Working with Grieving and Traumatized Children and Adolescents: Discovering What Matters Most Through Evidence–Based, Sensory Interventions

Praise for Working With Grieving and Traumatized Children and Adolescents "This much-needed book effectively argues for the use of structured activities as the basis for exploring trauma-specific questions in clinical work with traumatized children and adolescents. Numerous examples of children's artwork enhance the book and illustrate the effectiveness of the treatment. The authors' methods have been used successfully for many years and represent a major contribution to the study of trauma that will be welcomed by both students and seasoned practitioners." —Nancy Boyd Webb, DSW, LICSW, RPT-S Professor of Social Work Emerita, Fordham University, Author: Play Therapy With Children in Crisis "The authors provide a clear theoretical framework and demonstrate practical sensory-based activities so kids can discover and reconnect with their bodies' agency and vitality. Refreshingly, this vehicle creates an emotionally safe journey for the child into the mystery of the experiential, embedded in implicit memory. It's chock-full of invitations to explore self-impressions and worldviews in a way that children feel seen, not assessed." —Peter A. Levine, PhD, and Maggie Kline, MS, LMFT , Coauthors: Trauma Through a Child's Eyes and Trauma-Proofing Your Kids A structured, sequential, and evidence-based approach for the treatment of children and adolescents experiencing trauma or grief Working With Grieving and Traumatized Children and Adolescents features the Structured Sensory Interventions for Traumatized Children, Adolescents and Parents (SITCAP) intervention model, proven in successfully addressing violent situations such as murder, domestic violence, and physical abuse, as well as non-violent grief- and trauma-inducing situations including divorce, critical injuries, car fatalities, terminal illness, and environmental disasters. Filled with practical and proven activities for use with children and adolescents experiencing trauma and grief, this resource is based on the authors' experience working with all types of traumatic events in school-, agency-, and community-based programs across the country.

Foreword xi Preface xv Acknowledgments xix Chapter One How Structured, Sensory Interventions Help Grieving and Traumatized Children 1 Chapter Two Children’s Experiences With Grief and Trauma 21 Chapter Three Trauma–Informed Principles and Practices 45 Chapter Four Structured Drawing Activities 67 Chapter Five Curiosity and the Trauma Questioning Process 85 Chapter Six Meeting Children in Their World 103 Chapter Seven Incorporating SITCAP in Schools and Community–Based Organizations 123 Chapter Eight Interventions With Parents and Guardians 145 Chapter Nine Nurturing Resilience and Posttraumatic Growth 171 Appendices A. What If? Questions 193 B. SITCAP Program Activity Examples 209 C. School Recovery Protocol 221 D. Resilience Resources for Teachers 227 About the Authors 229 References 231 Author Index 243 Subject Index 245

WILLIAM STEELE, PsyD, MSW, is the founder of the National Institute for Trauma and Loss in Children (TLC) established in 1990, where he has personally trained more than 5,000 TLC Certified Trauma and Loss School and Clinical Specialists. CAELAN KUBAN, PsyD, LMSW, is Director of TLC, a program of the Starr Global Learning Network. She provides training across the country to professionals working with traumatized children and families.