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8:30

Learning from children, safely

WHEN RESEARCHERS TALK WITH CHILDREN

Ethics approval first

A parent or guardian says yes

The child says yes, and can stop anytime

Trained, trauma-informed people

Never one adult alone with a child

Drawing, play, and stories

A plan for help if something comes up

The right time, after safety and basic needs

Names and details kept private

TODAY

We listen to adults about children.

We never interview children.

Children have a right to be heard. Our job is to hear them safely.

Safe Child Design Sprint · FSU Innovation Hub

Today's challenge is about children. So before we start, I want to talk about how we learn from them.�Children have a right to be heard. And researchers do talk with children after disasters. But only with real safeguards.�Ethics approval comes first. A parent or guardian says yes. Then the child says yes too, in words they understand, and they can stop anytime.�The people doing it are trained to work with trauma. No one is ever alone with a child. They use drawing, play, and stories, not interviews like you'd do with an adult. There's a plan for help if something painful comes up. And they wait for the right time, after children are safe and their basic needs are met.�We don't have any of that today. So we listen to adults about children. Parents, teachers, people who were kids in a storm themselves. We never interview children.�One more thing. In Florida, every adult is required to report suspected child abuse. Not just professionals. All of us.�Children have a right to be heard. Our job is to hear them safely.�[about 3 minutes]

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10:15

How are you arriving today?

Above the line

Below the line

Settle. Then check in.

Safe Child Design Sprint · FSU Innovation Hub

SLIDE 1�Let's do the ear hold before we start.�Everyone put down your phones and computers, and maybe stand up.�Grab your ear right at the bowl, with your thumb and your index finger.�Gentle circles for thirty seconds.�[Let it run.]�Breathe in for four. Hold for four. And out for six. Feel your shoulders letting go of stress.�Now switch ears. Same thing, thirty seconds.�[Let it run.]�Breathe in for four. Hold for four. And out for six.�Here's what that does. The bowl of your ear is where a small branch of the vagus nerve reaches the surface. The vagus nerve is part of how your body calms itself down. The long out-breath does most of the work. It gently slows your heart rate.�You'll know this as regulate, relate, reason. We regulate first. Then we connect with each other. Then we think.�So let's connect. Picture a line. Above the line means you feel open and curious. You're ready to listen and learn.�Below the line means you feel closed or stressed. Maybe you're tired, worried, or you just want to be right.�Both are normal. Everyone goes below the line sometimes.�Turn to the people around you. One word. How are you arriving today? And are you above or below the line?�[Let it run, about 1 minute.]�Thank you. Noticing where you are is the first skill of the day.�[about 4 minutes total]

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10:15

Two human skills for today

1

Listen fully.

2

Notice where you are.

Everyone goes below the line. The skill is noticing and coming back.

“I think I'm below the line.”

Safe Child Design Sprint · FSU Innovation Hub

Look around your table. You've got social work, design, engineering, business, and more. That mix is why this works. Nobody here can solve this alone.�Today's topic can be heavy. Kids in natural disasters. Some of you have lived through one. So two things are true for everyone in this room all day. It's okay to step out, anytime. And you share only what you choose to share. Your story is yours.�Two skills will help your team more than anything else.�Skill one. Listen fully. Listen to understand, not to answer. Here's one thing to try. Before you share your own idea, say back what the last person said.�Skill two. Notice where you are. Like we just did. Above the line or below.�Nobody stays above the line all day. Not me, not you. Under time pressure, we all drop. The skill is noticing it and coming back.�The easiest way back is to say it out loud. Let's try it together. Everyone, with me. "I think I'm below the line."�[let them say it]�A little awkward, right? That's fine. Saying it takes the charge out of it, and it lets your team help you come back.�[about 3 minutes]

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10:15

Your last team member

11:00

AI OFF

Talk to people. AI is off.

12:00

AI ON

Your ideas first. Then AI adds more.

2:00

AI ON

AI helps you build and polish.

People first. Then AI.

Safe Child Design Sprint · FSU Innovation Hub

Quick show of hands. Who has used AI this week? ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, anything.�[look around the room]�Now keep your hand up if you're also a little worried about it.�[pause]�Both are welcome here. Today we treat AI as your last team member. It's useful. But it doesn't lead.�Here's how the day works.�At 11:00 you'll go talk to real people. Parents, teachers, anyone who has been through a natural disaster with kids. AI is off. AI can't tell you what a scared eight-year-old needed the night the power went out. Only people can.�At 12:00 you'll come up with ideas. Your team's ideas come first. Then ask AI for more. It's fast and it never runs out. But it doesn't know which ideas matter to real families. You do.�At 2:00 you'll build and pitch. This is where AI can really help you draft, design, and polish.�One rule for the whole day. People first. Then AI.�[about 4 minutes]

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10:15

Your next 15 minutes

15

min

1

Your name, your major, and what your field notices first about kids in a natural disaster.

2

Pick a team name.

3

Agree on how you'll look after each other today.

Start with how you'll say “I think we're below the line.”

Safe Child Design Sprint · FSU Innovation Hub

Now it's your turn. You have 15 minutes with your team.�First, go around. Say your name and your major. Then answer one question. When you think about kids in a natural disaster, a hurricane, a flood, a tornado, what does your field notice first?�A social work student might notice the child's fear, or a family that's separated. An engineer might notice power, shelter, or getting out. A business student might notice what's open and who pays for it. Every answer is right. Listen for what the others see that you didn't.�Second, pick a team name. Have fun with it. I'll ask for it when we come back.�Third, agree on how you'll look after each other today.�Start with one thing. How will your team say "I think we're below the line"? Those words, a hand signal, a code word. Your choice.�Then add anything else your team needs. Maybe it's taking a short break. Maybe it's checking in with someone who's gone quiet.�And remember what's true for everyone today. It's okay to step out. When someone comes back, just welcome them back. No questions.�A team that feels safe works faster. That's not soft. That's how good teams work under pressure.�Go meet your team.�[leave this slide up, about 2 minutes]

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10:45

What's your team name?

Safe Child Design Sprint · FSU Innovation Hub

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10:45

IN A CHILD'S WORDS

“Before, I didn't have anyone to talk to.”

A child in FSU's Rebound and Recovery program, Bay County, summer 2019

Safe Child Design Sprint · FSU Innovation Hub

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10:45

Who you'll talk to

Our guests, for their stories

Students who were kids in a storm

Someone you can call

Your teammates, only if they choose

Adults about children. Never children.

Safe Child Design Sprint · FSU Innovation Hub

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10:45

Ways to start

1

Tell me about a time a storm hit when kids were around.

2

What did the kids need that nobody planned for?

3

What helped?

Then follow the story. “Tell me more.” “What happened next?”

Ask first.

They share only what they choose.

End on what helped.

Safe Child Design Sprint · FSU Innovation Hub

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10:45

From finding to question

BEFORE

How might we keep kids safe in hurricanes?

FINDING

1 in 6 students were still in temporary housing a year after Hurricane Michael.

AFTER

How might we help kids in temporary housing stay connected to their school friends?

Safe Child Design Sprint · FSU Innovation Hub