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6 Guiding Principles To A Trauma-Informed Approach

The CDC's Office of Readiness and Response (ORR), in collaboration with SAMHSA's National Center for Trauma-Informed Care (NCTIC), developed and led a new training for CPR employees about the role of trauma-informed care during public health emergencies. The training aimed to increase responder awareness of the impact that trauma can have in the communities where they work. Participants learned SAMHSA's six principles that guide a trauma-informed approach, including:

1. Safety

2. Trustworthiness & transparency

3. Peer support

4. Collaboration & mutuality

5. Empowerment & choice

6. Cultural, historical & gender issues

Adopting a trauma-informed approach is not accomplished through any single particular technique or checklist. It requires constant attention, caring awareness, sensitivity, and possibly a cultural change at an organizational level. On-going internal organizational assessment and quality improvement, as well as engagement with community stakeholders, will help to imbed this approach which can be augmented with organizational development and practice improvement. The training provided by CPR and NCTIC was the first step for CDC to view emergency preparedness and response through a trauma-informed lens.

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Infographic: 6 Guiding Principles To A Trauma-Informed Approach

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The Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity

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First Impressions: Exposure to Violence & A Child's Developing Brain

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Improving Early Childhood Education by Reducing Implicit Bias

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Spread the loveImplicit bias is characterized as unconscious attitudes or stereotypes that influence our perceptions, behaviors, and judgments. While bias is unavoidable, it should be reduced and corrected as much as possible. When it comes to children, their experiences shape their trajectory well beyond their early schooling environment, as they do in practically every aspect of their lives.

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As an Early Childhood Educator this is something I could do better at. Getting burnt out is probably the # 1 cause for teachers to quit. If we don’t take care of ourselves how do we expect to take care of the children we come into contact with and give our 100%?

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Trauma For Kids - Coping With Childhood Trauma, Resilience, Self-Care, Grounding Techniques

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As Early Childhood Educators it’s important that we remember to focus on our Emotional, Physical, Spiritual, and social well-being. There are days I want to call out of work due to being burnt out, frustrated with the people I work with, or just irritated/frustrated with the children. We need to remember that our well-being is just as important as the children’s.

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Abstract

Neurobiological systems may be particularly susceptible to deleterious impact of childhood trauma, and the impact of childhood trauma on development and subsequent functional outcomes across the lifespan has been well-documented. The current review addresses the neurobiological impact of exposure to interpersonal trauma in childhood in the context of executive function, emotion regulation, and dissociation/interoceptive awareness. Subsequent risk for PTSD and depression is also discussed. The pathway of risk from childhood trauma to these cognitive, emotional, and psychiatric outcomes is addressed in terms of potential structural and functional alterations within the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, and amygdala resulting from chronic or repeated activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and its interaction with and influence on genetic and epigenetic processes during sensitive periods of development. Implications for practice are discussed.

Keywords: childhood trauma, childhood maltreatment, dissociation, executive function, emotion regulation, neurobiology

Neurobiological Development in the Context of Childhood Adversity

For this review, with regard to childhood stressful and traumatic experiences, we focus on findings related to childhood exposure to interpersonal trauma because, relative to non-interpersonal trauma, interpersonal trauma may be more likely to recur across development and to present in multiple forms ( Masten & Wright, 1998) such that children are often exposed to multiple types of abuse and/or neglect (i.e., physical, sexual, emotional abuse, and/or physical and emotional neglect; Finkelhor, Turner, Ormrod, & Hamby, 2009), as well as to witnessed family violence ( Zolotor, Theodore, Coyne-Beasley, & Runyan, 2007). Because children are likely to spend a large majority of their time during the first several years of life with family or other caregivers, exposure to violence, abuse, or neglect in a primary setting, such as the home, may promote persistent fear and anticipation of recurrence and, thus, represent just the kind of stressor that can profoundly alter neurobiological development ( Tarullo & Gunnar, 2006).

Therefore, the current review considers the impact of childhood interpersonal trauma, as a form of chronic stress exposure, on neurobiological development. We address the impact of chronic stress exposure on neurobiological development during childhood, in part through the potential roles of repeated activation of the physiological stress response system, environmental influence on gene expression, and specific sensitive periods of development. Given the broad-reaching impact of trauma on development (i.e., multifinality), we focus not only on the impact of childhood trauma on neurobiological development with respect to risk for specific diagnoses (e.g., depression, PTSD), but also on the impacts on three areas of functioning that cut across diagnoses: 1) executive function 2) emotion regulation, and 3) dissociation/interoceptive awareness.

Overview of the Neurobiological Impact of Childhood Trauma

Exposure to childhood trauma can impact brain development over time, leading to changes in the structure and function of multiple stress-sensitive areas, including the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex (PFC), and the amygdala ( Cerqueira, Mailliet, Almeida, Jay, & Sousa, 2007; Stevens et al., 2013; Tomoda et al., 2009; van Harmelen et al., 2014). Under normal neurobiological conditions, the hippocampus receives input regarding perceptual information ("who and what") and binds it to contextual information ("when and where"), and the PFC facilitates future recollection of and attributions about that information ("why") ( Ranganath, 2010). The PFC also modulates amygdala activity via inhibitory mechanisms ( Banks, Eddy, Angstadt, Nathan, & Phan, 2007) and communicates with the hippocampus to promote the consolidation of emotional and perceptual information ( Kajiwara, Takashima, Mimura, Witter, & Iijima, 2003). Under adverse neurobiological conditions, such as those shaped by frequent or enduring trauma, the individual and connected functions of the hippocampus, PFC, and amygdala can be impacted in ways that not only facilitate inappropriate associations among perceptual, contextual, and attributional information about traumatic events ( Acheson, Gresack, & Risbrough, 2012), but also diminish capacity for consciously managing recollections of the events and moderating fear responses to the recollections. ( Stevens et al., 2013). Importantly, the pathways from chronic stress exposure during childhood to these differences in brain region structure, function, and connectivity are potentially many, and chief among them is the pathway through the stress response system.

