Crisis Resources

Resources for Schools and Families

The NASP School Safety and Crisis resource page offers guidance on how to address grief, potential trauma, and children's exposure to the media. http://www.nasponline.org/resources-and-publications/resources/school-safety-and-crisis

School Violence Prevention

This APA article discusses how to talk to children about difficult news and tragedies. http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/talking-to-children.aspx

Helping Children Understand and Cope with Violence and Loss of Life

• Talking to Children About Violence: Tips for Parents and Teachers (English | Spanish | Korean | Vietnamese | French | Amharic | Chinese | Portuguese | Somali | Arabic | Kurdish)
• Companion Infographic for "Talking to Children about Violence"
• Addressing Grief
• Managing Strong Emotional Reactions to Traumatic Events: Tips for Parents and Teachers
• Social Media and School Crises
• Responding to School Violence: Tips for Administrators
• Threat Assessment for School Administrators & Crisis Teams
• Best Practice Considerations for Schools in Active Shooter and Other Armed Assailant Drills
• Culturally Competent Crisis Response Resources
• Child Trauma Toolkit for Educator
• Helping Youth and Children Recover From Traumatic Events
• Guide for Developing High-Quality School Emergency Operations Plans: At A Glance
• The Disaster Distress Helpline, 800.985.5990, can provide immediate counseling to anyone who needs help in dealing with the many issues and problems that might arise from a tragedy (24/7). Sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the Helpline immediately connects callers to trained and caring professionals from the closest crisis counseling center in the nationwide network of centers. The toll-free Helpline is confidential and multilingual, and can be accessed online at http://disasterdistress.samhsa.gov/. Texting service is also available to Spanish speakers. Text "Hablanos" to 66746 for 24/7 emotional support.

Hurricane/Disaster Resources

• In 2006, FEMA launched Ready Kids, a tool to help parents and teachers educate children ages 8 - 12 about emergencies and how they can help get their family prepared. The program includes family-friendly Web pages and online materials developed by Sesame Workshop and Discovery Education.
• Here for Each Other is a family guide that provides tips and activities to do with your child that offer comfort and assurance.
• Helping Children After a Natural Disaster: Information for Families and Educators provides information on what to expect and tips for recovery.
• Simple Activities for Children and Adolescents: Limited Supplies Needed (Daytime) - activities that families sheltering-in-place or evacuating may use to help occupy children's minds.
• Simple Evacuation Activities: No Supplies Needed - activities that require no supplies to help during evacuations (or sheltering-in-place)
• Coping with Shelter-in-Place Emergencies - a resource to help adults understand shelter-in-place, typical reactions to the situation, and recommendations to cope
• Ready.gov - Hurricanes: This page explains what actions to take when you receive a hurricane watch or warning alert from the National Weather Service for your local area. It also provides tips on what to do before, during, and after a hurricane.
• Ready.gov - Recovering from a Disaster: Recovering from a disaster is usually a gradual process. Safety is a primary issue, as are mental and physical well-being. If assistance is available, knowing how to access it makes the process faster and less stressful. This section offers some general advice on steps to take after disaster strikes in order to begin getting your home, your community and your life back to normal.
• Are You Ready? An In-Depth Guide to Citizen Preparedness - The guide has been designed to help the citizens of this nation learn how to protect themselves and their families against all types of hazards. It can be used as a reference source or as a step-by-step manual. The focus of the content is on how to develop, practice, and maintain emergency plans that reflect what must be done before, during, and after a disaster to protect people and their property. Also included is information on how to assemble a disaster supplies kit that contains the food, water, and other supplies in sufficient quantity for individuals and their families to survive following a disaster in the event they must rely on their own resources.

Suicide Prevention Resources

13 Reasons Why: Guidance for Educators
In response to the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why, in which 17-year-old Hannah Baker takes her own life and leaves behind audio recordings for people who she says were part of why she killed herself, NASP has released considerations for educators.

Healthy Mind and Body: A Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Guide

Resources for Caregivers

Care for Helping Professionals

Helping Children Cope With Crisis: Care for Caregivers | Atención para el cuidador: Consejos para familias y educadores
Secondary Traumatic Stress: A Fact Sheet for Child-Serving Professionals

Resources for School Psychologists

Tools and Resources for Crisis Prevention & Intervention

NASP School Safety and Crisis Resources
NASP has made materials available free of charge to the public in order to promote the ability of children and youth to cope with traumatic or unsettling events.

Tips for Teachers and Parents Following School and Community Violence
NASP/NEAT developed this resource for school psychologists to use in the schools. It is a PowerPoint that details how to respond to children in the aftermath of a tragedy (Download).

PFA Mobile
PFA Mobile was designed to assist responders who provide psychological first aid (PFA) to adults, families, and children as part of an organized response effort. This app provides responders with summaries of PFA fundamentals, PFA interventions matched to specific concerns and needs of survivors, mentor tips for applying PFA in the field, a self-assessment tool for readiness to conduct PFA, and a survivors' needs form for simplified data collection and easy referral.
Available for download free through iTunes

Learning Center for Child and Adolescent Trauma
Learn more about traumatic grief in the NCTSN Learning Center for Child and Adolescent Trauma. The Child Traumatic Grief Speaker Series features experts from the Network. Free CEs are available.