Back To School Bootcamp is designed to mitigate those challenges for bereaved students.Over a one and a half hour session, students and their guardians come to share their experiences, learn coping techniques, and develop a plan for a successful (or at least, less terrible) school year.
About 5% of youth in America will experience the death of a parent before the age of 18. Many more will lose siblings and other close family members. At the Children’s Grief Center most of the deaths we see are caused by cancer and car accidents. As young people head back to school following the loss of their loved one, they are faced with questions and comments from friends, teachers, and others which provoke anxiety and distress. Back to School Boot Camp is a workshop which provides hands-on activities and program stations for both kids and adults to talk about the death with less anxiety and to proactively problem-solve potentially uncomfortable scenarios.
Kids will learn how to talk about the death of their loved one with others, how to handle kids (and adults!) who often make insensitive or unkind remarks, how to identify support within their school, and coping techniques once they return to the school setting. Adult caregivers will learn how to notice when their child is stressed at school, how to be an advocate for their child within the school setting, and how to implement their own coping techniques or “self care” in order to be a strong parent in their child’s life during this time of familial upheaval.