Author:
Yuliia Didenko
The Voices of Children Charitable Foundation has completed a year-long project in the Mykolaiv region with the support of ERIKS Development Partner. During this time, the Foundation’s psychologists provided assistance to 773 children and 380 adults. Our specialists conducted training for 67 education professionals so that they could better understand and support children. In addition, 286 people received comprehensive care and support from the Foundation’s case managers.
Our psychologists noticed that the emotional state of frontline residents had significantly worsened. Children there more often lived through traumatic experiences such as the destruction of their homes, the loss of loved ones, or forced displacement. Their socialization was further complicated by online schooling.
Thanks to the support of ERIKS, we were able to ensure the stable operation of a psychological support center in a frontline city. In Mykolaiv, we worked daily with children and families deeply affected by the war. The most common concerns raised by children were anxiety, depression, and difficulties communicating with peers. Parents sought help with sleep problems and emotional outbursts. In every case, the Foundation’s specialists were there: conducting individual consultations, providing crisis support, helping families find inner resources, and showing them they were not alone.
Thanks to the support of ERIKS, we were able to ensure the stable operation of a psychological support center in a frontline city. In Mykolaiv, we worked daily with children and families deeply affected by the war. The most common concerns raised by children were anxiety, depression, and difficulties communicating with peers. Parents sought help with sleep problems and emotional outbursts. In every case, the Foundation’s specialists were there: conducting individual consultations, providing crisis support, helping families find inner resources, and showing them they were not alone.
Children and adults received tools to adapt, learned to communicate better, and to build healthy relationships. In addition, we organized a series of practical training sessions for local educators and social workers to provide them with additional knowledge and skills for supporting children under difficult conditions.
Training Where It Is Needed Most
The team paid special attention to communities most affected by the war—among them, the village of Tsentralne, which had been under Russia’s occupation for nine months. To get there, our psychologists drove for more than two hours on unpaved roads to conduct a training for teachers, all under the sounds of demining explosions.
In Tsentralne, no school psychologists remain, though there is still a lyceum and a kindergarten. Part of the school has been destroyed, so children mostly study in basement rooms converted into classrooms with the help of donor organizations. For local teachers, we conducted a comprehensive training and shared knowledge on how to recognize signs of stress in children of different ages and how to support them in the context of war.
In Tsentralne, no school psychologists remain, though there is still a lyceum and a kindergarten. Part of the school has been destroyed, so children mostly study in basement rooms converted into classrooms with the help of donor organizations. For local teachers, we conducted a comprehensive training and shared knowledge on how to recognize signs of stress in children of different ages and how to support them in the context of war.
We were used to only practicing breathing techniques, but here we learned so many practical exercises that can really help calm a child. This is incredibly valuable knowledge that I’ll be using every day,
Supporting Educators in Mykolaiv and Novyi Buh
Training sessions were also held for kindergarten teachers in Mykolaiv and Novyi Buh. Together with our psychologists, they discussed how children of different ages respond to stress and learned how to provide psychological first aid. During the training, they already talked about how to apply this knowledge in their daily work.
We need to be not only teachers for children, but also friends and psychologists. And sometimes we lack the knowledge to do that. That’s why these trainings are so useful and relevant for our entire teaching staff, especially in wartime,
Team Safety as a Work Priority
To minimize risks for our team working in de-occupied territories, 12 employees of the Mykolaiv center underwent mine safety training provided by the British humanitarian organization MAG Ukraine. Our specialists studied the characteristics of hazardous areas and practiced emergency response procedures.
We are grateful to ERIKS Development Partner for their trust and support, which enabled us to provide continuous psychological assistance in the Mykolaiv region. Their involvement helped us stand by children and their parents affected by the war, as well as by educators who create spaces of safety and care in their communities every day.
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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