Trauma Informed Teaching

About this course

Trauma is a silent epidemic. It is an inevitable part of life that has grave effects on our physical and mental health, but no one seems to be talking about it. As educators, we have a unique opportunity to help students overcome these challenges. This leads to improvements in a child's academic performance, their overall well being, your stress levels as a teacher, and the harmony of your class as a whole. This Trauma-Informed Teaching course includes elements of Social-Emotional Learning (SEL), Whole Child Approach, as well as incorporating groundbreaking research in the areas of neuroscience, psychology, and human development. In the first module we will discuss what trauma is. We will dispel some myths about what trauma is and isn't and discover that trauma isn't something that is just "all in your head". Then in module two we will shift focus to see trauma within the educational context. What changes in the brain occur? What behaviors might we see in class that are indicative of a history of trauma? Module three we will get into the meat of the course. We will discuss best practices to transform your class or school to a trauma informed one. Finally, in module four, we will discuss potential set-backs. What are the common hurdles you might encounter when trying to shift to trauma informed practices and what can you do to overcome them?