Uncategorized – Page 3

Becoming a Trauma-Informed School: Where to Begin

Posted on February 12, 2021 by alisakaczorowski in Uncategorized

The term “trauma-informed” was already picking up steam in the education world prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, but man is it everywhere now! In light of the events of the past year, every school administrator, counselor and teacher is looking for ways to become more trauma-informed. This is a good thing. As educators, we should be more aware of the types of trauma, what trauma looks like, how it impacts our kids and what we can do to help them. Perhaps this is one of the more positive things to come out of the ugliness of 2020.

But I have said this before, and I will say it a thousand more times – trauma-informed practices aren’t only beneficial to kids who have actually experienced trauma. They are beneficial to ALL kids. Let’s say it louder for the people in the back. Trauma-informed practices are good for all kids. Therefore, all schools should be learning about and implementing them. I’m so tired of this myth that trauma-informed practices are only for certain types of kids or certain types of schools. Not true!

So the question is – where do you begin? The short answer is – anywhere. There are so many facets to being trauma-informed that the possibilities are endless. But I’m guessing you’re looking for a more clear-cut answer than that.

Whether your school (or classroom) is at a beginner, intermediate or advanced level of being trauma-informed, I recommend starting with a self-assessment. This way, you can hone in on specific areas of strength and weakness to help identify next steps. Think of it as the pre-assessment to guide your instruction.

Well, I went in search of the trauma-informed school assessment of my dreams, but after a lot of research, I couldn’t find one that didn’t seem too specific, too broad, too complex or too ridiculously expensive. So I created my own. In it, I have identified 6 key domains of being trauma-informed with 4 assessment questions each. It’s simple to complete, simple to score and simple to identify areas of strength and weakness for your school. Plus it includes space to begin action planning for each domain.

So if you’re looking for a place to begin your journey or want to take a step back and assess the effectiveness of practices already in place in your school, this tool is a great place to begin. Complete it with other key stakeholders to get a variety of opinions then do some brainstorming of actionable steps that can be taken.

Often, the most difficult step is the first one. This one is so worth it, though.

Get the assessment tool by clicking on the icon above or right here.

February Product Sale

Posted on February 4, 2021 by alisakaczorowski in Uncategorized

Mark your calendars for February 9-10, and don’t forget to check out the February Sale over on Teachers Pay Teachers. My entire store will be 20% off, and I have a ton of awesome trauma-informed resources available to support your classroom or school, including a new 44 page resource and reflection journal! Just click the banner above to go straight to my store! Happy shopping!

New Resource Alert!

Posted on January 27, 2021 by alisakaczorowski in Uncategorized

A brand new resource has hit my TPT store, and it’s a great one! This resource is one I developed and use as part of my in-person trainings, but I decided to make it available to all educators. Inside you’ll find 44 pages, packed with 11 simple strategies for building a trauma-informed classroom, easy-to-implement ideas for using each strategy, a page for jotting down notes and/or your thoughts and a simple self-assessment tool to help you gauge your effectiveness and grow as a trauma-informed educator.

Head over to TPT and grab this resource here! It pairs well with this infographic bundle as well!

Winter/Spring Professional Development Opportunities

Posted on January 20, 2021 by alisakaczorowski in Uncategorized

PLAN YOUR WINTER & SPRING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT DAYS NOW!

If you’re looking for a comprehensive, relevant and highly engaging training to fill your winter and spring professional development days, check out the list of my most popular trainings below. All trainings are customizable to fit the needs and budgets of individual schools. Both in-person and virtual trainings are available.

How to Build a Trauma-Informed School
10 Strategies for Building a More Trauma-Informed Classroom Right Now
Understanding and Addressing Trauma in Students in the Wake of the Covid-19 Pandemic
De-Escalation Strategies for Kids
Mindfulness Strategies for Children
Secondary Trauma is Real: Self-Care Strategies for Educators

Now is the time to prepare your teachers with the strategies necessary to have a successful remainder of the school year. Read more here or contact me today to schedule your next professional development!

The Power of Morning Greetings

Posted on January 11, 2021January 11, 2021 by alisakaczorowski in Uncategorized

As teachers and/or parents, we all know the importance of getting the day started on a positive note. It really can impact the trajectory of our entire day so it’s critical to be mindful of the first words we speak and actions we take each morning.

I once read (I don’t remember where…it’s been a long time) about the importance of giving kids a hug and telling them “I love you” within 5 minutes of them waking up, arriving home from school and getting in bed each day. This simple habit gives kids the human connection, eye contact and feeling of safety and love that they need. This has stuck with me over the years, and it’s something I strive for. It sounds simple, but sometimes, amidst the rush of the morning routine (at least at my house), it can easily get lost.

