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Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, more than two-thirds of children report at least one traumatic event by the age of 16. That means that the majority (NOT the minority) of students in your classroom have experienced trauma.
One.
It takes one person to make a positive impact. As an educator, YOU can be the one because you have an opportunity to support these children day in and day out. Hearing about and thinking about the trauma our children may have suffered can be awful, but…
…there is good news.
Children can recover from trauma, and you can help them do that using trauma-sensitive practices in your classroom.
It can feel overwhelming, and you may be wondering, “Where should I start?” To support you, we have provided some resources for you to consider as you decide what to implement and how. We encourage you to take one small step forward. That one small step could make a very large impact. The resources listed under the bullet points below are from the National Association of School Psychologists outlining the key components of trauma-informed schools.
Trauma-informed schools promote:
Feelings of physical, social, and emotional safety in students.
Resources to Consider:
- Landing Page on Safety
- Article: Promoting Psychological Safety in Classrooms for Students Success
- Video: Make it Personal
- Blog: Creating a Classroom Community
A shared understanding among staff about the impact of trauma and adversity on students.
Resources to Consider:
- Blog: Essential Trauma-Informed Teaching Strategies for Managing Stress in the Classroom
- Webinar: Creating a Trauma-Informed Classroom
- Ten-Hour Professional Development Offering: Foundations of Trauma-Sensitive Teaching
- Training Packages
- Blog: Trauma-Informed Teaching
- Blog: Trauma-Informed Teaching for Early Childhood
Positive and culturally responsive discipline policies and practices.
Resources to Consider:
- Brief: Culturally Responsive Positive Behavioral Support Matters
- Edutopia Article: Relationship Building Through Culturally Responsive Classroom Management
- Classroom Culture Info from Teaching Tolerance
Access to comprehensive school mental and behavioral health services.
Resources to Consider:
- Video: Mental Health Education in Schools?
- Video: One Model of Mental Health in the Schools
- Landing Page on School-Based Mental Health
- Article: The Importance of School-Based Mental Health Services
- Colorado Framework for School Behavioral Health Services
Effective community collaboration.
Resources to Consider:
- Building Resilient and Trauma-Informed Communities
- Baltimore’s Model of a Collaborative Approach
- Children, Violence, and Trauma—Community-Based Approaches
Whether you are determined to create a trauma-informed school/community or just take small steps toward implementing a trauma-sensitive practice in your classroom, we know we can count on you and kids can, too! Remember, you are one that can make a difference to more than two-thirds.
To learn more about how to create a Trauma Informed Classroom, check out course 5007: Trauma-Sensitive Teaching: Helping Students Overcome Adverse Experiences!
