Building Rapport and Narrative Practice in Child Interviews
This presentation explores how building rapport and narrative practice lay the foundation for accurate, developmentally-appropriate conversations with children. It integrates research, practical strategies, and real-world interviewing experience to help school staff, attorneys, and advocates improve communication, reduce suggestibility, and support students in sharing information in their own words. The video also highlights common pitfalls and myths, offers concrete “do and don’t” examples, and closes with key takeaways that help interviewers strengthen trust, reduce pressure, and gather clearer, more reliable information.
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An introduction to Rapport and Narrative Practice
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The Science of Rapport
This section explains why building comfort and trust helps kids open up. When children feel safe and understood, they think more clearly, feel less pressure, and are able to share what they know in a more natural, accurate way.
This section explains why building comfort and trust helps kids open up. When children feel safe and understood, they think more clearly, feel less pressure, and are able to share what they know in a more natural, accurate way.
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Narrative Practice
The Narrative Practice section shows how giving children space to talk in their own words leads to richer, more reliable information. It explains how open storytelling, gentle prompts, and “tell me more…” phrasing help kids warm up, feel heard, and share details without feeling rushed or led.
The Narrative Practice section shows how giving children space to talk in their own words leads to richer, more reliable information. It explains how open storytelling, gentle prompts, and “tell me more…” phrasing help kids warm up, feel heard, and share details without feeling rushed or led.
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Open vs. Closed Questions
In this section, we highlight why broad, open invitations help kids share fuller, more accurate information, while closed questions can limit answers or unintentionally steer them. It shows how small shifts in wording can make conversations more natural and less leading.
In this section, we highlight why broad, open invitations help kids share fuller, more accurate information, while closed questions can limit answers or unintentionally steer them. It shows how small shifts in wording can make conversations more natural and less leading.
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Developmental Adaptations
Here we explain how a child’s age, language skills, and thinking abilities shape the way they understand and answer questions. It offers practical ways to adjust your pace, wording, and expectations so the conversation fits where the child is developmentally.
Here we explain how a child’s age, language skills, and thinking abilities shape the way they understand and answer questions. It offers practical ways to adjust your pace, wording, and expectations so the conversation fits where the child is developmentally.
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Applying and Reflecting
This section encourages interviewers to put these skills into practice and think about what worked, what felt difficult, and what they would adjust next time. It reinforces that strong rapport and clear storytelling improve with intentional practice and thoughtful self-reflection.
This section encourages interviewers to put these skills into practice and think about what worked, what felt difficult, and what they would adjust next time. It reinforces that strong rapport and clear storytelling improve with intentional practice and thoughtful self-reflection.
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Closing
Our final section brings everything together by highlighting the key takeaways from the training and clearing up common myths about talking with children. It reinforces what truly strengthens rapport and narrative practice while correcting misunderstandings that can get in the way of good interviews.
Our final section brings everything together by highlighting the key takeaways from the training and clearing up common myths about talking with children. It reinforces what truly strengthens rapport and narrative practice while correcting misunderstandings that can get in the way of good interviews.
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Amy Liss leads our Building Rapport and Narrative Practice in Child Interviews training, sharing practical approaches she and co-founder Amber Nesbitt designed during their time leading the Chicago Public Schools Office of Inspector General’s Sexual Allegations Unit (SAU).
As Chief Investigator for the SAU, Amy oversaw some of the district’s most sensitive and complex cases involving staff and students. In her leadership role, she shaped policies and procedures, designed investigative and training protocols, and streamlined processes to improve both quality and efficiency. She also studied patterns in misconduct, pinpointed systemic weaknesses, and recommended targeted interventions that strengthened CPS’s prevention efforts.
Amy has conducted and/or supervised over 20,000 staff and student interviews.