Children's Mental Health Awareness Day (May 9, 2012) and National Mental Health Awareness Month (May 2012)
05/2012
As a part of Mental Health Awareness Month, the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) invites you to join us in celebrating the 7th annual Children's Mental Health Awareness Day on May 9, 2012. Sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a division of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Children's Mental Health Awareness Day promotes positive youth development, resiliency, and recovery, along with the transformation of mental health service delivery for youth, adolescents, and their families. This year's observance will focus on recovery and resilience for children and youth in the juvenile justice and child welfare systems.
We hope that you will help us further NCTSN’s mission—"to raise the standard of care and improve access to services for traumatized children, their families, and communities throughout the United States"—through your participation in Children's Mental Health Awareness Day.
Listed below are helpful resources related to children's mental health designed for child welfare/medical/mental health professionals; educators; juvenile justice professionals; military families, parents and caregivers, and policy makers.
Page Contents
- Featured NCTSN Resources
- For Child Welfare/Medical/Mental Health Professionals
- For Educators
- For Juvenile Justice Professionals
- For Military Families
- For Parents and Caregivers
- For Policy Makers
- For Youth
- Preparing for National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day
Featured NCTSN Resources
- Age-Related Reactions to a Traumatic Event (n.d.) (PDF)
Describes some ways that young children, older children, and adolescents react to a traumatic event. Offers suggestions to parents and caregivers on how they can help and support their children through the emotional and physical challenges they face after exposure to a traumatic event. - Early Childhood Trauma (2010) (PDF)
Describes the unique scope of early childhood (aged 0–6) trauma. Topics include symptoms and behavior exhibited in early childhood trauma, resilience factors, and treatments. Listings of resources are provided for parents and caregivers, mental health/child welfare/early education/medical professionals, family court judges and staff, early educators, and childcare providers. - Understanding Child Traumatic Stress (2005) (PDF)
>En Español: Entendamos el estrés traumático infantil (PDF)
Comprehensive explanation of the causes, nature, and treatment of child traumatic stress. The online version features sidebars and links to more information on types of child traumatic stress. - Understanding Traumatic Stress in Adolescents (2007) (PDF)
A fact sheet for providers who treat teens with emotional and substance abuse issues. Explains problems that adolescents often experience after exposure to trauma. Presents a developmental and contextual perspective on youth trauma, with special attention to the connections among trauma exposure, traumatic stress, and the development of substance abuse problems.
For Child Welfare/Medical/Mental Health Professionals
National Center for Child Traumatic Stress
- Building Community Resilience for Children and Families (2007) (PDF)
A guidebook on ways to help communities improve their capacity to take meaningful and effective actions before disasters (natural and manmade) and acts of terrorism occur. Offers advice on how to respond effectively, cope, recover, and reestablish stability after such events. - Child Welfare Trauma Training Toolkit (2008) (PDF)
Provides basic knowledge about working with children who are in the child welfare system and who have experienced traumatic stress, and teaches associated skills and values. Explains how to support children's safety, permanency, and well-being—using case analysis and corresponding interventions tailored for the children and their biological and resource (foster) families. - Culture and Trauma Brief (Vol. 1, No. 2): Trauma Among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, or Questioning Youth (2006) (PDF)
A fact sheet—part of NCTSN's Culture and Trauma series—that discusses trauma among sexual minorities; offers strategies for helping this population access services; outlines statistics on trauma among gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth; and gives suggestions to therapists on providing culturally competent care. - Service Systems Brief (Vol. 1, No. 1): Creating Trauma-Informed Child-Serving-Systems (2007) (PDF)
Explains why it is important for child-serving systems (e.g., health, mental health, education, child welfare, first responders, criminal justice) to become more trauma-informed, to improve outcomes for children, and to maintain excellent standards of care. Encourages collaboration among child-serving systems through increasing public awareness and knowledge; building strategic partnerships with national organizations; and providing trauma-focused education and skill-building for frontline staff, clinicians, and administrators.
For Educators
National Center for Child Traumatic Stress
- Child Trauma Toolkit for Educators (2008) (PDF)
Provides school administrators, teachers, staff, and concerned parents with basic information about working with traumatized children in the school system. Additional multimedia resources on related to this toolkit are available in the NCTSN Learning Center for Child and Adolescent Trauma. - Coping in Hard Times: Fact Sheet for School Staff (2011) (PDF)
Discusses how difficult financial circumstances and economic hardships experienced by school personnel, students’ families, and students can negatively affect school staff. Offers practical ways to cope and help others cope by improving a sense of safety, calming, self- and community efficacy, connectedness, and hope.
For Juvenile Justice Professionals
National Center for Child Traumatic Stress
- Helping Traumatized Children: Tips for Judges (2009) (PDF)
A fact sheet on the effects of trauma in children and adolescents, assessing the effects of trauma, and on choosing appropriate service providers. - Ten Things Every Juvenile Court Judge Should Know About Trauma and Delinquency (2010) (PDF)
A technical assistance bulletin highlighting crucial facts that juvenile court judges should know so that they can best meet the needs of traumatized children who come into their system. A collaboration between the NCTSN and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, this publication was funded by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.
For Military Families
National Center for Child Traumatic Stress
- Traumatic Grief in Military Children: Information for Educators (2008) (PDF)
A brochure that provides culturally competent materials for helping educators understand how they can better serve military children suffering from traumatic grief. - Traumatic Grief in Military Children: Information for Families (2008) (PDF)
A brochure that provides guidance for families with children who have lost a loved one in the military to help the families better understand and cope with their children’s reactions and behaviors. - Traumatic Grief in Military Children: Information for Medical Providers (2008) (PDF)
A brochure that provides culturally competent materials for medical professionals on how to better serve military children who are experiencing traumatic grief.