The same concept is just as simple and powerful in a classroom environment. Greeting each student by name each morning has so many benefits and takes literally less than 10 seconds per child.

How It Works

It’s simple. Stand at your classroom door. As each student arrives, say good morning or hello or how are you or, you get it. Give them a hug, a handshake or a high five. Make up a silly dance or song. Ask them about the soccer game they played in last night. Smile at them.

What should you NOT do? Sit behind your desk, text, grade papers or chat in the hallway with your colleague, while the students enter the room. Why? Think about the message this sends to them. I don’t matter. She doesn’t even see me. He doesn’t care. Are these things true? Probably not, but perception is reality.

Need more inspiration for different greetings? Check out this handy list.

Why It’s Important

This simple habit has benefits that can last the entire day. Here are just a few:

Gives each student the opportunity to hear their name spoken in a caring and respectful manner (perhaps the first time of the day for some children)
Allows you to make a personal connection with every student, everyday
Fosters a sense of belonging in each student
Aids in students feeling safe, secure and loved at school
Allows students the opportunity to practice crucial communication skills in a low-risk way
Gives you the opportunity to “scan” each student’s physical and emotional state each morning (this can come in useful later in the day)
Sends a message to each student that you care about them and are interested in them as people outside of school

I know this is such a simple strategy and even seems pretty obvious. I also know the reality of running a classroom on a daily basis and how easily we can get bogged down by the details…endless meetings, paperwork, lesson planning, etc. Sometimes we just need a friendly reminder of what’s really important in our job as educators.

Visit my Pinterest board here for more fun ideas for implementing Morning Greetings. Resources will also be coming to my TPT store soon.

Creating a Calm Down Corner for Kids

Posted on December 16, 2020 by alisakaczorowski in Uncategorized

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to sit down (virtually, of course) and talk with my friend, Casey VanPutten, a Certified EFT Practitioner and leader extraordinaire of the Mothering Freely Facebook group. We chatted about the importance of calm down corners and how to create one in your home or classroom. Plus, as a bonus at the end, we talk about tapping with kids, a topic that is close to both of our hearts! Enjoy!

**I will be adding this topic as a Parent Workshop in January! Shoot me an email for more details!

Parenting in a Pandemic

Posted on November 13, 2020 by alisakaczorowski in Social Emotional Learning, Trauma Informed Care, Uncategorized

Last week, I had the opportunity to shoot a few videos with my new friends over at Indy Direct Docs on parenting in a pandemic. While I primarily train educators on trauma-informed practices, the strategies are just as useful and effective for parents, especially now when we’re all wearing so many different hats.

I was super excited to partner with Drs. Moore-Ostby and Holliday for a variety of reasons. First of all, their innovative take on healthcare puts the focus on the relationship between a doctor and patient, similar to the idea of relationship-building between a teacher and student. Second, they are invested in providing resources of all sorts to their patients through their blog. From nutrition and cooking tips to parenting strategies, they are in tune with the content their patients want. Lastly, I feel strongly about the trauma-informed strategies I teach, as both an educator and a mom, so why not share them with others? Parenting is hard. Parenting in a pandemic is nearly impossible. We’ve all felt it over the past 8 months. I know I need some help, and I’m guessing others do too.

There’s a really disappointing myth in our society that trauma-informed practices are only beneficial to kids living in poverty or kids who have experienced trauma. NO! Not true. Trauma-informed practices are beneficial to ALL kids. They nurture and repair relationships, encourage social-emotional health and well-being and help kids learn to be more in tune with their emotions. Isn’t that what we all want for our kids? I know I do!

Despite what we sometimes think, all kids have experienced some sort of trauma in their lives. From divorce and death to absentee parents and COVID-19, traumatic experiences are everywhere. It doesn’t have to be abuse or neglect to be considered trauma. Even if a child’s exposure to trauma is minimal at best, the strategies I teach are still useful. Have a child who struggles to control their anger, sadness, worry, etc.? I have strategies for that. What about kids who have difficulty resolving social conflicts? I have strategies for that too. Perhaps you just need some new ideas for surviving this trying time as a parent. I’m right there with you, and I can help.

Let’s give our kids the tools they need to grow into compassionate, empathetic human beings, living in a society where emotions are normalized and stigmas around mental illness and trauma are non-existent. If you’re interested in learning more about how trauma-informed practices can be useful to your kids, drop me an email or Facebook message!

***The first video can be viewed here.

Podcast Review: Armchair Expert with Dr. Nadine Burke Harris

Posted on September 30, 2020 by alisakaczorowski in Uncategorized

Photo credit: http://www.armchairexpertpod.com

At one of my recent trainings, I was enjoying lunch with the school principal and some teachers. We were, of course, talking about childhood trauma, and the principal asked me if I had read “The Deepest Well” by Dr. Nadine Burke Harris. I am embarrassed to admit now that I had never even heard of her so I, of course, had to remedy that ASAP. In case you’re wondering, I blame my children and 6+ months of quarantine for my lack of time to read anything of interest to me, either personally or professionally!

