Orphans and Vulnerable Children - CRIN

For this activity you will need:

 Flipchart and markers

 Copies of Handout 2 - How Children Communicate

To facilitate this activity:

1 Introduce this topic to participants by explaining that communicating with vulnerable children must
be handled sensitively, because of the traumatic experiences they may have had and because of
cultural taboos that prevent children from communicating directly with adults. Explain that it is
sometimes more effective to get children to deal with sensitive topics by letting them communicate
indirectly, rather than by bombarding the child with blunt, direct questions they may find difficulty
in answering.
Explain that children not only communicate with spoken or verbal language, but also with:
 Body language
 The language of play
 Spoken / verbal language
 Silence – this could mean that the child feels too overwhelmed to communicate or articulate
his or her experience.

2 Ask participants for their ideas about how children could express themselves other than answering
questions. Write their responses up on the flipchart.

3 Distribute copies of Handout 2 to the group. Discuss some of the following methods that can
be used to help children express their feelings. These are more indirect, but fun and
non-threatening ways of helping a child to communicate:
 Drawing
 Storytelling
 Drama
 Playing games.

4 Use the facilitator reference notes in Appendix 2 on
page 351 to help you in the discussion of the methods
of getting a child to communicate, especially a young child
who is not able to talk about his or her experience.

5 Stress to participants that these child-friendly methods
of communicating, although they can be seen as play,
are part of counselling the child. They will need to be
sensitive to what the child is expressing in order to give
the appropriate support and care. So, for example, in
a child’s drawing you will focus on what the content of
the drawing is expressing, rather than on the drawing
skills of the child. With older children, you can engage
in more verbal forms of therapeutic counselling.

1 hour

Guide to Mobilising and Strengthening Community-Led Care for Orphans and Vulnerable Children Unit 2, Module 2^177