Chronic fear, whether in response to actual or anticipated threat, can lead to repeated activation of the physiological stress response system, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, altering the regulation of glucocorticoids, such as cortisol ( Tarullo & Gunnar, 2006; Trickett, Noll, Susman, Shenk, & Putnam, 2010). Childhood trauma is associated with HPA axis upregulation (i.e., elevated baseline cortisol, as well as greater increase and slower decline of cortisol following stress-exposure; Tarullo & Gunnar, 2006). At elevated levels or with repeated exposure, cortisol is thought to have neurotoxic effects, particularly early in development ( Lupien et al., 2016). Notably, however, lower cortisol levels and attenuated cortisol reactivity (i.e., HPA axis downregulation) are observed in some individuals exposed to childhood trauma, and the onset of downregulation is typically during adolescence ( Trickett et al., 2010). Downregulation of the HPA axis follows a period of chronic upregulation and may be the result of increased glucocorticoid receptor sensitivity leading to blunted stress reactivity and lower baseline cortisol levels, potentially as a compensatory strategy. Nevertheless, upregulation and associated neurobiological differences likely precede and persist beyond the onset of downregulation ( Slattery, Grieve, Ames, Armstrong, & Essex, 2013).

The impact of HPA axis dysfunction on the neurobiology of childhood trauma may be better understood when considered in the context of genetic and epigenetic processes that influence and are influenced by glucocorticoid exposure. Although a more complete consideration is beyond the scope of this review (see Sharma, Powers, Bradley, & Ressler, 2016, and Heim & Binder, 2012), a particularly relevant area of research is the study of gene-environment (G × E) interactions of the FKBP5 gene with childhood adversity. FKBP5 is a gene that contributes to the regulation of glucocorticoid receptor sensitivity, and risk variants of FKBP5 polymorphisms are associated with reduced receptor sensitivity, which can lead to diminished HPA axis negative feedback (i.e., slower "off-switch" for the stress response) and subsequent maintenance of glucocorticoids in the absence of threat ( Dias, Maddox, Klengal, &Ressler, 2015). Sustained elevations of glucocorticoids may interfere with neurotrophic gene expression and protein synthesis across the brain, but particularly within the hippocampus and PFC, resulting in reduced neurogenesis and neuroplasticity in, as well as degraded connectivity between, the two regions ( Cerqueira et al., 2007; Daskalakis, De Kloet, Yehuda, Malaspina, & Kranz, 2015). There is now substantial evidence of an interaction between FKBP5 polymorphisms and early childhood maltreatment in predicting adult PTSD symptoms ( Binder et al., 2008; Boscarino et al., 2012; Xie et al., 2010). This effect is not driven by total trauma exposure and appears directly related to childhood exposure, suggesting a developmental window in which FKBP5-mediated cellular interactions have lasting effects on neurobiology that increase the risk of developing PTSD in adulthood. G × E interactions of childhood trauma and FKBP5 polymorphisms also predict adult risk for other psychopathology, including depression and psychosis ( Appel et al., 2011; Collip et al., 2013; Zimmerman et al., 2011), and there is emerging evidence of a similar G × E effect of FKBP5 polymorphisms and childhood maltreatment on adult executive function ( Green et al., 2015; Lovallo et al., 2015).

In addition to G × E interactions, there appears to be an important role of epigenetic mechanisms, such as DNA methylation, in understanding how childhood trauma leads to neurobiological changes and subsequent development of psychopathology ( Heim and Binder, 2012; McGowen et al., 2009). For example, in a sample of low-income, primarily African American adults with high levels of trauma exposure across the lifespan, Klengel et al. (2013) found evidence that epigenetic mechanisms mediated the G × E effect of early life trauma and FKBP5 on the development of PTSD and depression symptoms in adulthood. Epigenetic changes in the form of differential transcriptional activation of FKBP5 by glucocorticoid receptor activation in the presence of childhood abuse may enhance FKBP5 responsiveness, leading to both long-term changes in the body's stress response system and alterations of neuronal circuits, resulting in higher risk for trauma-associated psychiatric disorders in adults. Similar to G × E effects, the effects on DNA methylation in this study were observed only for childhood trauma exposure, further highlighting the potential impact of traumatic events occurring in early development.

To fully understand the impact of childhood trauma on neurobiological development, the timing of the trauma exposure, as well as its chronicity across the course of development, should be taken into account. Foundational to the idea that childhood trauma can impact neurobiological development is the observation in human and non-human studies of sensitive periods of brain development marked by enhanced plasticity during which experience is inordinately influential to neurogenesis, synaptic growth, and organization of neural circuits ( Heim & Binder, 2012; Knudsen, 2004). Thus, exposure to stress during these sensitive periods has the potential to alter the neurobiological landscape in powerful and lasting ways ( Knudsen, 2004). Trauma occurring during early, sensitive periods of development can increase risk for psychological, behavioral, and neurocognitive problems across the lifespan. ( Cowell, Cicchetti, Rogosch, & Toth, 2015; Dunn et al., 2017; Enlow, Egeland, Blood, Wright, & Wright, 2012)

