Are you new to responsive teaching?
Then you may have heard about trauma-informed teaching and desperately wanted to ask your colleagues or mentors what they were talking about, but couldn’t bring yourself to raise your hand.
I get it. In the education world, we all want to be as effective and supportive as possible.
Today, you’re in luck because I’m going to show you everything you need to know about trauma-informed teaching but were afraid to ask, including how to differentiate it from its traditional teaching methods.
You’ll be ready for your first day implementing this strategy in the classroom.
What is Trauma-Informed Teaching?
I’m not here to bury the lead; in simple terms, trauma-informed teaching means understanding, recognizing, and responding to the effects of all types of trauma. This approach describes a framework that emphasizes physical, psychological, and emotional safety for both students and teachers.
It also helps rebuild a sense of control and empowerment in the classroom.
Trauma-informed teaching aims to create supportive learning environments, help students develop coping strategies, and foster resilience.
It also facilitates strong relationships and a sense of community in the classroom.
Want to know how to use responsive teaching strategies to your best advantage?
Download the Educator’s Guide to Culturally Responsive Teaching for free today!
Why is Trauma-Informed Teaching Important?
You may come across people in education who believe that a traditional approach to classroom management and discipline is the only way to respond to behavior.
However, studies show that trauma-informed strategies can significantly reduce incidents of disruption. This means that understanding and addressing the underlying causes of challenging behavior can lead to better outcomes and healthier, more engaged students.
When you implement trauma-informed practices, you’ll be able to significantly improve student-teacher relationships and create a safer, more inclusive classroom.
On top of that, you’ll be better positioned to support students’ mental health needs before they escalate into crises.
For example:
Every semester, practicing teachers I know revisit the principles of trauma-informed teaching to ensure they are meeting their students where the students are, not where the teachers expect them to be.
This has helped my teacher friends to reduce classroom conflicts and increase student engagement.
Background of Trauma-Informed Teaching
Don’t worry, this is no boring history lesson.
One of the best ways to understand a new concept is to look back and understand where it comes from and the processes that led to its inception.
For trauma-informed teaching, we have to look at the advancements in psychological research and social work.
Believe it or not, the recognition of post-traumatic stress and its impact on behavior and learning allowed for the development of educational strategies that support all students.
In addition, community health research on adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and resilience have contributed to our understanding of immediate and long-term effects of trauma on students.
This in turn helps us recognize that how students behave in the classroom can be due to a trauma response.
ACEs in Education has excellent course offerings on trauma-informed teaching and understanding how ACEs relate to your classroom. Check them out over here.
How Trauma-Informed Teaching Works
So far, we’ve stayed pretty theoretical in our exploration of trauma-informed teaching, and if you’re still unsure how to implement it, I don’t blame you.
In fact, when I first started learning about trauma, I felt like my previous teaching strategies were inadequate. The fact that I’ve been able to apply trauma-informed practices into my work just shows you can do it too!
Luckily, trauma-informed teaching is more practical than it sounds.
I’ve put together a few examples below to help you better understand and see it applied in different situations.
Example #1: Responsive Classroom Techniques
My client has applied trauma-informed techniques in her work as a 3rd-grade teacher.
She says, “Integrating trauma-informed practices has not only calmed my classroom, but also deepened my relationships with my students, making teaching more rewarding.”
This means that you can transform your teaching environment into a supportive space that facilitates learning and growth.
Here are three practical steps that teachers can take to effectively use trauma-informed teaching to calm their classroom and respond better to student needs:
Create a Safe and Predictable Environment
- Establish Clear Routines and Expectations: Consistency and structure help reduce anxiety and insecurity in students who have experienced trauma. Establish clear, consistent routines that students can depend on every day. This predictability helps students feel more secure and focused, reducing behavioral issues.
- Physical Space Considerations: Arrange the classroom to be welcoming and calming. Use soft lighting, quiet spaces for retreat when overwhelmed, and organize the space to minimize chaos. Ensure the classroom setup allows for easy movement and doesn’t feel overcrowded.
Foster Strong Relationships and a Sense of Community
- Build Trust Through Consistent Interactions: Trust is crucial for students affected by trauma. Be consistent in your interactions and responses to build a reliable relationship. Show that you are predictable, reliable, and trustworthy.
- Incorporate Social-Emotional Learning (SEL): Integrate SEL activities that promote empathy, resilience, and emotional regulation. Activities that encourage students to express their feelings and thoughts can help them process emotions productively.
