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Traumatic Stress, Misconceptions about children and death iStock-165790610…

- - - - Ask the student to share privately and friendly.
      - Try to have conversation with parents and guardians of the student.
      - Let the counselor know about the situation and student get more help there.
      - Increase the level of support and encouragement given to the traumatized student
- - - - Markedly decreased absence
      - Decreased interest and engagement
      - Young students are more likely to behave disruptively
        
        Rebellious in class
        
        More likely to pick fights
    - - Students less likely to complete high school
      - Lower educational aspirations
        
        College Attainment
        
        Lower chance of attending college
        
        Lowered parental expectations for completing college
        
        Lower rate of application to college
      - Test scores lower than students from intact families
      - More likely to repeat a grade
      - More likely to have a lower GPA
      - Residential mobility increases behavioral, emotional, and academic problems in adolescents
      - Immediate detrimental effects of divorce on school life
        
        Ages 5 to 8
        
        Frequent crying
        
        Disinterest in fun activities
        
        Student struggles to focus on schoolwork
        
        Ages 9 to 12
        
        Early interest in sex
        
        More conflict with friends and classmates
        
        Going above and beyond with responsibilities
        
        Ages 13 to 18
        
        Extreme pessimism
        
        Risky sexual choices
        
        More aggressive
        
        Use of substances
      - Role of school counselors
        
        Ages 9 to 12
        
        Encourage students to take care of themselves
        
        Encourage students to express their emotions
        
        Involve parents in this process to increase their awareness
        
        Ages 13 to 18
        
        Adolescents might blame themselves
        
        Adolescents might feel that they have to take on family responsibilities
        
        Involve parents to discuss some of these fears
        
        Encourage the development of the student's self-esteem
        
        Ages 5 to 8
        
        Practice active listening
        
        Meet with parents and student together to help parents communicate
    - - Norwegian study suggesting a stronger effect at earlier ages
      - American study suggesting older children are more likely to get bad grades
    - - Divorced parents participate less in school
      - Parents less likely to discuss class and school
      - Increased parental involvement in divorced families does not mitigate other negative effects
      - Step-fathers less involved in student's homework than fathers in intact families
    - - Teacher promotes consistency and structure. Set clear expectations for behaviors.
      - Highlight student strengths. Provide positive feedback for effort and progress.
      - Supportive group programs for students with divorced parents like the Children of Divorce Intervention Program.
      - Help children develop an understanding that they did not cause their parents divorce. Their parents' divorce is also something they cannot solve or fix.
      - Regularly communicate with parents about students strengths and any concerns
- - - - • What is your biggest concern about the immediate future?
      - • What would help you feel safer right now?
    - - Use simple relaxation and distraction skills, such as taking three deep, slow breaths; counting to 10; or picturing themselves in a favorite calm and relaxing place
      - • Think about how they have coped with difficulties in the past and remind themselves that they can use those
      - • Engage in favorite activities or hobbies, such as music, talking with a friend, reading, or going to a movie
      - • Write a list of people they can turn to for support
      - • Write a list of things they are looking forward to
      - • Focus on personal goals, such as returning to a shared class or spending time with mutual friends
    - - Parents may need guidance on how to talk about suicide with their children and how best to support them at this
        difficult time.
      - Encourage parents to contact school
        mental health staff if they are concerned about their children or other students.
- - - - check in with discretely
      - connect with appropriate supports within school or larger community
      - modelling (e.g. showing it's ok to cry)
      - role play (what to say, support, etc.)
      - physical activities (e.g. punching a pillow, kicking a ball, squeezing a stress ball, tearing paper, hugging a stuffy or another person
      - teach the difference between feelings and behaviors
      - express grief in safe ways
      - keep routines
      - be patient and willing to repeat
      - provide families with resources
    - - Encourage the family to share short, honest statements about what happened. “Your dad died in a car accident.”
      - Choose your words carefully.
      - Share appropriate resources with them.
    - - Response strategy: individual meeting with student/directly express concern, consultation with counselor in or out of school
    - - Response strategy: Brain breaks, individual meetings with teacher, refer to counselor in and/or out of school
    - - Response strategy: Brain break or cool-down corners, review of norms and expectations, safe spaces to express feelings/physicality; SEL
    - - Response strategy: refer to nurse
    - - Response strategy: consultation with family, counselor, outside services; express concern directly to student
    - - Response strategy: review of norms and expectations (walking, not running, etc.), role plays, individual meeting with student
    - - Response strategy: refer to counselor, clear boundaries and expectations, possible in-class assistant for individual help
    - - Response strategy: refer to counselor, clear boundaries and expectations, possible in-class assistant for individual help
    - - Response strategy: Brain breaks, cool-down corner time, fidget toys, fostering an open climate to talk about feelings; SEL
    - - Response strategy: foster an open, safe classroom climate to encourage communication; teachable moments to normalize talk of death
    - - Response strategy: Consultation with family, school counselor, and outside counseling services if necessary; allow to bring objects from home as 'safety' objects
    - - Response strategy: support in safe, open ways; use as teachable moment to encourage open discussion; SEL
    - - Response strategy: individual meeting with child; encourage openness to talk; accommodation of activities/assignments
    - - Response strategy: Individual meeting with child
    - - Response strategy: SEL; safe methods to express emotions (e.g. punch pillows or kick balls); brain break or cool down corners; fidget toys
    - - Response strategy: refer to a counselor
- - - - Emotional abuse
      - Physical abuse
      - Sexual abuse
    - - Reduce ability to learn and respond.
      - Difficulty making friends and establishing meaningful relationships with peers.
      - Difficulty trusting and establishing meaningful relationships with adults.
      - Less tolerance for stress, which increases fighting and defiance.
      - Problems with memory and learning.
    - - Children go into a self-protection mode. Their brain is focused in keeping them safe.
      - What to do?
        