In addition to broader neurobiological sensitivity during periods of early development, specific brain regions mature at unequal pace, affording differential, timing-dependent impacts of environmental input across development. If childhood trauma exposure acts through sensitive periods to impact neurobiological changes, timing-dependent effects on brain regions should be observed for relevant developmental periods. Recent research has provided some support for this idea showing age-dependent impacts of childhood environment, including trauma and abuse, on amygdala, hippocampal, and PFC volume (e.g., Pechtel, Lyons-Ruth, Anderson, & Teicher, 2014; Andersen et al., 2008; Rao et al., 2010). Although brain regions mature at unequal pace, regional development is anything but independent. Brain regions are structurally and functionally connected such that regions may facilitate or inhibit activity in other regions. Environmental input during sensitive periods may not only interfere with the normative development of one specific region, but also the nature of its relationship to other regions ( Knudsen, 2004). The hippocampus, PFC, and amygdala are part of a network of connected regions ( Tottenham & Sheridan, 2010), chronic stress reduces connectivity within this network ( Cerqueira et al., 2007), and reduced connectivity is associated with deficits across multiple domains ( Cerqueira et al., 2007; Opitz & Friederici, 2003; Wendelken & Bunge, 2010; Stevens et al., 2013). Thus, even if a particular brain region, such as the PFC, is most vulnerable during a sensitive period later in development, its connectivity to regions, such as the hippocampus, with earlier sensitive periods may introduce opportunity for stressful or traumatic experiences earlier in development to nevertheless degrade both the structure and the function of that later-peaking brain region ( Cerqueira et al., 2007).

Taken together, these findings suggest that childhood trauma can alter neurobiological development, particularly within the hippocampus, PFC, and amygdala, and this may occur at least in part as a result of the chronic or repeated activation of the physiological stress response system acting together with genetic and epigenetic processes during sensitive periods of development. These neurobiological changes can, in turn, influence a number of critical cognitive and emotional processes (i.e., executive function, emotion regulation, and that, when disturbed, may represent transdiagnostic risk factors for trauma-related psychopathology, such as PTSD and depression.

Impact of Childhood Trauma on Executive Function

Executive function refers to a set of processes, supported largely by the PFC, that facilitate awareness of and adaptation to internal and external stimuli and goals, thus promoting flexible, context-appropriate, and goal-oriented emotional and behavioral responses ( Miyake et al., 2000). Executive function comprises working memory (i.e., holding onto and actively manipulating multiple mental representations), cognitive flexibility (i.e., inhibiting previously learned responses to meet new demand), inhibitory control (i.e., inhibiting overlearned or automatic responses), and the ability to form abstract concepts. Exposure to childhood trauma is associated with relative impairments in each these processes ( Cowell et al. 2015; DePrince, Weinzierl, & Combs, 2009; Gould et al., 2012; Kavanaugh & Holler, 2014; Nikulina & Widom, 2013; Nolin & Ethier, 2007; Skowron, Cipriano-Essel, Gatzke-Kopp, Teti, & Ammerman, 2014; Spann et al., 2012), and such impairment is associated with increased risk for PTSD and depression ( Aupperle, Melrose, Stein, & Paulus, 2012; Joormann, 2010).

Impact of Childhood Trauma on Emotion Regulation

Emotion regulation refers to a broad set of strategies to manage cognitive, behavioral, and physiological responses to emotion ( Cole, Martin, & Dennis, 2004) and encompasses a number of components, including awareness, understanding, and acceptance of emotional experiences ( Gratz & Roemer, 2004). Developmental research points to an important impact of trauma on children's emotional awareness, understanding, and regulation ( Shields, Ryan, & Cicchetti, 2001; Shipman, Zeman, Penza, & Champion, 2000), which are typically developed in part through interactions with parents and other supportive adults ( Bariola, Gullone, Hughes, 2011; Parke, 1994). Because exposure to childhood maltreatment often includes abuse or neglect from a primary caregiver or the presence of violence within the home, children are less likely to be exposed to modeling of appropriate emotional labeling, expression, and regulation behaviors often modeled by primary caregivers and may therefore develop deficits in appropriate emotion regulation.

In addition to the potential absence or scarcity of appropriate models, emotion regulation may also be diminished in the context of childhood trauma due to its partial reliance on executive function-itself diminished by childhood trauma. Executive function contributes to emotion regulation by controlling the contents of working memory to prevent excessive attention to negative thoughts or stimuli ( Joormann, 2010), shifting to new coping strategies when old ones are no longer effective ( Gilliom, Shaw, Beck, Schonberg, & Lukon, 2002), and inhibiting automatic emotional, behavioral, or cognitive responses that do not fit the situation or one's goals ( Carlson & Wang, 2007), such as during cognitive reappraisal ( Goldin, McRae, Ramel, & Gross, 2008).

Emotion dysregulation is considered a transdiagnostic risk factor for a broad range of psychiatric morbidity ( Werner & Gross, 2010), including PTSD and depression ( Bradley et al., 2011a), and exposure to childhood trauma is associated with emotion regulation deficits across the lifespan ( Cloitre, Miranda, Stovall-McClough, & Han, 2005; Kim & Cicchetti, 2010; McLaughlin, Peverill, Gold, Alves, & Sheridan, 2015; Powers, Etkin, Gyurak, Bradley, & Jovanovic, 2015). Similar to executive function, emotion regulation is most impacted by trauma that occurs early and often ( Kim & Cicchetti, 2010). Associated deficits are diverse and may present as attentional bias to negative or threatening stimuli, trouble recognizing emotions in the self or others, and difficulty effectively modulating or reappraising distress ( McLaughlin et al., 2015; Pollak, 2008; Tottenham et al., 2010).

