The trauma-sensitive schools movement is the result of a confluence of forces that are changing how educators view students' academic and social problems, including the failure of zero-tolerance policies to resolve issues of school safety, bullying, and academic failure, as well as a new understanding of adolescents' disruptive behaviour. In this follow-up to her bestseller, Trauma-Sensitive Schools, Susan Craig provides secondary school teachers and administrators with practical ideas for how to improve students' achievement by implementing a trauma-sensitive approach to instruction. Along with clear explanations of the role that childhood adversity and trauma play in determining academic success, readers will find dozens of concrete strategies to help them: View poor academic and social progress through a trauma-sensitive lens. Create a school climate that fosters safety and resiliency in vulnerable teenagers. Establish relationships with students that support their efforts to self-regulate. Design instruction that reflects the social nature of the brain. Work with the brain's neuroplasticity to increase adolescents' executive functioning. Reduce teacher attrition in high-risk schools by decreasing secondary traumatic stress. Influence educational reforms by aligning them with current research on childhood trauma and its effects on learning. Provides an overview of the effects of three types of trauma on adolescent development: early childhood adversity, community violence, and systemic inequities. The book links the effects of trauma on students' cognitive development to educational reform efforts, integrates research on adolescents' neurodevelopment and current educational best practices, and builds the capacity of education professionals to successfully manage the behaviour of adolescents with symptoms of complex developmental trauma.

Each year hundreds of thousands of children in the United States experience trauma - such as abuse, neglect, or community violence - that creates tough obstacles to academic achievement and social success. Now there's a practical, strategy-filled book that shows educators how to reach and teach students exposed to trauma. Through clear and readable explanations of current research and enlightening vignettes, educators will understand how violence and other forms of trauma affect the key elements of a child's school and social success, including behavior, attention, memory, and language.Then they'll find dozens of simple, creative ideas - easy to use in any classroom, on any budget - that show them how to: adapt instruction to address the learning characteristics of children exposed to trauma; help students develop the most important skills they need to succeed in school; use positive behavior supports so children can stay calm and focused on learning; build meaningful, appropriate, and supportive teacher-student relationships; encourage positive peer relationships through cooperative games, group projects, and buddy systems; provide predictable routines that instill a sense of safety and control; avoid burnout and reduce the effects of 'compassion fatigue'; and, integrate a trauma-sensitive perspective across an entire school. Throughout this book, realistic sample scenarios demonstrate how teachers can make the strategies work in their classroom, and challenging What Would You Do? quizzes sharpen educators' instincts so they can respond skillfully in difficult situations.

Growing evidence supports the important relationship between trauma and academic failure. Along with the failure of "zero tolerance" policies to resolve issues of school safety and a new understanding of children's disruptive behaviour, educators are changing the way they view children's academic and social problems. In response, the trauma-sensitive schools movement presents a new vision for promoting children's success. This book introduces this promising approach and provides K-5 education professionals with clear explanations of current research and dozens of practical, creative ideas.