I’m worried my kids will have teachers who haven’t done or refuse to do the work of becoming trauma-informed in their practice.
I’m worried the actions that come from survival instincts of flight, fight, freeze, and submit will be mistaken for their true and beautiful personalities.
I’m worried this will mean my kids won’t be seen for the amazing people they are.
According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, “More than 25% of American youth experience a serious traumatic event by their 16th birthday, and many children suffer multiple and repeated traumas.”
Acknowledging trauma and acting in trauma-informed ways are not the same things. Without the latter, we will only find success by accident and happenstance. That’s unacceptable.
If you are an educator who hasn’t yet started this work, start. If you work with children, you work with children in trauma. They need you to do this work.
Some places to start:
- “Trauma-Informed Teaching Strategies” from ASCD
- “What Survival Looks Like in School” from Inner World Work
- “What is a Trauma-Informed School” from the Treatment and Services Adaptation Center
- “A Trauma-Informed Approach to Teaching Through Coronavirus” from Learning for Justice