        Social Emotional Learning: contact counselor and work as together. Create a SEL plan for the child by selecting SEL competencies that will help the child overcome the trauma. Focus on strengths and help the student to prepare for situations that might trigger reactions.
        
        Create or determine a safe space at school: the entire school should be consider a safe space for the child to be. Nevertheless, chances are he might need a specific room to vent or go to when the stress or anxiety is too high.
        
        Check ins: establish a teacher and a back-up teacher to check in with the student every morning.
        
        Meaningful relationships: help the student build a list of people he or she "trusts" in school. Help the child build relationships with this people (peers and/or teachers)
        
        Positive classroom culture and climate: make sure the student feels safe and heard in your classroom.
        
        Plan for differentiation: a student that is currently under stress/anxiety might need certain accommodations to fulfill academic tasks (more time, chunked tasks, quiet space to work, structured breaks).
        
        Seek for medical attendance: if the child presents bruises or sign of physical abuse, make sure he or she receives medical attention.
        
        Maintain routines: being able to predict whats going to happen in the day is going to help de student's stress to reduce.
      - What NOT to do?
        
        Ignore behaviors: never ignore symptoms or behaviors that my indicate abuse. Do not expect someone else to deal with it.
        
        Expect the student to leave emotional baggage at the door: be understanding of the situation. Until the basic needs are covered, the student is most likely to struggle with academic tasks.
    - - CHILDHOOD TRAUMA REACTIONS: Teacher Manual to Accompany Childhood Trauma Reactions: Tip Sheet Series CHILDHOOD TRAUMA REACTIONS: A GUIDE for TEACHERS from PRESCHOOL to YEAR 12.
      - STRESS & EARLY BRAIN GROWTH Understanding Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). gucchd.georgetown.edu/projects/docs/handout-ACES_Stress%20and%20Early%20Brain%20Growth.pdf.
      - “Trauma-Informed Strategies to Use in Your Classroom | Resilient Educator.” ResilientEducator.com, 4 Sept. 2018, resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/trauma-informed-strategies/. Accessed 2 Nov. 2022.
- - - - Stress
      - Neglect
      - Abuse
      - Loss of Family/ Friend/ pet
      - Sibilings or Parents Suffering from Depression
      - Suffering from Anxiety
        
        Learning Disorders
    - - Changes in eating and sleeping habits
      - Changes in energetic output (Sluggish, tense, irritable, restless)
      - Difficulty focusing or paying attention
      - Causing trouble or acting unmotivated
      - Taking care of a depressed parent/ guardian
      - Withdrawn, persistently sad or hopeless
      - Suicidal thoughts or actions
    - - Movement
        
        Movement:Kids learn through play anyway and the brain has a positive response to movement. Dedicating time in the day to moving the body. “Physical activities...help to calm the limbic brain and bring the focus back to learning and reasoning.” (Desautals)
      - Organize & Motivate
        
        Organize & Motivate: Keep students focused on their schedules and what they’ve done by meeting with them to reflect on the past week’s work and the upcoming week’s work. Take time to praise the student for what was done well or even successfully completed. Provide or display a visual schedule during the day to keep them on track.
      - Avoid NegativeTechniques
        
        it’s helpful to remember that students with depression are suffering, and therefore lashing out in an extreme version of themselves. Responding to those students with empathy and understanding rather than scolding and punitive measures. Students suffering from depression “lack the personal resources to do their best work.” Providing extra support, time and work modifications are also great strategies.
      - Talk It Out
        
        Psychotherapy is one of the treatment methods for dealing with depression or depressive episodes in children and adults. Though as educators, we are licensed professionals in a different field, we do often have to consider the psychological well-being of our students rather than just their academic needs. After all, one is the threshold for the other. Taking the time to build a relationship with all students, but especially those with depression, can be a ray of hope and care through a dark time. Expressing empathy through education as well as teaching social emotional learning as a practiced habit in the classroom can provide space for children to trust and be open with their feelings.