Research suggests that children with complex trauma histories may have a severely compromised ability to benefit from education. Trauma may be experienced directly or witnessed and may be physical, such as physical assault or sexual abuse, or emotional, such as verbal abuse. Traumatized children may struggle with self-regulation (i.e., knowing how to calm down) and may lack impulse control or the ability to think through consequences before acting. As a result, complexly-traumatized children may behave in ways that appear unpredictable, oppositional, volatile, and extreme. In a learning environment, these behaviors not only affect a child’s ability to focus on learning opportunities but adversely affect - and often disrupt - the learning opportunities of other children in the classroom. By virtue of serving children of families who live at or below federal poverty guidelines, Head Start has a higher proportion of children with poverty-related physical, social, emotional, and intellectual needs. Recent studies on the effects of poverty, including the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) study, reinforce that potentially traumatic events can have negative, lasting effects on health and well-being. Potentially traumatic experiences are common among U.S. children, with more than one in four having been exposed to economic hardship in the first five years of life. These findings have important implications for children’s health and well-being, including the need for increased attention to the early detection and treatment of children affected by trauma, as well as to the conditions in families and communities that contribute to adverse development. Everyone can recover from traumatic stress. Even in developmentally-appropriate settings for this age group, factors in group settings upset complexly traumatized children because the setting requires a high degree of self-regulation that they cannot achieve or sustain. It is often the first indication that a child’s complex trauma behaviors can become a barrier to their ability to benefit from the type of group learning experience they will be engaged in for the next 12-14 years of their life.
“This project has had a significant impact on child success and staff job satisfaction. Our jobs touch the lives of children and families who have experienced trauma. And many of us have found career callings through this unique opportunity.”
-
- NeighborImpact was created in 1985 to represent and serve residents of Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson counties experiencing economic disadvantage. Our programs benefit one in four residents of Central Oregon; we are the largest nonprofit in our region on a client-served basis. Our mission is “Supporting People, Strengthening Communities.” NeighborImpact is the region’s leading provider of housing and homeless services, emergency food programs, energy assistance, childcare resources, early childhood education services, information and referral, and self-help programs for the working poor. Through the efforts of 187 staff in 16 locations in our service area, NeighborImpact provided a diverse range of services to 55,000 individuals in 2015.
- This project was implemented by Head Start NeighborImpact.
-
The project attempted to:-
Create and implement a wrap-around support system for children whose complex trauma interferes with their ability to benefit from learning opportunities.
-
Identify those children whose trauma experiences impede their ability to learn and participate in an educational setting
-
Provide wrap-around services to increase resiliency and the ability to benefit from education
-
Link parents to community resources and supports to empower them to advocate for, and support their children
-
Train teaching teams and Inclusion Assistants to implement strategies that support children with complex trauma to better prepare this group of children for school readiness
-
52 children were served in the program.
Language and literacy, 87% of the program reached kindergarten readiness.
Physical development, 91% reached kindergarten readiness.
Social Emotional Development, 90% reached kindergarten ready in 1C, Takes care of own needs appropriately.
-
- The two full time, and three half-time, Inclusion Assistants hired by grant provided valuable classroom support for those children who showed the most trauma related behavior in the classroom setting. By design, the Inclusion Assistant positions to fluidly shift to classrooms with the most need and staff was adjusted throughout the year to support children with the highest need. This additional classroom support resulted 13% increase in the number of children identified as Tier 2/3. This is a significant increase in identification of children. We believe that the additional classroom support provided by the Inclusion Assistants resulted in more children fully participating in classroom learning experiences. The position was so well received by children, staff, and families that it has been approved to become permanent positions during the next school year The Family & Inclusion Services Manager will be supervising the Inclusion Assistant positions for the 2018/19 school year.
- The modeling of the Inclusion Assistants in child specific inclusion strategies to teaching staff has also had a positive effect. By the end of the school year assistants noted that teaching staff was being more proactive in engaging children through a variety of modalities. It was also noted that during end of year parent conferences teaching staff often took the lead in difficult discussions about behavior that impacted the learning environment. This is ideal because it is the teaching team that has daily contact with families and most easily establishes the kind of trusting relationship required to meaningfully engage parents/guardians in this difficult discussion.
An increase in identification of kids with trauma in school occurred.
During end of year parent conferences teaching staff often took the lead in difficult discussions about behavior that impacted the learning environment. This is ideal because it is the teaching team that has daily contact with families and most easily establishes the kind of trusting relationship required to meaningfully engage parents/guardians in these difficult discussions.