I worked with a group of children ranging from age four to twelve. While their parents are in a domestic violence support group, we do AWBW workshops. The children have all witnessed or experienced domestic violence and are there to learn coping skills. Normally we would talk about how our days went before the workshop, but that night the room was quiet. I asked for names… silence. I asked what they like to do… silence. I asked how they were doing… again silence. Finally I asked, “Do you like to paint?” One of the kids finally nodded! 

The activity was Expressing Feelings with Watercolor; each child received a white crayon and a wide array of watercolors. As soon as they got their art supplies, they started to open up. The silence did not mean that they did not know how they were feeling. It was simply easier for them to express their emotions through art. As soon as the art supplies were handed out, I saw amazing feeling words: “happy,” “mad,” “silly” and expressive paint strokes and characters.

This opened up a conversation about why they felt these things. I learned that one child was happy because she had a good day at school. One child did not want to paint over the white crayon and simply wrote “mad” on the paper over and over again. This opened up a conversation about why she was feeling that way, and I learned that she was nervous about going to a new school. The art created a safe space to talk about her concerns and make a plan for her first day of school. We had an amazing conversation about how to make new friends, interact with others, and be confident and comfortable in a new space. We picked out a book for her to take to school as her “brave book” to read if she was having a hard day. 

The workshop provided the space and opportunity to safety plan, explore why she was nervous, and create an environment of safety and hopefulness for her first day of school.