Neuroimaging studies demonstrate an association of emotion regulation and childhood trauma in terms of both neurobiological structure and function and behavioral strategies. In a study of institutionally-raised children, Tottenham et al. (2010) found that prolonged placement was associated with increased attention to negatively-valenced stimuli, as well as with enlarged amygdala, a finding which could represent potential for a relative disadvantage of the PFC in modulating amygdala. For example, in a study of adolescents with histories of childhood maltreatment, McLaughlin et al. (2015) also found a bias toward negatively-valenced stimuli and, relative to non-maltreated adolescences, greater recruitment of the PFC during cognitive reappraisal to achieve comparable reduction of amygdala activity. In this study, both maltreated and non-maltreated adolescents were able to demonstrate emotion regulation ability via amygdala modulation, but maltreated adolescents expended more executive resources to so regulate, which could decrease the availability of those resources for regulating subsequent distress ( Muraven & Baumeister, 2000). It is possible, therefore, for some individuals to present with a pattern of apparent emotion regulation-perhaps even overregulation-followed by depletion of regulatory resources. Efforts to overregulate may be associated with aspects of dissociation.

Impact of Childhood Trauma on Dissociation and Interoceptive Awareness

Notably, individuals with histories of childhood trauma often report depersonalized dissociation, or feeling disconnected from their own bodies ( Simeon, Guralnik, Knutelska, Hollander, & Schmeidler, 2001) and, paradoxically, often have high incidences of chronic somatic disorders and concerns (Friedrich & Shafer, 1994; McFarlane, Atchison, Rafalowicz, & Papay, 1994). Given these findings, it is not surprising that dissociation has been linked to impairments in interoception, or awareness of somatic states. For some individuals exposed to trauma-particularly abuse-attending to their current physiological state can evoke trauma-related reminders and subsequent distress and is thus avoided ( Lanius et al., 2010).

Opportunities for Intervention

Limitations

Second, the potential causes of childhood trauma-related changes to neurobiological development presented in the current review are by no means exhaustive. For example, this review does not address the impacts of poverty or racism, both of which have been shown to exert pernicious influence on neurobiological development ( Blair & Raver, 2012; Chae et al., 2014). Children living in poverty are confronted with distressed and less responsive caregivers, and may also be at increased risk of experiencing maltreatment ( Blair & Raver, 2012; Brooks-Gunn, Schneider, & Waldfogel, 2013). Furthermore, African-American and Hispanic children are disproportionately impacted by poverty ( Macartney, 2011), and compared to all other racial/ethnic groups, African-American children are more likely to be exposed to violence ( Goldmann et al., 2011) and to demonstrate dysregulated HPA axis functioning in infancy, childhood, and adulthood ( Blair et al., 2011; Kuzawa & Sweet, 2009). Although outside the scope of this review, these findings highlight the troubling intersection of poverty and racism with trauma that must not be ignored when addressing the role of childhood trauma in adult functioning.

In addition, this review does not address all physiological sequelae of childhood trauma that may impact neurobiological development. For example, inflammation is elevated across development for individuals exposed to childhood trauma ( Coelho, Viola, Walss-Bass, Brietzke, & Grassi-Oliveira, 2014), increasing risk to physical and mental health and contributing additional influence to neurobiological development ( Hagberg & Mallard, 2005). Finally, this review does not address potential intergenerational effects of trauma on neurobiological development. Elevated cortisol levels in utero are associated with long-term relative deficits in neurocognitive ability ( LeWinn et al., 2009), and childhood trauma may also interfere with later parenting behavior ( Smith, Cross, Winkler, Jovanovic, & Bradley, 2014), potentially creating adverse conditions in the next generation. Certainly, consideration of intergenerational effects is important for better understanding the individual effects in broader context.

Conclusion

Childhood trauma, particularly if experienced early and often, is associated with neurobiological changes that may influence important processes, such as executive function and emotion regulation, as well as increase risk for dissociation and trauma-related disorders, such as PTSD and depression. This neurocognitive, emotion regulation, and psychiatric risk may result from cascading changes to neurobiology facilitated by chronic HPA axis reactivity and interaction with genetic and epigenetic processes during sensitive periods in development in ways that ultimately interfere with the structure, function, and functional connectively of the hippocampus, PFC, and amygdala and limit resilience to future stressors.

Acknowledgments

We thank the Grady Trauma Project research staff and coordinators, Angelo Brown, Allen W. Graham, and Rebecca Roffman, as well as the nurses in the Clinical Research Network of Grady Health Systems. Funding from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HD018264), and the National Institute of Mental Health (MH100122-01, MH071537, and MH102890) supported this work. The contents of this manuscript do not reflect the views of the Department of Veterans Affairs or the United States Government

Footnotes

Conflicts of Interest: We have no conflicts of interest to declare

Contributor Information

Dorthie Cross, Department of Psychology, Georgia Southern University.

Negar Fani, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine.

Abigail Powers, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine.

Bekh Bradley, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of MedicineAtlanta VA Medical Center.

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Neurobiological Development in the Context of Childhood Trauma

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Neurobiological systems may be particularly susceptible to deleterious impact of childhood trauma, and the impact of childhood trauma on development and subsequent functional outcomes across the lifespan has been well-documented. The current review addresses ...

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CECE Early Childhood Videos at Eastern CT State U.

