Yourself and your Family

Resources to help you and your loved ones deal with disasters

Links

Other important Information:

Children and Disasters

Helping Children Understand Disaster
Hurricane Katrina and her aftermath are dominating the news at this time. The following pieces may be helpful as professionals and families try to help children understand the disaster and cope with the stress that accompanies it.
(Source:Purdue Extension)

Terrorism and Children
Handling children's feelings when war in the news
(Source: Purdue Extension)

Talking with Children
Steps for help children deal with losses and damages due to natural disasters
(Source: Purdue Extension)

Helping Children Cope with Disaster
Disaster may strike quickly and without warning. These events can be frightening for adults, but they are traumatic for children if they don't know what to do. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the American Red Cross have prepared this brochure to help you help your children cope. Ultimately, you should decide what's best for your children, but consider using these suggestions as guidelines.
(Source: FEMA)

How to Help Children After a Disaster
A Guidebook for Parents and Teachers
(Source: FEMA)

Children and Disasters Issue Page
This page provides links to resources useful for the whole family in addressing disaster preparedness, responding and recovering from disasters, and reducing vulnerability to certain disasters.
(Source: EDEN)

Helping Children Cope with Crisis: A Workbook for African American Families
Developed by the National Black Child Development Institute and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, in collaboration with other organizations serving the African American community ad focused on helping families face everyday hardships, such as crime and poverty, and also enhance the strength and togetherness that is necessary during times of major crisis.
(Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health)

Helping Traumatized Children: A Brief Overview for Caregivers
This booklet is one in a series developed by the ChildTrauma Academy to assist parents, caregivers, teachers and various professionals working with maltreated and traumatized children. Also available: Materials for Caregivers
(Source: ChildTrauma Academy)

Children's Reaction to Stress (PDF)
Early childhood professionals recognizing stress reactions and coping behaviors in children
(Source: Iowa State University Extension)

Childhood Stress--What Parents Can Do (PDF)
Advice and suggestions for parents dealing with disaster recovery
(Source: Iowa State University Extension)

Children's Needs
Recognizing stress in children
(Source: PrepareRespondRecover.com)

A Guide for Teachers
Provides information that describes what children might experience during and after a disaster, how they might react to a disaster, and what teachers can do to help students during the recovery period.
(Source: University of Illinois Extension)

Helping Your Family Prepare Before a Disaster
Families that work together to prepare for the problem will cope better than those who do not take precautions. Consider how your children might react in a disaster, how you might react, and how the crisis could affect each person's emotional and physical well-being. Plan in advance for how to deal with a crisis situation.
(Source: North Carolina Cooperative Extension)

Family Disaster Resources

Coping with Disaster
The emotional toll that disaster brings can sometimes be even more devastating than the financial strains of damage and loss of home, business, or personal property.
(Source: FEMA)

Family Preparedness and Response
Land-grant university researchers and extension educators of the Cooperative Extension System (CES) and CSREES are guiding families-especially those with children-to research-based resources on the Web, through classes and workshops, and through extension office resources to assist them through this tragedy.
(Source: Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service)

America At War: Helping Families And Children Cope
This Web page provides camera-ready and audio resources in English and Spanish for supporting and educating families and children in coping with the constant evidences of war.
(Source: University of Kentucky Extension)

Strengthening Families and Communities in Times of Crisis
Articles that may be of help to you and your family when dealing with the issues of war.
(Source: University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension)