Making Classrooms and Schools Trauma-Informed and Healing-Centered

Trauma-informed and resiliency-informed schools can address the following:

Recognize possible triggers at school.

• Any stimulus that might remind a student of an overwhelming experience in their past can also lead to the same set of behaviors and/or emotions that originally experienced under stress. These include unpredictability, transitions, sudden change, loss of control, feeling vulnerable or rejected, or experiencing loneliness, sensory overload, confrontation, embarrassment or shame, praise, intimacy, and positive attention.

Be aware of signs or symptoms of distress.

• Children, teens, and adults who may feel emotionally dysregulated can demonstrate the following behaviors: a deer-in-headlights look of fear, turning red and clenching fists, breathing more rapidly, bursting into tears or crying, moving the body (in readiness to run or react), keeping very still and/or quiet.

Provide choices.

• A student who is triggered needs to regain a sense of control, because trauma can feel disempowering. Offer at least one appealing choice to that student (e.g., get a drink of water, go to our peace corner in the back, listen to music, take a break, work with a friend.).

After a teacher directs his class to prepare for a group project, he notices his student David’s rapid breathing, flushed face, and trembling legs. The room is loud and chaotic as students assemble themselves into groups, so he asks David if he would like to take a quick break: “Would you like to get a quick drink of water or visit our quiet corner for a couple of minutes?” Then, he follows up later to find out whether David would prefer to work more closely with one member of his group for part of the project.

Reframe student behaviors.

• When differences in student behaviors catch us off guard, we can default to negativity out of our own natural desire for self-preservation. However, it’s dangerous to approach students with “deficit thinking”—based on our perceptions of their weaknesses rather than their strengths. Researcher Shawn Ginwright suggests, “Instead of asking ‘What’s wrong with you?’ or even ‘What happened to you?’, we can consider also asking ‘What’s right with you?

Teach to students’ strengths.

• If teachers help students to identify their assets, provide predictable routines that foster student growth, and connect to students’ experiences through their instructional activities, they are more likely to address the needs of students who experience trauma, violence, and chronic stress.

Reexamine school discipline practices.

• Research suggests that exclusionary discipline (e.g., suspensions and expulsions) can be alienating and counterproductive, and restorative practices (strategies that focus on learning from mistakes and repairing relationships rather than punishing students) may offer a more humanizing, equitable, and respectful alternative.

Interrupt microaggressions.

• Insidious trauma in the form of racism, sexism, homophobia, ableism, etc. can be triggered by microaggressions, known as ”everyday slights, insults, indignities, put-downs—whether intentional or unintentional—to people from marginalized groups.” Educators can sensitize students and colleagues to language that makes students from traditionally marginalized groups feel unsafe, devalued, ashamed, isolated, and/or academically inferior. Then, teachers and students can learn to question, paraphrase, and/or use I-statements, while educating themselves about the origins of particular words or phrases.

A group of students in class laugh and yell, “That’s so gay!” while commenting on the way a famous actor dresses, and the teacher pauses and inquires, “What do you mean by that?” or “When you say that, I worry that students in our class will not feel safe or accepted here.” or “Did you mean to say something hurtful when you said that?”

Model and practice self-regulation strategies.

• One way to encourage self-regulation is by strengthening the vagus nerve, a major channel of the parasympathetic (“rest and digest”) nervous system. The vagus nerve is activated by shifting breathing patterns to lengthen the out-breath. When your out-breath extends longer than your in-breath, you calm can calm your body. (e.g., breath in for 3 seconds and out for 6 seconds.)

Pay attention to sensations.

• Researchers now highlight the importance of “interoceptive awareness” in helping to promote physical and emotional regulation. Interoceptive awareness simply means “reading your sensations.” Researchers are exploring how we discern differences between sensations of distress and sensations of well being, which can help regulate the autonomic nervous system—resulting in greater resilience for students (and adults).

A student notices that his stomach begins to ache right before having to take an exam. He is reading his body’s signal of distress. When he notices this, he remembers to automatically take a few deep breaths (or he may try a brief body scan). His muscles begin to relax and his stomach ache begins to ease. He now feels ready to take the test because he feels less distress—and even feels better on the inside, too.

Engage in trauma-sensitive mindfulness practices.

• Students who experience trauma may struggle with some mindfulness practices and experience disassociation (i.e., feeling disconnected from their bodies), so it’s important to be aware of signs that they may not be tolerating a mindfulness practice. For example, students’ muscles may appear slack or rigid; they may sweat or cry excessively, or they may appear fearful or angry. To avoid dissociation and/or distress, David Treleaven recommends ten trauma-sensitive mindfulness modifications here.

When you introduce a mindfulness practice in your classroom, 1) invite students to keep their eyes open or closed—based on their comfort level; 2) encourage them to anchor their attention on a sound or body part (e.g., their hands or feet) rather than focusing on their breath, which can sometimes be triggering; and 3) consider incorporating some form of body movement like walking or simple yoga stretches or poses.