Children of Divorce Intervention Program

Aims of "Children of Divorce Intervention Program" (CODIP)

• To assist children to manage a variety of challenges by teaching particular skills and thereby increase their confidence
• To decrease the worry and anxiety in the minds of children regarding their family conditions that hampers the academic performance
• To raise the acceptance and understanding of children regarding concepts related to divorce
• To increase the capacity of children to recognize and precisely express the feelings pertaining to divorce
• To keep the behavioral and emotional problems, that emerge when children experience divorce in the family, to the minimum

Procedure of Children of Divorce Intervention Program

• Parents, community members or school personnel direct children to this program
• Trained group leaders or mental health professionals or counselors conduct this program in 12 to 15 group sessions in school
• This program comprises of 4 procedure manuals and particularly designed board games. These have been developed keeping different age ranges in mind. It is ascertained that every child undergoing this program gets information and skill-building activities that are relevant to his or her age

A summary regarding CODIP

CODIP is a program meant for children who have experienced divorce and are in 4th, 5th or 6th grade. Sometimes children from kindergarten to 8th grade are considered. In this program, children are divided into groups. The intent of this program is to offer a forum for children to learn skills to handle divorce as well as share their individual experiences. The program comprises of group discussions, films, role plays and skits. The children, who have experienced divorce, have usual feelings of being different, stigma and seclusion. This program attempts to decrease these usual feelings.

Sessions of CODIP

CODIP usually extends for 10 weeks and comprises of 3 major blocks.

The initial sessions concentrate on building support for children. The sessions deal with the common misconceptions children have about divorce. The group leaders encourage children to speak regarding their anxieties related to divorce. Role plays and skits are used to assist the children to express the feelings.

The middle sessions try to build the cognitive skills of the children. The trainers teach children to find a solution to their interpersonal conflict and talk regarding their problem resolutions with other children in the group. During these sessions, the children learn how to differentiate between problems over which they have no control and problems over which they have control.

The final sessions are dedicated to anger control. The group leaders direct the children how to recognize and manage anger emanating due to divorce conditions.

Accolades received by CODIP

• New York state’s Education Department has validated this as a successful program
• Association of Family and Conciliation Courts has named this as an Exemplary Program
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has given an Award for Program Excellence
• National Mental Health Association has given the Lela Rowland Award

Divorce Papers