Violence in America’s schools has become an all-too-common occurrence.
With each tragedy, including today in Minneapolis, the children and young people involved experience the kind of trauma and fear no child should ever have to face. The entire community is impacted as well, seeing images in the news, hearing or reading headlines, imagining how they would feel if it happened to them.
These young people rely on their parents, caregivers, educators, and other adults around them to help them heal and process these horrifying events. The resources listed here can help all adults—educators, families, community leaders, and others—support the children and young people they care for.
- Helping Students After a School Shooting, American School Counselor Association. Strategies, resources, tools
- Teaching in the Wake of Violence. Facing History and Ourselves, a coordinated schoolwide approach to responding to upsetting and violent events
- About Trauma and Grief. Child Mind Institute, guidance for adults on supporting children while navigating their own big emotions
- Talking to Children About Violence: Tips for Parents and Teachers. National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), key points to communicate and ways to support young people emotionally, differentiated by age group
- Discussing Tragic Events in the News. Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility, basic questions and discussion formats for teachers to use as they make space for students to discuss their reactions and take positive action