Supporting Young People with Anxiety
Course Outline

Course Fee: $90
Course Numbers: EED x701 24110, SED x701 24155
Standard Course Time: 15 hours
Semester Credits: One (1) academic credit at the post-baccalaureate level (available for an additional fee)
Credit Issued by: Cal Poly Humboldt (refer to our Graduate Credit page for credit pricing and details)
Subject Area: Special Topics

This course has been developed and optimized for online delivery using the licensed title Supporting Children and Young People with Anxiety - A Practical Guide, published by Routledge and authored by Elizabeth Herrick and Barbara Redman-White.

Introduction/Course Description:

For the adults around young people – parents and caregivers, teachers, assistants and young people themselves – this course will provide genuine help in overcoming anxiety. Around one in five young people experience significant mental health issues and there is evidence that this is on the rise – anxiety, depression and anger can have a debilitating impact on young people and those around them. Throughout the course, we will cut through the literature to give useful and practical strategies to soothe and support young people and defeat crippling anxiety. Worried parents, students and empathetic teachers and caregivers will make good use of this course and empower young people to take back control of their lives.

Course Objectives/Program Outline

Module One: Understanding Anxiety

Learning Objectives:

  • Become familiar with the emotion of anxiety and its relationship with fear.
  • Describe the combination of environmental and individual factors that cause anxiety.
  • Identify the four main theories associated with anxiety.
  • Illustrate key models of practice for the understanding and management of anxiety disorders.
  • Recognize what are "normal" anxieties for children at each age.
  • Understand child development in relation to anxiety.
  • Explore normal developmental milestones for children so that our expectations of them are realistic at each age.

Project 1: Introspection and Application
Quiz: Multiple-choice questions that pertain to objectives above.

Module Two: Managing Anxiety at School

Learning Objectives:

  • Examine the importance of schools to support and promote emotional well-being and mental health.
  • Understand that the sense of belonging to the school community is fostered by the development of supportive and trusting relationships.
  • Recognize that a diverse and creative curriculum encourages students to maintain their engagement with learning, and is crucial to good attendance, good behavior and motivation to learn.
  • Become familiar with ways to help recognize the signs and symptoms of anxiety in the classroom.
  • Illustrate areas of anxiety commonly seen in schools.
  • Explore a variety of ways to help with student anxiety.
  • Identify the importance of a culture that provides predictability and security in the classroom and school.
  • Gain an understanding of the preparation necessary before intervening with individuals who are experiencing anxiety.

Project 2: Navigating Anxiety at School
Quiz: Multiple-choice questions that pertain to objectives above.

Module Three: Managing Anxiety at Home

Learning Objectives:

  • Identify ideas and strategies for parents who are raising a child who is experiencing anxiety.
  • Illustrate ways to identify early signs and signals of distress.
  • Examine the importance of recognizing, understanding and expressing emotions appropriately when working with children.
  • Describe the importance of small steps when devising a plan for your child to change.
  • Classify "Parents as Role Models", and illustrate how easy it is for our own anxieties to contribute towards our children’s anxieties.
  • Identify ways to create a healthy lifestyle that supports both physical and emotional health.
  • Explore different areas of a young person’s life where it could be helpful to make changes that may reduce the severity of anxiety.
  • Recognize that love and belonging, both at home and in school, will contribute greatly to a an individuals well-being.

Project 3: Anxiety in Focus
Quiz: Multiple-choice questions that pertain to objectives above.

Module Four: Practical Interventions

Learning Objectives:

  • Become familiar with a 10-week group intervention program.
  • Understand the importance of judgment and sensitivity when working with anxious children and young people in a small groups.
  • Understand the differences in working with individuals versus working with a group or class.
  • Explore a model for working with individual students experiencing anxiety.
  • Describe and provide examples of the typical framework for individual sessions.
  • Identify the key elements of a final session, including review, evaluation and celebration.

Quiz: Multiple-choice questions that pertain to objectives above.

Final Exam

Multiple choice questions taken from each module

Final Learning Statement

Learning statements should be in a narrative format – as opposed to an outline format. Depending on individual writing styles Learning statements should be 2-3 pages. The learning statement can vary according to individual style. Your learning statement should answer the broad question of "what did you learn?". To help get you thinking, here are some suggested questions:

  • What are the major concepts of the course that you have learned?
  • What new professional language have you acquired relating to the topic?
  • What teaching techniques for implementing new strategies in the classroom did you come away with?
  • Thinking back to your project reflections, were you surprised at the outcomes?
  • What new resources did you find in the study of the content?
  • As an educator, what new concepts will you now integrate into your teaching?
  • Are there any ideas that presented themselves as enlightening and useful?

--- Sample Course Project ---

Project #2 Overview

Learning Objective: Illustrate the signs and symptoms of anxiety, and examine how your school (and you) address student anxiety.

In this module, we have learned that it is important for schools to support and promote emotional well-being and mental health, and to provide the optimum conditions for academic achievement. Schools are where the vast majority of children spend much of their time for more than a decade, so they can make a substantial contribution to emotional well-being and mental health.

For this project, imagine the students in your classroom and how they uniquely respond to stress. Think of the following:
  • What are the signs and symptoms you are looking for to detect anxiety?
  • What are the most common areas anxiety seen in schools?
  • What are the best ways to partner with a student with anxiety?

For Your Written Project Reflection Submission

In doing this assignment, did your view of anxiety shift? Take a moment to reflect on your findings for this project, using the questions below as a guide:

  • Does your school do a good job supporting students with anxiety?
  • Does your school do a good job supporting staff with anxiety?
  • In your opinion, what could your school do better when working with others who experience anxiety?
  • In your opinion, what could you do better when working with others who experience anxiety?

Visit the "Module Projects" section located within the Course Dashboard, and take a moment to share your findings by submitting your written project reflection.


Cal Poly Humboldt Credit Specifics

  • Academic Credit through Cal Poly Humboldt (CPH) is offered after successful completion of each course.
  • The 700 series semester credit is post-baccalaureate level appropriate for credentialed teachers which do not require admission to a graduate program.
  • Courses are letter graded on official transcripts from CPH.
  • CPH is the northernmost and westernmost institution in the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system.
  • CPH is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), a regional accrediting agency serving a diverse membership of public and private higher education institutions.

Summer Option

If you are not currently teaching (ie. Summer break, you are a substitute teacher, etc.), each class offers you the ability to complete coursework independent of a classroom assignment.