For Parents and Caregivers
National Center for Child Traumatic Stress
- Caring for Children Who Have Experienced Trauma: A Workshop for Resource Parents (2010) (PDF)
A training curriculum designed to be taught by a mental health professional, with resource (foster) parents as cofacilitators. Offers these parents practical tools they can use to help their children move forward from their traumatic pasts, to recognize and reduce the impact of their children’s traumas on themselves, and to seek useful support from others. - Caring for Kids: What Parents Need to Know about Sexual Abuse (2009) (PDF)
A resource kit for parents and caregivers on how to: 1) recognize the signs of sexual abuse, 2) best support children who have experienced sexual abuse, and 3) deal with the aftershock. Also provides resources on ways to help keep children and adolescents safe, understanding sexual development, how to talk about sexual issues and body safety, and more. - Coping in Hard Times: Fact Sheet for Parents (2011) (PDF)
Discusses how difficult financial circumstances and economic hardships can negatively affect families. Offers practical ways to cope by improving a sense of safety, calming, self- and community efficacy, connectedness, and hope. - Understanding Child Traumatic Stress: A Guide for Parents (2005) (PDF)
>En Español: Entendamos el estrés traumático infantil: Una guia para padres (PDF)
A fact sheet describing signs and symptoms that children may exhibit after being exposed to traumatic events. Offers suggestions on how parents can help their children recover.
For Policy Makers
National Center for Child Traumatic Stress
- Child Traumatic Stress: What Every Policymaker Should Know (2008) (PDF)
Informs policy makers about the scope and impact of childhood trauma offers effective solutions that can be implemented with the support of informed public policy; includes additional resources. - Thinking Broadly: Financing Strategies for Child Traumatic Stress Initiatives (2006) (PDF)
Helps initiative leaders and program developers who work with child traumatic stress initiatives to address their financing challenges. Presents general principles to guide the selection of financing strategies; outlines an array of approaches to finance interventions for traumatized children and adolescents.
For Youth
National Center for Child Traumatic Stress
- Coping in Hard Times: Fact Sheet for Youth (2011) (PDF)
Designed for students in high school and college to help them understand how their families’ and their own economic hardships may affect them. Offers practical ways to cope by improving a sense of safety, calming, self- and community efficacy, connectedness, and hope. - Tornado Recovery for Kids: Making Things Better (2011) (PDF)
A handout that offers coping strategies for children to help them deal with the long-term effects after experiencing a tornado. Includes suggestions for ways to help themselves, their family, and others. - Tornado Recovery for Teens: Making Things Better (2011) (PDF)
A handout that offers teens coping strategies to help them deal with the long-term effects after experiencing a tornado. Includes suggestions for ways to help themselves, their family, and others. - Staying Safe While Staying Connected: Facts and Tips for Teens (2011) (PDF)
Identifies some of the dangers of connecting via technology—including sexting—and offers tips for staying safe and protecting teens’ identity.
Preparing for National Children's Mental Health Awareness Day
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
- National Children's Mental Health Awareness Day
Provides links to planning materials and resources that communities and organizations can use to celebrate Children's Mental Health Awareness Day. Information is available in English and Spanish.
GALLUP Consulting (consulting for SAMHSA)
- 2012 Awareness Day Resource Packet (2012) (PDF)
This year’s resource packet details ways NCTSN members can participate in Awareness Day 2012. The packet contains campaign information and ideas for events, activities, and materials. The 2012 packet also contains links to other Awareness Day tools such as the press release template and drop-in articles. - Children's Mental Health Awareness Day Webinar (2012) (Video)
A webinar recording that provides all the tips and time-saving tricks needed to successfully participate in National Children's Mental Health Awareness Day. Features the campaign’s Web site, national event details, instruction on how to launch a social media effort in conjunction with NCMHAD, and template materials to make participating in NCMHAD even easier. An excellent opportunity for organizations to further promote both awareness of the day and of the important work they do in addressing child trauma. - Countdown To National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day: A Promotional Calendar for Your NCTSN Program (2012) (PDF))
This easy-to-follow calendar provides simple steps to show your support for Awareness Day 2012. Each day suggests a different idea for participation or provides hyperlinks to more information. To help raise awareness and build support for this important day, follow the suggested activities! - National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day: Feature Drop-In Article for NCTSN (2012) (PDF)
A drop-in feature article that introduces some of the aspects of childhood trauma and can be used to highlight an organization’s participation plans for National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day 2012. Longer than the hard news drop-in article (see below), it can serve as a feature article in a newsletter (electronic or hard copy), a piece in the community or lifestyle section of a local newspaper, or as linkable content on an organization’s Web site or social networking page. - National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day: Hard News Drop-in Article for NCTSN (2012) (PDF)
A drop-in hard news article that can be used to announce an organization’s participation plans for National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day 2012. Fewer than 200 words, the article is customizable and ideal as a drop-in or as a standalone. Among the uses for hard news drop-in articles are: as a news digest for a newsletter (electronic or hard copy), as a news brief in a local newspaper, and as linkable content on an organization’s Web site or social networking page. - National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day: Media Advisory Template for NCTSN (2012) (PDF)
A media advisory template that can be tailored to announce the details of any event or activity that an organization is sponsoring in conjunction with National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day 2012. A media advisory—used to entice the media to attend and cover an event— features all of the most critical information about the event: the what, when, where, and who. Media advisories should be disseminated one week prior to the event; and should always be followed up, by checking with the recipients to ensure they received it. - National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day: Press Release Template for NCTSN (2012) (PDF)
A press release template that can be used to announce an organization’s participation in National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day 2012 and any event the organization is holding in conjunction. The template has sections where event details and specifics about the organization can be inserted.
Stay Connected
