Counselling & Relationship Building with Children and Youth

The following global ideas guide the design and delivery of this course

• The development of a positive working relationship is central to the effective relationships with, and counselling of, children and youth.
• Child and Youth Care Counsellors seek self awareness, including the impact of their cultural experience on their assumptions and responses.  Likewise, the CYC practitioner seeks to understand the influences of past experiences and cultural contexts on the behaviour and worldview of youth.
• The elements of respect, genuineness and mutuality are core elements in the counselling process.
• Counselling children and youth is holistic and systemic; it takes into account all aspects of the individual and all of his or her important contexts.
• There are multiple ways of, and theories about, helping, counselling and working towards change with children, youth and families.
• Counselling children and youth is developmentally sensitive.  Ways of engaging children and youth are shaped to fit with, and promote, their healthy emotional, social, intellectual, cultural and physical development.
• The process of counselling children and youth is aimed at the development of insight and understanding of self, others, and the relationship between self and others with the goal of enabling children and youth to interact more effectively with his/her important systems.
• The process of child and youth care counselling is skill based.  Effective Child and Youth Care Counsellors understand counselling and relational skills and uses them intentionally while remaining genuine and personal in their interactions with youth.  Building healthy working relationships with children and youth is dynamic and includes discussion, activities and other methodologies.