feelings

Talking should be presented to the child as an OPTION for expression, not as a required activity!

1. Explain that we all have had bad days. Ask students if they have ever had a bad day.
2. Read the story aloud to the students, then discuss using the following questions to get things going.

• Why was Alexander's day so very bad?
• What could of Alexander done to change his day?
• Have you ever had a very bad day?
• Can you tell me about your very bad day?
• How did your very bad day make you feel?
• What is the worst day you can remember?
• Can you tell me how you felt that day?
• Do you think other people have bad days?
• Do adults have bad days?
• Why did Alexander want to move to Australia?
• Have you ever thought about moving away?
• How did you feel when you thought about moving away?

There are no right or wrong answers to these questions. Help students to see that everyone has bad days and some days are just more difficult.

Remember to use previous questions to help lead these activities: A QUESTION CAN BECOME A THEME FOR A DISCUSSION.

Additional Activities

• Child tells a story - allow metaphors
• Puppets "tell" or "live" a story
• Have an open discussion - using previous questions; ask for volunteers to begin with. . . talk "general to specific."
• Use photos, drawings, etc., to facilitate discussions
• Use video prior to discussion to get it going
• Create a skit, play, or do role-playing, related to the disaster. (Provide "dress-up" clothes if available, including uniforms if possible to represent emergency workers seen during the disaster, etc.)
• Do "show and tell" related to the event
• Inform/educate the children about the event to make it less threatening to talk/act about. Make it "familiar."
• Other written materials you could use to facilitate discussion:
  
• Magazine articles
  
• Newspaper articles
  
• Picture Books
  
  Cowardly Clyde, by Bill Peet
  Oh, the Places You'll Go, by Dr. Seuss
  
• Novels
  
  Little House on the Prairie, by Laura Ingles Wilder
  The Cay, by Theodore Taylor
  

Other books that can be used are listed in a bibliography of children's literature on natural disasters.

Remember to keep yourself in a facilitative/guiding role, not in a role of "control" of the discussions/stories, etc. Reassure the children by verbally acknowledging and "normalizing" their experiences.

The Drawing Method

Materials

Procedure

Introduction

Introduce drawing as:

• another way of "talking," (but silently)
• a means of expression
  (Point out that some people express themselves by talking, some by singing, some by dancing. . . some by drawing!)

Drawing should be presented to the child as an OPTION for expression, not as a required activity!

Explain how we begin our first art - our first marks, scribbles, doodles, graffiti and cave paintings. Students are encouraged to think in terms of "warming-up" to do art with these exercises.

Warm-Up (10 minutes)

Scribbles
Students are asked to remember early scribbling experiences; what and where they scribbled. These stories are shared in the total group with an emphasis on humor and a reminder that despite the outcome, their intentions were good and innocent.

Exercise: (3 minutes) Let students scribble on a full sheet of paper. They are encouraged to try each hand. These are shared with an emphasis upon showing how each student has a different style.

Lines
Progression to lines is explained, i.e. lines are scribbles with beginnings and ends. They have intention and require more control than scribbles.

Exercise: (about 30 seconds per line)

1. Select a color that doesn't want to get out of bed in the morning and draw a line with that color.
2. Next select a color that has "it together", that does want to get going and draw that.
3. Draw a line that is afraid.
4. Draw a line that wants to help other lines.

Students may continue selecting colors for different lines, such a line that: has the giggles, has the hiccups, is angry, afraid, scared, having a bad day, doesn't feel good, is feeling good, wants to help other lines, has compassion, loves all the other lines. Have students share their different lines by pointing to the lines. (If time permits, students may either point to lines or verbally share.)

Shapes
Explanation of the developed line into a shape in which beginning and end meet. This takes more thought, more meaning and can tell a story or become an image.

Exercise: (About 1 minute per shape) Have students draw four shapes - coloring each one.

1. a shape that has never been in a disaster
2. a shape that has been in a disaster
3. a shape that likes to help the above
4. a shape that's prepared, should we have another disaster

Other options: A shape that's had a bad day, a compassion shape, a power shape.

Visualization (5 minutes)
Students are asked to get comfortable, close their eyes, relax, pay attention to their breathing and make their minds very quiet. In this quiet state the instructor says "what comes into your mind when I say disaster?" Students are asked to remain quiet.

Disaster Drawing (15 minutes)
Brief comment about how we usually talk about the disaster, but this time we will draw about it, not talking while we draw. On the final sheet of paper each student is asked to draw what he/she remembers about the disaster, or what came into their minds. After a few minutes they are reminded to include themselves in the drawing if that seems appropriate.

Pros (One hour)

Students meet as a group and discuss their drawings. Questions are asked to clarify drawings.

Next, the children are asked to share their pictures. "Let's take a few minutes to tell about our disaster pictures," "Tell me about your drawing."

Here are some points to remember:

• Try to keep it factual. Content responses and/or specific questions are most helpful in encouraging children to tell their stories.
• Ask specific questions about drawings for children who are having difficulty talking. "What's happened here?" "How did that figure get there?"
• You might then ask exploratory questions based on content, encouraging them to talk about themselves. "You were with your friend, Michael." "Was anyone else with you or close by?" "How was that for you?"
• Don't ask why questions, ask what questions or where questions. Ex. Not "Why aren't you in the picture?", Say, "Where are you in the picture?"
• Avoid judgments about drawings or situations.
• Help set limits for children who talk a lot by acknowledging they need to talk and letting them know you will meet with them later.
• It's likely that children will make drawings about things other than the disaster.