- Cultivate a Supportive Community: Encourage peer support and collaboration through group work and cooperative learning. This not only builds a sense of community but also helps students learn to support each other, creating a nurturing environment conducive to emotional safety.
Adapt Responses to Misbehavior with a Focus on Restoration
- Understand the Root Causes: Recognize that misbehavior may be a manifestation of underlying trauma. Approach disciplinary actions with an understanding of students’ backgrounds and experiences.
- Use Restorative Practices: Instead of traditional punitive measures, use restorative approaches that aim to resolve conflicts, repair harm, and restore relationships. This can involve facilitated meetings where students discuss the impact of their behavior, understand the harm caused, and develop plans for repair and future prevention.
- Promote Self-Regulation Skills: Teach and model self-regulation techniques such as deep breathing, mindfulness, or quiet time. Helping students develop these skills can reduce incidents of misbehavior and provide them with tools to manage their reactions and emotions.
Example #2: School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)
This is a proactive approach to improve school safety and promote positive behavior.
An example of this is implementing consistent support systems and recognition for positive behavior across all classrooms, which enhances the overall school environment.
The best ways to implement this in your own school are:
Establish Clear Behavioral Expectations
- Define and Communicate Clear Rules: Start by collaboratively developing a clear set of behavioral expectations with your students and staff. These expectations should be positively stated, easy to remember, and visibly posted throughout the school. For example, instead of saying “Don’t run,” use “Walk in the hallways.”
- Role-Modeling and Practice: It is crucial that all staff consistently model these behaviors. Regularly practicing the expected behaviors through role-playing activities can also help reinforce these standards among students.
- Consistency Across Settings: Ensure that all areas of the school, from classrooms to hallways to the cafeteria, have consistent expectations. This uniformity helps students understand that the same rules apply everywhere, reinforcing their behavior.
Train All Staff on Trauma-Informed Practices
- Professional Development: Organize training sessions for all school staff, including teachers, administrators, counselors, and support staff, on trauma-informed practices. These trainings should cover the basics of trauma, its impact on learning and behavior, and strategies for creating a supportive learning environment.
- Integration with PBIS: Educate staff on how trauma-informed practices can be integrated into the PBIS framework. For instance, training should cover how to approach discipline in a way that considers a student’s trauma background and focuses on recovery and healing rather than punishment.
- Ongoing Training and Refreshers: Trauma-informed training should not be a one-time event. Schedule ongoing sessions to address new findings in the field, discuss challenges, and refresh the staff’s skills.
Regularly Monitor and Support Student Progress
- Data-Driven Decision Making: Utilize data to monitor the effectiveness of PBIS and make informed decisions about interventions. This data can come from behavior tracking, student surveys, and academic performance.
- Individualized Support: Some students may require additional support beyond the universal interventions provided by PBIS. Use the data collected to identify these students and develop targeted interventions tailored to their specific needs.
- Regular Feedback and Positive Reinforcement: Provide students with regular feedback on their behavior. Recognize and reward positive behavior consistently, making sure to align rewards with the established expectations. This recognition can be as simple as verbal praise, points towards a reward, or certificates.
Additional Considerations:
- Family and Community Involvement: Engage families and the broader community in the PBIS process by informing them of the behavioral expectations and the rationale behind them. Encourage families to reinforce these behaviors at home.
- Cultural Responsiveness: Ensure that the behavioral expectations and interventions are culturally responsive and sensitive to the diverse backgrounds of the student body. This inclusivity can help prevent cultural misunderstandings and promote equity within the PBIS framework.
Explainer Video Time: Trauma-Informed Teaching
Still not sure you get trauma-informed teaching well enough to implement it in your classroom or school? We all learn in different ways.
Check out this video to see if it helps you out:
Isn’t that a helpful overview? I especially like the information about how trauma responses can prompt bullying or harsh disciplinary treatment. The more we know, the better we can do.
I hope trauma-informed teaching is crystal clear to you now.
I first launched Empowered Educators because I wanted to help teachers feel empowered to handle anything that came their way in the classroom. That includes supporting students who come to us with past trauma.
Do you still have questions? No shame in that! You can contact me here or find me on Facebook or Instagram, where I’m always happy to answer any questions.
One thing you can do to get started with responsive teaching is download my freebie on culturally responsive teaching.
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