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Creating Classroom Environments that Build Resilience (Understanding Trauma in Early Childhood)

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7-steps to implement Restorative justice in education
1. Establish a restorative justice team
2. Educate your school community
3. Start small
4. Use restorative language
5. Implement restorative practices
6. Provide training and support
7. Measure and evaluate success

https://scienceandliteracy.org/restorative-justice-in-schools/

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Healthy Relationships of Restorative Practices in school

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Healthy Relationships of Restorative Practices in school

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https://advancementproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/5165058db7e15ced3a_6lm6y18hu.pdf

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https://www.mindfulschools.org/inspiration/restorative-justice-in-schools-sel-in-action/

Restorative Justice was started in Oakland Unified School District by David Yusem. Restorative Justice is seen as “Harm” which is seen as “fracturing a relationship” where punishment is not demanded. To have Restorative Justice, this is seen as a way to help seek ways to find the true needs while helping to seek out a way to help the healing process in a relationship. In the Oakland Unified School District, they have what is called the Restorative Talking circle, the circle help the victim and the offender to sit down and have an open communication of why this happened. In the Restorative Circle helps each individual to build on their social-emotional skills as well to learn/practice with patience, empathy, active listening, and impulse control. David Yusem seeks to make sure that the circle be a safe place for everyone.

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I was bullied in high school. The bullying took the form of humiliation, physical assault, and mental torment. At the time, it was simply thought of as "kids being kids." Not a single administrator or teacher did anything to check in, help me, or stop the bullying. Many of my teachers laughed it off when they witnessed it.

This had an impact on my self esteem and my beliefs about people's intent - at work and in other aspects of my life. At the same time, I have always had the ability to see the many sides of conflict. Since elementary school, I have been the go-to mediator with peers, co-workers, and beyond. I have been building my empathy muscle my whole life.

My professional path brought me to community mediation at a nonprofit and it was in this role that I first learned about restorative justice. Since then, I've dedicated my work to building restorative justice programs at the Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center and in school districts such as Berkeley Unified and Oakland Unified School Districts.

What is Restorative Justice?

Restorative justice views "harm" as a fracturing of relationships, rather than something that demands punishment. A restorative justice process is a way to uncover true needs and heal relationships via meaningful accountability.

How might restorative justice apply to a conflict? Restorative justice allows the impacted parties to talk about what happened, how they are feeling about it now, the impact it had on everyone, and ultimately what can be done to make it as right as possible. Restorative approach can help school communities avoid the need for exclusionary discipline and reduce repeated offenses. People who have been harmed often have questions that only the person that harmed them can answer. Often time these questions are simple like "why me?" or "what led you to do this to me?" The process allows for these and other questions to be answered and to begin the healing process.

Restorative justice originates from an indigenous paradigm - it is community based, relational, and inclusive. The process creates equity by giving everyone a space to talk and be heard and by addressing the root cause of harm. We often say harmed people harm people, so it is important to uncover and address the original harm too. The restorative talking circle process is often implemented to start this conversation.

Restorative Talking Circles and SEL

One restorative practice that is supporting SEL in classrooms is the use of restorative talking circles. Circles are an effective way of building a community where people feel connected and develop communal ownership of the classroom. This kind of connectedness creates an environment where authentic engagement and deep learning can happen. Students may bring their cultural values into the space, creating a shared ownership of the classroom.

Circles typically start with an opening practice, for example a few minutes of mindfulness, to create an intentional space. The opening is followed by a "check-in" with each of the members of the circle. When first establishing the circle, the group may co-create shared guidelines and discuss personal and shared values. This lays the foundation for a rich and meaningful dialogue followed by a check out and closing.

If the circle is a response to harm or conflict, we may discuss what happened and the impact. We eventually discuss how to make things as right as possible and come up with a plan to repair the relationships and re-weave the fabric of the community. The ability to make something right - or as right as possible - is a gift that all people impacted by harm deserve.

Simply by sitting in a restorative circle in the classroom, students learn valuable social and emotional skills such as patience, empathy, active listening, and impulse control. These skills fall into the five SEL competencies that the Collaborative for Academic and Social Emotional Learning (CASEL) supports schools in teaching and practicing: self awareness, self management, social awareness, responsible decision making, and relationship skills.

Not only does a restorative circle allow people to practice these skills, it can also be used to explicitly teach them. For example, one could do a circle on what it means to be an ally, what respect looks, sounds and feels like in our classroom, or to make a consensual decision about something that affects the community?

Restorative justice is a values based practice. In a circle, shared guidelines and values are always created as a group before the main discussion. We generally use the same core guidelines across the school district and then invite additional ideas for the discussion. We adapted a version of guidelines set forth by Kay Pranis and Carolyn Boyes-Watson in their book "Circle Forward, Building a Restorative School Community", Living Justice Press 2014. They are:

Respect the talking piece - A meaningful object is passed around the circle. The person holding it is the only one that speaks. Everyone else actively listens.

Speak and listen from the heart - Speak your truth and listen with an open mind.

Speak and listen with respect - Pay attention to your triggers and how you express yourself.

Remain in circle - Be present.

Honor privacy - Keep the conversation private. Participants may discuss the level of confidentiality they feel they need.

It is important to build a foundation in shared values so that all participants, especially students, can bring what is important to them (family, culture) into the space. This allows for a classroom to be a shared space rather than the teacher's room. Teachers do not need to be experts in their students lives, and they cannot control what a young person may experience outside of the classroom, at the same time they can provide opportunities to create a learning environment that resonates with a student based on what the student has indicated in circle is important to them.

Student Leadership: The Circle Keepers

A major tenet of restorative justice is working with people rather than doing to them. To support this, every year in Oakland hundreds of youth are trained as circle keepers to support circles in the school community. This supports students as leaders and encourages them to engage in their own education. In their training, youth are not being manipulated to do things adults should do; rather students are empowered to participate in and lead restorative justice because it resonates with them. We must ask ourselves who are we doing this for, students or adults? Do adults want students to learn self management so they can be quiet, orderly and compliant, or do we want them to practice that competency so they may create and maintain positive relationships during and after their education?