Additional Activities

• Draw/write a book together
• Illustrate journals with pictures
Do a collective drawing - a MURAL
• Murals tell a "collective story"
• Murals develop/support teamwork
• They feel "safer" for some children as opposed to individual art
• Give the mural a "place of honor" in the classroom
• Allow children to tell teacher what to draw
• Make it accessible every day for viewing, additions, etc.
• Fill it in on an ongoing basis
• "Celebrate" it: use it to demonstrate getting through something tough, facilitate discussions about it, etc.
• Take photos/slides of it if/when "completed"
• Computer graphics
Draw aspects of the event (people, places, activities, etc.)
• Suggest lots of options, not specifics, e.g.
• Rather than saying, "Draw a fireman helping someone," say, "Draw a person you saw doing something helpful after the [disaster]."
• Create a COLLAGE (a combination of "materials")
• Using a leading question such as, "Where were you when the [disaster] happened?
• Children cut and paste photos, magazine pictures, articles, fabric pieces, etc., around central theme.
• They may also want to draw directly onto it
• Collages are the "safest" form of "drawing" because child is using other's symbols.
• Tell children they may draw what they cannot find in magazines, etc.

Remember when introducing drawing of any sort to clearly say that the goal is not to draw a "pretty picture" but rather, a picture of expression!

You may also want to look at other pictures (drawings, paintings) and talk about what they communicate. Encourage various views.

MORE tips, cautions, principles when using the Drawing Method

• Allow a full range of expression: some kids draw recognizable "things", others draw "abstracts." Respect all varieties.
• Allow children to discard their art work.
• Emphasize to the children that their work will not be judged, graded or necessarily shown to others.
  Don't exhibit the artwork if a child does not want to share it with others.
  
• Reassure them that there is NO "RIGHT WAY" to draw
• Allow use of various mediums (pastels, crayons, pencils, markers, etc.)
• It's preferable to do the drawing method with more than one adult present
• Exercise as little control as possible over the artwork

Concluding Drawing Activities

A key element of the Drawing Method is the discussion of the activities, afterwards. This discussion can help to bring CLOSURE to the experience; and important step of the process of expressing feelings.

• Allow those who want to, to talk about their drawings
• Others will "close" by listening to others
• Use open-ended questions in this process

The Writing Method

Materials

Variety of paper, pens, pencils, markers, crayons, and colored pencils

Procedure

Introduction

Introduce writing as:

• another way of "talking"
• a means of expressing thoughts and feelings

Writing should be presented to the child as an OPTION for expression, not as a required activity!

The written method is another way of allowing students to voice their thoughts and feelings. The thoughts and feelings expressed in the student's writing may be very personal. Students may wish to share their work with others, but other students may be uncomfortable sharing their work. Students should not be forced to share their work.

Activity

Have the students select their choice of paper and writing tools.

Begin by explaining that thoughts and feelings are very important and can be expressed in writing. Students need to be assured that they can express their thoughts and feelings without fear of criticism. Explain that when they have completed their writing they can choose whether or not to share their writing with the group.

Start by practicing a short "free write" activity to help students begin writing. Everyone is instructed to continually write and not put down their pencils for five minutes. There is no topic for this writing exercise; the instructions are to write about whatever they are thinking about. If they run out of ideas then they can write the last word they wrote over and over for the remaining time. The purpose is to keep the pencil moving. The activity concludes at the end of five minutes. Discuss with the class the variety of topics that came up during the five minute period.

1. Tell the class that today's writing activity is going to be "My Favorite Day. . ." or they can write about "My Worst Day. . ." -- the choice is theirs. They will be given time for several days to work on their story.
2. The class can then begin working on their stories. Those who wish can illustrate their stories.
3. After the students have completed their stories, those who wish can share their stories.
4. Questions you might ask during sharing time:
   • Has anyone else had similar feelings?
   • Did anyone else have a similar experience?
   • How did you feel when that was happening?
   • How do you feel now that is over?
   • What else happened during that time?
   • How do you feel about the event today?
   • What did it look like, feel like, or smell like? ?
   Remember to use previous questions to help lead these activities: A QUESTION CAN BECOME A THEME FOR A WRITING ACTIVITY.
5. Some students may want to put their writing together if they have had similar experiences to form a book.

Additional Activities

Daily Journaling
Keeping a journal is a very effective way for students to express their feelings. Students who have never used this method to communicate their feelings may find it easier to use a combination of words and pictures in their journal to express thoughts and feelings. Journaling can be done on a daily basis for a short period of time. It can be the opening activity everyday for ten minutes. Journals can be dealt with in several ways -- they can be personal journals that students write to themselves only, or the journal can provide a method of correspondence between student and teacher. Questions you might want to consider when responding to the students journals should be open-ended.

Resource Material: The Creative Journal for Teens, by Lucia Capacchione, Ph.D.

Poetry
Poetry provides students with a slightly different approach for expressing feelings. The "haiku," for example, require students to provide not only the setting, but the mood as well. The "diamante" can be used to explore opposites. Poetry provides a different type of structure for expression of feelings. You can discuss students' poetry using the kinds of questions presented previously.

Types of poetry to consider:

• How, What, When, Where, and Why Poetry
• Acrostic
• Cinquain
• Free Verse

Each poem can be illustrated, and individually displayed or combined into a book.

Writing Books
Writing a picture book for other students about the disaster can also help students express their feelings.