Resilience is Built during Quiet Times program

The summer of 2014 saw the military confrontation between Israel and Gaza. It positioned southern Israel’s population in a tough, intense reality. Air raid sirens were incessantly heard, the noise of missiles being shot down tore through the sky, and residential staff in the south found themselves functioning round the clock in between racing countless times to safe spaces. The staff attempted to create a daily schedule full of activities to release and relieve the stress and tension of children in care. Sadly, that was just the peak of an ongoing reality which continues to threaten our existence.

Children growing up in states of ongoing threat develop existential anxiety, and this is even truer for children living in residential care who, by nature of the situation, are living with high levels of stress and anxiety.

The “Resilience is built during Quiet Times” program was developed as part of the application of experiences gained in residential care centers during the six weeks of military operations in summer 2004.

Goals of the program

• Adapting the program by reinforcing personal and group resilience, and developing resources for coping with stress and crises.
• Creating a structured training kit for working on processes in groups of children in the residential care program.
• Training the staff to reinforce the children’ strengths and create a group climate that promotes the sense of belonging.
• Supporting educational staff in residential care programs in working to create a safe space for the group of children.
• Creating readiness to spend long period with children in safe spaces, with accessible kits for appropriate activities to release stress.