Month of the military child

Month of the Military Child

It’s about coming together to recognise, understand and celebrate unique lived experiences of young people who have a parent(s) serving in the armed forces.

Children from military families have told us that they feel seldom heard, and that lots of their unique experiences aren’t on the radar of civilian peers and adults who either support them or make important decisions about their future.

Month of the Military Child is one event which serves to change that!

Download celebration pack

What’s life like for a military child?

Military children grow up in communities built on a strong sense of belonging.

Many embrace greater opportunities to travel, absorb a range of cultures and meet diverse groups of people from across the world.

Some take on greater responsibility at home when a parent is deployed and thrive; others participate in memorable activities which aren’t available to civilian peers.

These experiences can help to develop a unique sense of identity, purpose, and confidence which helps to realise further potential and thrive in later life.

Military children can face unique challenges, compared to civilian peers.

This can include deployment and uncertainty about loved ones, bereavement, or living with a family member with life-changing physical or psychological wounds.

Regular relocations, sometimes referred to as mobility, can present further challenges, like disrupted education, friendships, activities, and routines.

All of which can present unique obstacles to overcome, when it comes to topics like education and learning, mental health and wellbeing and much more.

Download our celebration pack

Do you work directly with military children or want to help civilian classmates or colleagues to better understand what it’s like to be a military child?

Our celebration pack which includes lots of activities, podcasts and discussion topics which to help better understand lived experiences of military children.

Spread the word on social media

Help promote our celebration pack on social media.

We have provided template copy below to spread the word across several social media channels, including, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

These are simply examples of what you can say, however, please don’t forget to include our social media handles in your tweets and posts!

Twitter post

It’s the #MonthoftheMilitaryChild.

@ForcesChildScot has created #resources to help civilian peers, #educators and #professionals to learn more about lives led by #youngpeople from #armedforces #families.

Instagram post

Did you know it’s the #MonthoftheMilitaryChild?!

@forceschildrenscotland created resources to help civilian peers, #educators and #professionals to learn more about the lives led by #youngpeople from #armedforces families.

Search ‘Month of the Military Child’ on their website for further info!

Facebook post

We’re getting involved in #MonthoftheMilitaryChild this April!

We have downloaded a celebration pack created by @ForcesChildrenScotland to learn more about the lives led by #youngpeople from #armedforces families.

Other resources which you might find useful

Take a look at our selection of resources below to find out more.