Description
This workshop will explore ideas about challenging behaviour among children and young persons in care. Direct care staff, such as child and youth care practitioners, group home staff and foster carers may observe conduct which is resistant to traditional behaviour management techniques. A young person with complex trauma may present with a variety of issues (anxiety, aggression, self-harm, & suicidality, etc.) and with multiple diagnoses (i.e., conduct disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, depression, anxiety). Participants will explore the connection between various behaviour presentations and early negative experiences.
Participants will examine how children and youth who have experienced trauma and abuse view the world around them, how they interact with others, and reframe behaviour issues through the lens of trauma-informed practice. The shift from “What’s wrong with you?” to “What happened to you?” will promote the young person’s well-being and resist re-traumatization. The workshop includes strategies and skill-building activities which can be put into practice to ensure quality care for our most vulnerable young people.
Learning Outcomes
- Recognize signs and symptoms of trauma in children and youth.
- Understand how trauma impacts young people who have experienced trauma, abuse and maltreatment and apply trauma-informed approaches to reframe so-called negative behaviour.
- Use knowledge of trauma to build safe and caring relationships with children and youth.
- Use knowledge of trauma and its impact on brain development to foster resilience and support children and youth to learn skills for healing and recovery from trauma.
Who Should Attend
This training will benefit anyone serving children and youth in care or receiving intensive in-home services and those transitioning from care, and individuals wishing to understand and respond effectively to young people with trauma histories. These may include direct care or group home staff, foster parents, caregivers.
Course Dates & Format
October 7 & 8, 2025
1:00 – 4:00 pm ET
This is a 6-hour training. This course consists of two 3-hour interactive virtual sessions using Zoom.
Instructor: Colleen Kamps MA, CYC (Registered Psychotherapist)
Colleen is a licensed psychotherapist with over 40 years of clinical experience across a variety of settings including inpatient and outpatient mental health, crisis intervention, specialized trauma programs, education, child welfare, counselling and training for first responders and frontline workers, and private practice. She also provides clinical consultation, training, and supervision to professionals and agencies in the helping field. Additionally, Colleen teaches at Centennial College, Toronto Metropolitan University, and Simon Fraser University. She is also the Education, Training, and Curriculum Development Manager with the Tema Foundation. Her passion, commitment, and dedication to helping others are what keep her striving forward to make life easier for those who need support.
Training Fee:
Member Fee: $195.00 + $25.35 (HST) = $220.35
Non-Member Fee: $235.00 + $30.55 (HST) = $265.55
Group Registration: Save 20% off regular individual fees with a group registration of 4 or more participants. Download the group registration form HERE.
Continuing Education Information
Learn how this training meets the foster parent training requirement mandated by MCCSS for Ontario’s Quality Standards Framework. Download the detailed training analysis document.
Licensing boards and professional organizations will grant Continuing Education credits for attendance at their discretion when participants submit the course outline and certificate.
In-Service
This is available as an in-person or virtual in-service training and customized to suit your needs.