By sharing the circle keeper role, adults working in restorative schools are practicing and learning SEL skills alongside students. As teachers learn alongside students, they become more aware of their own biases and triggers. Often adults become more aware of how their behavior can impact children in a positive way - especially youth of color, and students who express their gender in non-heteronormative ways, who feel adult bias the most.

How to Get Started

There is no plug and play model for implementing restorative justice practices at a school. Restorative justice implementation is profoundly related to the eco-system of each school or district. Schools must first assess the environment for readiness. Administrators, teachers, students and parents can identify what factors conducive to restorative justice are already in place and what they can do better. All staff should be trained and receive coaching and feedback throughout the year.

The OUSD Restorative Justice Implementation Guide is a navigational tool we developed in Oakland in partnership with Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth (RJOY) to help members of the school community identify indicators such as: What's working in our school? What could we do better? What positive things are happening that RJ can support? What do we need to rethink?

It is difficult to implement restorative justice on a piecemeal basis. Restorative justice is a school wide phenomenon and more effective to implement if most, if not all, of the teachers are trained in circles and receive coaching support as they learn the art of circle-keeping. Student leadership can expand to include restorative practices for community building and responding to harm and conflict.

Restorative Justice and Creating Safe Spaces

Today's students want to engage with school curriculum, but in a culturally relevant way. They want to soak up what the teachers are trying to give them, but many of them need a space that creates safety first. Students may need to break free from the cycle of harm and aggression that experiencing trauma can set in motion. According to a 2017 report from the National Survey on Children's Health, 46% of all children in the US have experienced at least one adverse childhood experience (ACE). Bringing restorative justice practices into schools and districts can help to provide an environment where they can heal and break the cycle.

Each day when I go to work at Oakland Unified School District I ask myself how I will transform this system rather than become it. It takes a relentless intentionality and a deep commitment to self reflection. Restorative justice practices help me and others in our school community practice and build our social and emotional skill set so that we can be in right relationship with each other and create a place and space where robust and engaging learning can happen. We need to radically shift the way we have been educating our students for the last 150 years to something that works for all of our young people now.
David Yusem coordinates the Restorative Justice program at Oakland Unified School District (OUSD). This year, the district was able to maintain full time Restorative Justice staff at over 26 school sites to support the implementation of Restorative Justice programming district-wide. The RJ program at OUSD is considered a National model for the implementation of restorative practices in schools. Prior to working at OUSD, David managed the community mediation program at SEEDS Community Resolution Center, and founded their restorative justice program. David has also initiated Restorative Justice pilot programs at the Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center and Berkeley Unified School District.

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Restorative Justice in Schools: SEL in Action

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https://youtu.be/oc23H6RxWRo I was bullied in high school. The bullying took the form of humiliation, physical assault, and mental torment. At the time, it was simply thought of as "kids being kids." Not a single administrator or teacher did anything to check in, help me, or stop the bullying.

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The Neuroscience of Restorative justice

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The neuroscience of restorative justice | Dan Reisel

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Rethinking Challenging Kids-Where There's a Skill There's a Way | J. Stuart Ablon

Has worked with 100’s of different backgrounds of children with behaviors. This is a major issue for teachers in the schools with teacher drop outs due to be overwhelmed due to behaviors in school, and big on referrals to mental health. “Kids do well if they can”. Development happens at different rates. When adults shift their thinking from when kids doing well if they want to, to kids do well if they can amazing things happen. We need to help children to learn to problem-solve and as teachers and families can help the children to collaborate to problem-solving.

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Rethinking Challenging Kids-Where There's a Skill There's a Way | J. Stuart Ablon | TEDxBeaconStreet

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It is roughly stated that children here in the United States will experience some type of trauma before they turn 4, 26 percent(Briggs-Gowan et al 2010) Over 600,000 children became victims of child abuse and neglect. Infants up to the age of eight became that is 63,800,000 children. 27,700,000 of children who were three years and younger, 18,600,000 of children that are between three and five, and 17,500,000 of victims were six years and eight years. All these children became victims from their own family members(HHS 2015) Early childhood Educators will have and have come into contact with many children who became victims of a many forms of abuse can have a real impact on children like negative behavior, neurobiological, and developmental repercussions that will follow them through school and adulthood(Cole et al. 2013; NCTSNSC 2008) When expecting a child who has been the victim of trauma, teaching staff should make the classroom feel safe and by making sure they have “trauma-sensitive spaces” where the child and their teacher can help in “creating a positive self-identities”(Cole et al. 2013)

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Many early childhood educators are likely to encounter young children who have experienced trauma on a daily basis.

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In the book of a Child called “It” was based on actual events of Dave Pelzer when he was a young boy. In his book Dave describes the horrific abuse his mother did to him. David’s mother was an alcoholic and who also liked to “play games” that no child should ever have to endure. David learned how to play his evil mother’s games so he could survive. As an adult Dave dedicates his life to helping others who have been victims of abuse and trauma. Dave also host his own Podcast www.davepelzer.com.

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I was in my 20’s the first time I read the book, I cried! David Pelzer suffered at the hands of his own mother. Dave was able to overcome and heal where he now as an adult can help other children. If you have not read this book it’s worth the read and make sure to check out Dave’s other three books he wrote sometime after his A Child Called “It” book came out.

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Childhood should be carefree, playing in the sun; not living a nightmare in the darkness of the soul.”
– Dave Pelzer, A Child Called “It”

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Conscious Discipline Real Teachers w/Dr. Becky Bailey

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Conscious Discipline Real Teachers w/Dr. Becky Bailey

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Episode #25 - Using Conscious Discipline with Children Impacted by Domestic Violence

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This is a 16 minute video I watched when I was working on my Associates Degree.

