Promoting Resilience In Children

WESTPORT — Children generally demonstrate remarkable resilience following stressful experiences, even the tragic and much-publicized events of September 11. These events can, in fact, become an opportunity for parents and children to begin to build the foundation for dealing with stress in the future. Families can serve as an essential resource to educate children about expressing and dealing with powerful emotions, learning how to articulate feelings, and identifying strategies for managing stress.

These topics – as well as when parents should begin to worry about their children’s reactions to stress, and to whom they can turn – will be discussed by a panel of experts at a free presentation, “Promoting Children’s Resilience in the Wake of Tragedy.” Sponsored by Smart Kids with Learning Disabilities and the New Learning Center, the panel and a question-and-answer period for parents will be held on Tuesday, October 16, at 7:30 pm at the New Learning Center, 1200 Post Road East.

Panelists include Kristina Burns, Kings Highway School psychologist, and last year’s recipient of the Connecticut Association of School Psychologists’ “Practitioner of the Year” award; Laura Lustig, PhD, MFT, president of the New Learning Center and a clinical psychologist specializing in work with children; and Marcia Rubinstien, MA, CEP, writer, educational consultant and president of the Nonverbal Learning Disorders Association, a national nonprofit organization.

Call 203-226-6831 for additional information.