Military Child During Deployments

Military Child During Deployment
By OSD Staff

Deployment refers to the movement of an individual or military unit within the United States or to an overseas location to accomplish a task or mission. The mission may be as routine as giving additional training or as dangerous as a war. Deployments can be for relatively short periods of time or undetermined time periods that can often last a year or more.
When one or both of a child’s parents/caregivers are deployed, there is necessarily an emotional impact on the child that can often affect performance and behavior at school. As an educator of military children, you need to be aware of reactions and needs of military children during deployments.
There are often a lot of unknowns surrounding a deployment and children are often anxious, stressed and confused when facing such a situation. Schools can be a place where stability and routine can provide security for children during the challenges of deployment and the resulting disruptions to daily life. The classroom routine helps to cushion the impact of deployment that often includes changes in psychological equilibrium and disruption of individual behavior and coping skills.
For more information about the affects of deployment on children, visit the following:
Social, Emotional and Educational Issues of Deployment
Educator’s Guide to the Military Child During Deployment
Parent's Guide to the Military Child During Deployment and Reunion
How Communities Can Support the Children and Families of Those Serving in the National Guard or Reserves - courtesy of the Military Child Education Coalition.
Caring for Kids After Trauma and Death, material developed by the New York University Child Study Center under the guidance of Dr. Robin F. Goodman with suggestions for parents, educators and health care professionals about how to support and assist bereaved children during instances of deployment, injury and death.
Good News Story! The United Through Reading Program connects children to deployed parents through reading aloud on videotape. Click here for more information.