Author:
Yuliia Didenko
One of the Voices of Children Foundation’s key areas of work is training teachers and educators in communities on how to support and help children adapt during wartime. On 26 May, the Foundation’s psychologists held a training session for local educators in the village of Tsentralne, part of the Shevchenkove community of the Mykolaiv region. They spoke about age-specific stress responses in children and how to provide psychological first aid in wartime conditions.
Today, Tsentralne faces many challenges. The village was under occupation for nine months and went without electricity or gas for half a year. Part of the school was wiped out, so classes are now held mostly in basement rooms converted into classrooms with the support of donor organizations. It was here—amid the sounds of explosions from demining operations—that the training took place.
The Foundation’s team traveled more than two hours over rough, unpaved roads to deliver practical guidance on identifying stress reactions in children of different ages.
The Foundation’s team traveled more than two hours over rough, unpaved roads to deliver practical guidance on identifying stress reactions in children of different ages.
First, I want to thank the Foundation for coming all this way despite the near-total lack of a proper road. The training was extremely valuable and helpful—our staff doesn’t include a psychologist, yet we run both a preschool and a lyceum. It’s essential for us to continually strengthen our skills in providing psychological first aid to all age groups—from preschoolers to teenagers,
According to psychologist Oksana Derkach, the teachers were engaged and collaborative throughout the session. During the training itself, they reflected on their own students and discussed how to apply the new knowledge in their daily work.
I learned so much about different techniques for working with children in stressful situations. We used to know only about proper breathing techniques before, but here we discovered so many practical exercises that can truly help calm a child. This is incredibly valuable knowledge that I’ll be using every day,
For the Voices of Children team, such meetings are a chance to see how practical knowledge transforms into real support and protection for children. We are deeply grateful to the educators of Tsentralne for their openness and willingness to learn, even in such difficult conditions.
I didn’t realize that psychological support needs to vary depending on the emotional state that’s dominant during a traumatic event. That’s such useful and important information. If you don’t know that, you might accidentally do more harm than good for a child. Of course, we all learn from our mistakes—but it’s better to learn how not to make them in the first place. Thank you for helping me become more helpful to the children we work with,
This material was produced with the support of ERIKS. The views and interpretations expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of ERIKS. Responsibility for the content rests solely with the authors.
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