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How childhood trauma affects health across a lifetime

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Childhood trauma isn’t something you just get over as you grow up. Pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris explains that the repeated stress of abuse, neglect and parents struggling with mental health or substance abuse issues has real, tangible effects on the development of the brain. This unfolds across a lifetime, to the point where those who’ve experienced high levels of trauma are at triple the risk for heart disease and lung cancer. An impassioned plea for pediatric medicine to confront the prevention and treatment of trauma, head-on.

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Dave is an inspiration to others who survived a horrific abuse by the hands of his own mother.

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Dave Pelzer, a victim of childhood abuse, has dedicated his life to helping others help themselves. It 1995 he published his memoir, A Child Called It, and has inspired others to persevere and reach their fullest potential. Rarely has a book reached such levels of despair and hope. On a personal note A Child Called It was one of the major factors that inspired me to become a foster parent.
In spite of the abuse and neglect you suffered, you became a success academically, in the military and in civilian life. Many foster children are not so lucky. What were some of the factors that made a positive difference in your life? I was always hungry to better myself... I simply wanted it more. In addition, there is a lot of luck in life and I was lucky. Your books motivated many people. Were there any letters from readers that had a profound effect on you? I receive hundreds of thousands of letters from all over the world and every one is dear to my heart. Did you suffer from PTSD? Not that I am aware of, but the older I get, I'm more sensitive to the value of life. You survived almost unspeakable abuse. For example, your mother made you sit on top of a burning stove. Afterwards, she beat you mercilessly. How did this experience change your view of your mother and of yourself? It was that event that made me realize I had to take a sense of control. I had to do something for me. Knowing I could not change the exterior environment, I had to change my internal outlook of my situation, which became a God is my witness moment. Have we made any progress as a society in regard to child abuse and foster care? Have we taken any steps backward? We have taken nothing but positive strides in the campaign to protect our children. These folks [social workers] are our unsung heroes. How did military service affect your life? It gave me stability and something to strive for. It became a surrogate family. What would you like to say to the social workers you dealt with in the past? Thank you - Thank you - Thank you! What was it like when your father left home and abandoned your family? Honestly, that was probably the lowest part of my life. Do you maintain contact with any biological relatives? Both parents are deceased, and unfortunately my siblings and I are not that close. During my time as a foster parent I was always shocked at the influence of drugs and alcohol. What was their impact on your childhood? None, I always had a linear focus on bettering myself, working 40-60 hours every week, and I knew at a young age that drugs or alcohol would deter me from those goals. I understand you have a film project in pre-production. When do you think the film version of A Child Called It will appear in theaters? It is hard to say, because as of now it is a slow process. What I am fighting for and what I am adamant about is a heartfelt inspirational message of resilience. Did you have to tone things down to convert the book into a film? I don't believe it is necessary to show needless violence but rather the raw childhood determination that we all experience. What finally led to you being removed from your home? I didn't know until twenty years after the fact, when I met one of my teachers that saved me, why they finally intervened. He told me that my arms had little to no skin from a recent chemical burn. He and the other teachers believed if they didn't intervene at that moment, I would perish. Not a day goes by that I'm not grateful for their love and dedication. Do you have any advice on forgiveness? Forgiving someone who wronged you doesn't mean you have to forget. Forgiveness empowers you to be free from your past in order to move forward. What are the keys to building resilience? We've all been though something, and at the time we are facing the issue it is never easy and never fair. Yet, when push comes to shove, you have to DO something, and sometimes that one thread becomes a rope that pulls you out of your hole. Multiply that by 1,000 and apply it to every aspect of your life - that's resilience. What projects are you working on now? I am proud to say I am working on the film project. As a young foster child, my only escape was to see movies so this is quite an adventure for me, other than that, I'm still serving my community as best I can. To me life is about living a good adventure. Every Day! For in the course of a life, one never knows what events may transpire.
Check out Dave Pelzer's Amazon Author's Page and his website, www.davepelzer.com. Keep an eye out for his upcoming movie, A Child Called It.

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Dave Pelzer, a victim of childhood abuse, has dedicated his life to helping others help themselves. It 1995 he published his memoir, A Child Called It, and has inspired others to persevere and reach their fullest potential. Rarely has a book reached such levels of despair and hope.

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Take a few minutes to make a list of some strategies you use or have thought about using for your self-care!
My list
1. Gardening
2. Listening to music
3. Wine Tasting
4. Meeting up with friends
5. Getting naps in

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9 Ways to Practice Self Care During the School Day | Self Care Tips for Teachers

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Embedding Culturally Responsive Practices into Trauma-Informed Schools

July 14, 2021

SRI International
Jenna Rush, REL Appalachia

Recent national events have catalyzed and amplified conversations around systemic racism in our country. Racial trauma-the mental and emotional injury caused by encounters with racial bias and discrimination-can occur as a result of experiencing explicit and implicit acts of racism. Although school leaders and educators may have little control over much of the trauma students experience, they can take concrete steps to identify and dismantle racist practices that may exist within schools and contribute to student racial trauma. Educators can provide culturally responsive, trauma-informed supports that respect and value students' cultures.

The virtual 2021 Creating Trauma-Sensitive Schools Conference, hosted by the Attachment and Trauma Network, offered sessions designed to guide educators as they identify school policies and practices that contribute to student racial trauma and provide strategies for creating inclusive classrooms and school systems. Throughout the conference, speakers focused on the dangerously powerful effects of racial and historical trauma on students and families, arguing that trauma-informed school practices cannot be developed and implemented separately from efforts to make schools more culturally responsive.

