Immigrant and refugee preschoolers’ sandplay representations of the tsunami
Introduction
The sandplay project is a preventive program for preschoolers. It is part of a larger series of art therapy workshops using different forms of creative expression designed for schools in multiethnic neighborhoods (Rousseau, Lacroix, Bagilishya, & Heusch, 1999; Rousseau, Lacroix, Singh, Gauthier, & Benoit, 2005; Rousseau, Singh, Lacroix, Bagilishya, & Measham, 2004). Coincidentally, the sandplay project began only 2 weeks after the tsunami in Asia (26 December 2004), in a neighborhood with a predominantly South Asian population. The children were indirectly exposed to the tragedy to varying degrees, either through the media (television news) or through their family's worries and distress. The sandplay workshops became a space where the children could spontaneously express their feelings about the disaster and try to make sense of it. This paper analyzes the children's representations of the tsunami in the sand tray with a view to discovering how they understood and reacted to this event and describes their strategies for coping with it.
Section snippets
Natural disaster and preschoolers: the tsunami experience
According to Lazarus, Jimerson, and Brock (2003), floods are the most common natural disaster and are extremely dangerous because they occur without warning and can be very destructive. Typically, preschoolers who have experienced natural disasters display regressive behaviors, including clinging, thumb sucking, fear of the dark, bedwetting, and whimpering, along with other symptoms, such as frightened facial expressions, loss or increase of appetite, and night terrors (Lazarus et al., 2003,
Emotion and the brain
There is a risk that the brains of young children with unresolved trauma or grief experiences may malfunction and fail to process emotions properly, so that the children face obstacles in integrating and self-regulating emotions (Cook et al., 2005, Siegel, 2001). Siegel emphasizes that since the integration process is at the core of mental phenomena, it is essential to well-being and psychological resilience. Trauma is also responsible for changes to Broca's area (language area in the left
Sandplay workshop with preschool children
Many play theorists have demonstrated how play allows children to face adversity and destabilizing emotional experiences by giving them an opportunity to master these feelings (Landreth & Sweeny, 2000; O’Connor, 2000). Kalff (1973), creator of sandplay, drew her inspiration from Margaret Lowenfeld's world technique (Lowenfeld, 1969, Lowenfeld, 1979). In sandplay, children can choose from a vast array of miniature human characters, religious figures, animals, and objects used for transportation,
Method
The project was carried out in kindergarten classes of a multiethnic school in Park Extension, a disadvantaged Montreal neighborhood. Its cheap housing and high turnover have made this neighborhood a favorite of new immigrants. Until 1980, the area was predominantly Greek. Most recently a large South Asian community has settled in (Rousseau & Machouf, 2005). Five classes of 4- and 5-year-old children (n = 75) participated in eight sandplay sessions. The project was approved by the Research Ethics
Representation of tsunami
Close to a third of the children depicted the tsunami, often over long periods (up to 4 months), and they made extensive use of religious figurines. A total of 29% of the children represented the tsunami, 9% of them directly (the tsunami itself, devastating floods, or babies who ended up in trees or on rooftops) and 20% indirectly (sea monsters devouring people and animals; cars, houses, and other things hidden in the sand).
Discussion
Our results suggest that sandplay affords children an opportunity to express and work through a range of emotions stemming from the interaction of a variety of past and present experiences. This confirms the observation that creative expression activities in the classroom can provide a space for symbolic expression and playful exploration, which can enhance resiliency factors (Ayyash-Abdo, 2001, Malchiodi, 2003; Rousseau, Bagilishya, Heusch, & Lacroix, 1999; Rousseau, Benoit, et al., 2004;
Conclusion
When the school requests creative expression workshops to be held regularly over a period of time (4 months in this case), with the strong involvement and support of both the administration and teachers, it underscores the need to provide a safe place for immigrant children to express themselves. Sandplay workshops, which are suited to kindergarten children's developmental stage, offer opportunities for both verbal and nonverbal expression and thus for working through emotions aroused by
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