Oxford students prepare to return to school after deadly mass shooting

OXFORD, Mich. (FOX 2) - Some students in the Oxford Community Schools district will begin returning to school soon after last week's deadly mass shooting.

Students who attend Oxford High School, where student Ethan Crumbley opened fire and killed four classmates, will not be back in the classroom until the new year. The exact date hasn't been set yet. 

Read more Oxford HS shooting coverage here.

Teachers will receive trauma response training Thursday before K-8 students return to school for a half day on Friday. These students are expected to have their first full day back on Monday.

The district is calling it a "soft opening" that will include grief counseling, meals for families, and the trauma response training for teachers.

Related: Oakland Community Health Network provides mental health help after shooting

"I absolutely think that's a great way of approaching it because you don't want to spend all your time laser focused on just the tragedy," said clinical therapist Dr. Sabrina Jackson.

Jackson said it is important to have difficult conversations with children as they begin to heal from the tragedy.

"We have to have those difficult challenging conversations. Are they have trouble sleeping? Are they having trouble eating? Really to check in with them individually to see where they are," she said.