The intersection of historical and racial trauma

Historical trauma, or multigenerational trauma experienced by specific racial, ethnic, or cultural groups over time, can affect students' sense of safety and identity, leading to maladaptive, or negative, coping strategies that are passed down through generations. , Maladaptive strategies, such as avoidance of stressful situations, may provide temporary relief, but do not address root causes of trauma. For example, American Indians have been subject to cycles of genocide and disenfranchisement for generations. Responses to this trauma include depression, low self-esteem, and anger, which often lead to self-destructive behavior, substance abuse, and domestic violence. Children can experience trauma due to these behaviors in their parents, perpetuating the cycle of historical trauma. Racial trauma, trauma that has roots in historical acts as well as current experiences, can be particularly harmful and insidious to student's development because it is directly tied to how children perceive themselves in relation to others. Similar to historical trauma, experiences of racial trauma can also manifest in symptoms such as depression, anger, physical reactions (such as headaches and trouble sleeping), low self-esteem, and withdrawal from situations.

For students of color, particularly Black students, experiences in school may contribute to racial trauma and exacerbate historical trauma. Conference presenters highlighted school practices and policies, such as zero tolerance policies and curricula that is disconnected from students' experiences, that may contribute to ongoing student racial trauma. , , , Each speaker challenged educators to help break the cycle of historical and racial trauma by identifying school-level structures that harm students of color and implementing more culturally responsive practices.

Strategies to build culturally responsive trauma-informed schools

A trauma-informed framework recognizes the prevalence of trauma, including historical and racial trauma, in students and the impact of trauma on student development. Trauma-informed schools provide schoolwide and targeted supports to promote student healing and avoid re-traumatization. Culturally responsive schools respect and value students' cultural, ethnic, and racial identities by deliberately encouraging an understanding of historical contexts and issues of power and privilege for both staff and students. Many trauma-informed approaches in schools do not explicitly examine harmful structures and practices that exist within schools, which can perpetuate the cycle of racial and historical trauma. Conference presenters called for a merging of trauma-informed practices and culturally responsive practices to help schools provide support that allows all students to see an asset-based, positive representation of themselves and their cultures. , , , Educators can use the following strategies as a starting point to embed culturally responsive practices into trauma-informed school systems for enduring and meaningful change:

Build healthy relationships between students and adults: Educators can build relationships with students by learning about their hobbies and interests through morning meetings and regular check-ins, and by making personal connections to student interests in academic projects. By providing students a safe space to share about their lives, educators, as well-positioned, caring adults, can learn more about the unique contexts and needs of each student.

Develop culturally responsive curriculum and instruction and corresponding professional development: By anchoring lessons in texts and examples that are culturally relevant to students' lived experiences, students will be able to see themselves reflected in the curriculum and draw connections to their families and communities, which sends a message that their stories are valued and worth telling. Schools and districts can provide professional development on culturally responsive practices and provide space for staff to understand and address their own unconscious biases about students.

Examine and reduce exclusionary discipline practices: Black students are more likely than White students to experience harsher disciplinary policies in schools, such as suspensions and expulsions. Suspensions and expulsions are also commonly assigned for minor infractions that do not pose a direct threat to the safety of others, such as insubordination and obscene gestures. These types of exclusionary discipline practices can be harmful to students, leaving students disconnected from instructional experiences. Exclusionary discipline typically fails to address root causes of behavior, which may stem from traumatic experiences or an adult's misunderstanding of cultural norms. Educators can shift from punishment to a behavioral response, asking students, "What is in your way?" and "How can I help?" This approach signals a recognition of systemic barriers impacting student behavior, rather than messaging that the student is the problem.

Collective ownership in addressing trauma

Culturally responsive trauma-informed strategies can promote feelings of safety and support for students, which is critical for learning. Educators all play a role in re-examining instructional practices, policies, and procedures to ensure classrooms and school systems are safe for all students and respect their culture and values. Part of this re-examination includes a recognition of school staff members' own culture, identity, and privilege, and the critically supportive role educators can play for their students. Without this re-examination, school systems may continue to perpetuate historical and racial trauma that many students of color experience. By embedding culturally responsive practices into schools, dismantling racist practices, and properly and comprehensively supporting students impacted by trauma, educators can begin to break the cycle of historical and racial trauma.

Resources for ongoing learning

Supporting Students Experiencing Trauma During the COVID-19 Pandemic This blog post from REL Appalachia highlights an infographic of common trauma symptoms in students and provides strategies for working with students who may exhibit trauma symptoms. It also describes how these strategies can be adapted for the virtual setting.

Teaching Diverse Learners Using Culturally Responsive Pedagogy: This fact sheet from REL Mid-Atlantic outlines culturally responsive practices that can be used in schools and key considerations for educators, districts, and states implementing these practices.

Trauma Support for Schools. This website from REL Appalachia's Cross-State Collaborative to Support Schools in the Opioid Crisis (CCSSOC) includes extensive resources including mindfulness videos, training modules, factsheets, blogposts and much more for diverse stakeholders committed to supporting students and educators experiencing trauma.

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Embedding Culturally Responsive Practices into Trauma-Informed Schools

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REL Appalachia is dedicated to promoting IES' goals to ensure the rigor and relevance of research studies and projects along with the widespread dissemination of research findings.

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Culturally Responsive & Sustaining Family Engagement Explained in 6 Minutes

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Culturally Responsive Teaching for ELL Students - Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.com

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Culturally responsive teaching is an important way to meet the needs of ELL students. Discover how to create a welcoming environment, provide…