Suicide Prevention and Awareness Resources

When you notice worrisome behavior in your students, and especially when there is concern about suicide risk, you need practical suggestions and specific advice. These resources will help you better understand the relationship between suicide and teens, risk factors, warning signs, and protective factors. Find information on the appropriate steps to take when you feel you have identified an at-risk student. Plus, learn how to assess your attitude towards suicide, and find out the truth behind suicide myths.

Suicide Prevention: Educator Resources Teen Suicide Awareness: Statistics Learn more about the impact of suicide on today's youth with these statistics, provided by the Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide. Teen Suicide Prevention: Myths and Frequently Asked Questions Read some commonly asked questions and prevalent myths about teen suicide, explained by the Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide. Teen Suicide Prevention: Information for Educators Learn more about SPTS and their philosophy, and get general information about teen suicide prevention and the role of educators. Teen Suicide Prevention: Educator Responsibility Understand the importance of your role as an educator in identifying students at risk for suicide and utilizing specific intervention tools. Assessing Your Attitude About Suicide Identifying your personal attitudes and values regarding suicide will help you to respond more effectively to at-risk students. Understanding Suicide: Outlining Basic Characteristics This summary of the basic characteristics of teen suicide will help you gain a better understanding of why teens' problem-solving leads them to suicide. Teen Suicide Prevention: Risk Factors Find out more about suicide risk factors, so that you can recognize when students are at an elevated risk. Teen Suicide Prevention: Warning Signs Learn to identify the warning signs exhibited by students who are at a higher risk for suicide, and reinforce good classroom practice with these basic guidelines. Teen Suicide Prevention: Talking to At-Risk Students Learn some basic techniques for talking to at-risk students about suicide. Intervention Strategies for Suicide Read a series of important prevention and "postvention" suicide intervention strategies. Teen Suicide Prevention: Protective Factors Bolster your students' resiliency by fostering protective factors, behaviors, and characteristics that can help them form a barrier against suicide risk factors. Suicide Myths & Facts Quiz Test your knowledge of suicide awareness and prevention, and find out if you know the facts behind common myths and misinformation about youth suicide. Impact of Death on Students with Exceptionalities Learn how to help the exceptional child deal with the impact of death-related crises. Death and the Grief Reaction Process Learn how to help students cope with death and the grieving process.

Literature Dealing with Suicide Thirteen Reasons Why Discussion Guide Thirteen Reasons Why, a novel for middle- and high-school students, makes an excellent companion to any school or community campaign for National Suicide Prevention Week (September 8–14, 2013). Author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers. Thirteen Reasons Why Educator's Guide This educator's guide to Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher includes activity and discussion prompts plus classroom lesson plans aligned with Common Core State Standards. Stay with Me Discussion Guide Stimulate class discussion and deepen students' understanding of the book Stay with Me through the questions provided in this teacher's guide. Explore the relationships of family and friends in this coming-of-age story about a teenage girl who investigates her half-sister's suicide. A Discussion Guide to the Novels of Chris Lynch Facilitate classroom studies of novels by Chris Lynch with this discussion guide to Freewill, Iceman, and Sins of the Fathers. This literature guide includes pre-reading suggestions, discussion questions, and writing projects for each book. These books explore the nature of teen suicide, identity struggles, family expectations, abuse, betrayal, friendship, and loss. Suicide Prevention: Resources for Parents It's important to remember that parents need suicide information and awareness programs. Parents are often uninformed about the extent of suicide and suicide attempts in our youth. They may not even realize that a school has policies and procedures in place to address suicide, and/or staff who are trained to respond to a suicidal crisis. It's essential to provide them with guidelines for how to respond if they sense their child is troubled. Preventing Teen Suicide: Information for Parents Teen suicide is a topic that makes many parents feel at a loss. Help them become more aware and learn more about suicide prevention with this printable. Preventing Teen Suicide: Parents' Guide for Talking to Kids Help parents talk to their children with this printable, which covers suicide warning signs and points to remember when discussing suicide with teens. Preventing Teen Suicide: A First-Person Message for Parents Let parents of at-risk teens know that they are not alone. Share this message from a parent who lost a child to suicide and who wants to share what she learned from her experience. Suicide Prevention: Resources for Students The vast majority of adolescents know someone who has committed or attempted to commit suicide. Prepare students for encounters they are likely to have by providing resources, teaching them about the warning signs, and showing them how to respond to troubled peers and get help for them. Preventing Teen Suicide: A First-Person Message for Teens This message from a teen gives insight into suicide and depression. Reading it may help prepare your students for encounters they may have with other adolescents contemplating suicide. Additional Web Resources Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide Suicide Prevention Resource Center American Foundation for Suicide Prevention American Association of Suicidology Youth Suicide Prevention School-Based Guide