Once I returned home, I started researching Dr. Burke Harris and appropriately, began to wonder if I had been living under a rock for the past few years. How had I not dove headfirst into ALL the work of this intelligent woman? It was so applicable to everything I train teachers on, as well as just plain interesting to me, as an inner-city educator for 15+ years.

As luck would have it, Dr. Burke Harris had been featured on my all-time favorite podcast, Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard. I appreciate this podcast so much because not only do you get a front row seat to hearing the stories of some incredible celebrities, entrepreneurs, scientists, etc. but also there is an underlying theme of talking about past trauma and how that has shaped the lives of the guests. Of course, I find this type of thing fascinating!

So I listened to the podcast and was so intrigued by the work Dr. Burke Harris is doing. Of course, I hopped online and requested her book from the local library too. While I am still reading it (again…kids!), I would already highly recommend it to anyone who works with children in any capacity or who may want to learn more about childhood trauma, the ACEs research study or the possible long-term physical and mental effects of trauma on a person.

Do yourself a favor and give the podcast a listen here or check out her book here.

*Warning: This podcast regularly includes foul language. While I think it was minimal in this episode, I also think it’s worth mentioning for those who may find it offensive.

Fostering Communication Between Kids in a Post-Quarantine Classroom

Posted on September 23, 2020 by alisakaczorowski in Social Emotional Learning, Trauma Informed Care, Uncategorized

About a month ago, my 6 year old had a porch playdate with her best friend. While it wasn’t the first time they were seeing each other post-quarantine, it was the first time they were spending a decent amount of time with one another and actually playing together. As her best friend’s mom and I sat on the porch chatting, I kept looking down at the girls, thinking they were unusually quiet. These are two outgoing, chatty girls so it seemed odd that they were quietly playing with the flip sequins on my daughter’s backpack and not really interacting with one another. I commented on this to the girls and jokingly told them it was ok to talk. A few minutes later, her friend’s dad came outside and was surprised to see us on the porch still. He said that it was so quiet outside, he thought we had gone for a walk.

This went on for the first hour or so of our visit, but eventually, the girls seemed to warm up and began playing and talking like their normal selves. I didn’t really give it much further thought until a week or so later when I was working with the staff of a small Catholic school in northern Indiana.

During the training, I asked the teachers to name their fears about returning to school in-person with students. One primary teacher in the back of the room raised her hand and said, “I’m worried about how the students will do communicating with one another.” She went on to add that since the kids had been quarantined for so long and not had the opportunity to interact with anyone outside of their immediate family, she was concerned about how they would interact with one another. Would they feel shy or scared? Would it cause anxiety in some? Many other teachers went on to agree with her and share their own stories of the anxiety they felt after their first trip to the grocery store or doctor’s office.

As the teachers continued talking through this with one another, I thought back to the day of the playdate. I suddenly realized that my daughter and her best friend were the perfect example of this teacher’s fear. I shared the story with the staff, and we all took the opportunity to reflect on how this might play out in the classroom environment.

Since that day, I have told this story at every school I’ve worked with, and without exception, at least one teacher raises their hand to say this is one of their fears. So, as educators and parents, what can we do to address this in our homes and classrooms?

Talk about it

Be open and honest with kids about the things we may now find difficult. Help them to understand that some things are going to be harder since we are out of practice. Tell the story of how overwhelmed you felt after your first trip to the grocery store. Talk about the things you did to help ease those feelings.

Validate their feelings

Be sure to let kids know that the way they are feeling is normal and they are not alone. Once we are able to name our recognize and name our emotions, they lose their power over us.

Brainstorm strategies

Understanding the root cause of a child’s fear is key to identifying strategies that will work for them. Are they fearful of being around people outside of their immediate family because of the virus? Do they feel overwhelmed by suddenly being thrown into a classroom with 20 other people? Are they feeling shy because they are away from their parents for the first time in 6 months? Dedicate a time to brainstorming strategies to help all students feel more comfortable communicating with their peers.

Practice

Practice, practice, practice. Given time, kids will become more comfortable doing the things that were once second nature. Provide them the time and space to make this happen. Role play a variety of situations, reinforce the strategies you brainstormed and integrate oral communication with peers into instruction as often as possible. Just as kids do at the beginning of every school year, they will soon become comfortable with this new environment they are in.

Be patient

It will come. We are all adjusting to a new normal – new feelings, new routines, new rules. It may take a bit more time and practice than normal, but before you know it, the kids will be back to communicating more than you ever wanted them to!