Divorce is becoming an everyday event. The affects of divorce on children, the students in our classes, need to be explored by the educators who interact with them for a significant part of their childhood. The purpose of this unit is to heighten the awareness and sensitivity of the New Haven teaching staff and to provide practical lessons and activities for students on issues and problems surrounding and created by divorce. Children struggling with a divorce may have reduced attention to schoolwork and fall off in their participation in school activities. Teachers, as significant adults in the lives of children, can do much to help students with the turmoil caused by their parents’ divorce. Helping children to see that working with problems, creating solutions, and adapting to changes in their lives is a way for people to grow emotionally. Children from both “broken” and “whole” families have many fears and questions about divorce, questions that they need to ask their parents before they can be given the answers. Teachers can help children to develop the communication skills needed so that these meaningful conversations can occur. Divorce does not have to be the end of the world for children. We can help them through the difficult time by improving their self-image and offering a caring, stable environment.
(Recommended for any course and any grade level where a conversation about divorce might be appropriate.)
Key Words
Family Management Divorce
