Our children deserve the best. Whether it be at home, socially, extracurricular, or academic, they should have every opportunity to succeed. When children suffer from trauma, it is even more imperative for them to be in a supportive environment.

Developing a trauma-informed educational approach goes hand-in-hand with compassion in the classroom. For each student to feel seen, heard, safe, and represented, creating compassionate classrooms is a great place to start.

Here’s a sneak peek for teachers on how to implement trauma-informed practices to foster a compassionate classroom.

Reframe Your Thoughts

Creating a compassionate classroom requires teachers to shift their perspective on student behavior. Moving from a mindset of “Why is this student behaving this way?” to “What happened to this student?” is a fundamental change that helps educators address the underlying causes of behavior rather than just the symptoms. This trauma-informed approach promotes empathy, understanding, and effective support for all students, especially those who have experienced trauma.

Let’s take a look at this example that compares the traditional approach to the trauma-informed approach.

Traditional Response:

Behavior: A student frequently interrupts the class and refuses to follow instructions.
Teacher’s Thought: “Why is this student always disrupting the class? They must be trying to cause trouble.”
Action: The student is sent to the principal’s office or given detention.

But, using a Trauma-Informed Response, the same scenario may play out like this:

Behavior: A student frequently interrupts the class and refuses to follow instructions.
Teacher’s Thought: “What might have happened to this student to make them act this way? Are they seeking attention or trying to communicate a need?”

Action: The teacher takes a calm approach, speaking privately with the student to understand their perspective. They might discover that the student is dealing with anxiety due to a chaotic home environment. The teacher then works with the student to create a plan that includes regular check-ins, a designated calm-down space, and positive reinforcement for participation and following instructions.

Positive Language to Create Safety

Positive language is a powerful tool in creating a safe and supportive classroom environment. It helps in building trust, encouraging positive behaviors, and fostering a sense of belonging among students.

When students feel safe and secure, they feel protected. When students feel protected, they are easier to reach and know they can be their true selves. This greatly helps their self-esteem and can improve their confidence.

Here’s an example of how positive language can be used to create safety.

Scenario: Damian, a student, has been consistently unable to complete assignments on time. Instead of approaching the situation with frustration or punitive measures, the teacher uses positive language and a trauma-informed approach to understand and support Damian.

Traditional Approach:

Teacher’s Reaction: “Why can’t you just finish your work on time? You’re always behind.”

Assumption: Damian is lazy or not trying hard enough.

Response: The teacher assigns detention or lowers Damian’s grade.

Trauma-Informed Approach:

Teacher’s Thought: “What might be causing Damian to struggle with completing assignments? How can I support him?”

Assumption: Damian might be facing challenges outside of school that affect his ability to complete work.

Response: The teacher uses positive language to address the situation.

Teach emotional regulation

Emotional regulation is a critical skill for students, especially those who have experienced trauma. By providing effective emotional regulation support, educators can help students manage their emotions, improve their focus, and create a more conducive learning environment. Here are some strategies for supporting emotional regulation in compassionate classrooms:

Calm Down Spaces: Create a designated space in the classroom where students can go to calm down when they feel overwhelmed. This area should be quiet, comfortable, and stocked with calming tools such as stress balls, coloring books, and soft pillows. Use visual cues and signals to help students recognize when they might need to take a break. This could include a color-coded chart or hand signals that discreetly indicate it's time to use the calm down space.

Mindful Moments: Integrate short "mindful moments" throughout the school day. For example, start the day with a brief mindfulness exercise, use it as a transition between activities, or as a way to refocus after recess or lunch. Provide students with mindfulness tools such as breathing cards, stress-relief worksheets, and relaxation apps. These tools can be used both in the classroom and at home to reinforce emotional regulation skills.

Emotion Check-Ins: Implement regular emotion check-ins where students can express how they are feeling. This can be done through journals, emotion wheels, or simple thumbs-up/thumbs-down signals.

By displaying and teaching conflict resolution strategies, you teach students how to stay calm, proactive, and how to help themselves cope with life and their emotions. Emotional regulation improves overall well-being and how they handle stressful situations now and as adults.

Positive Discipline

By focusing on positive reinforcement and mutual respect, positive discipline helps reduce misbehavior and promotes a more harmonious classroom environment. Students will in turn become more motivated to learn and participate when they feel valued and respected. This approach helps to teach the life skills that they can reflect on even in adulthood.

Implementing positive behavior interventions and supports (PBIS) to promote a positive school climate. Here are two ways to enforce positive discipline:

Behavior Reflection Sheets: When students experience emotional outbursts or conflicts, use behavior reflection sheets to help them process what happened, how they felt, and what they can do differently next time. This encourages self-reflection and accountability.
Emotion Regulation Plans: Work with students to create personalized emotion regulation plans. These plans can outline strategies they can use when they feel certain emotions and identify trusted adults they can turn to for support.

Build strong relationships

You may be the only healthy adult in students’ lives. That means you are at the helm of setting up a positive and supportive classroom. When students feel connected to the teacher and other students, they prosper.

Building this rapport with students helps foster nurturing environments and relationships. They will feel celebrated and achieve success more effectively than students who do not feel included or connected.

Be flexible and adapt

Being flexible and adapting to each student’s needs is vital to the success of the classroom. Trauma and dismantle emotional regulation; therefore, it is crucial to be flexible in your classroom as each student may require something different.

These are some of the top adaptation tips of the pros for students:

Flexible assignments
Schedule breaks for rest and rejuvenation
Utilize alternative instructions for varying needs of students

Professional Development: Invest in a Wellness Program or Become a Trauma-Certified Educator

At The Mind Center LLC, we offer a fun filled Trauma-Informed Wellness Program to schools and a Trauma-Informed Certification course for teachers that focuses on building trauma-informed classroom management, Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), lesson plans, and self-care strategies for staff. Contact Us today to learn more about this.

Bottom Line

You and your school can become a leader in trauma-informed education. If you are looking to help staff, prevent burnout, and get strategies on how to create a compassionate environment, The Mind Center can help with that. By developing a safe space built on trust and flexibility, each student can have the chance to thrive, no matter where they come from or what they have experienced.

That’s why we offer a fun filled Trauma-Informed Wellness Program to schools and a Trauma-Informed Certification course for teachers that covers key aspects of trauma-informed education, preventing staff burnout, classroom management skills, IEP development, lesson planning, and self-care strategies.

Building strong relationships and collaborating with other professionals can create a robust network that fosters a nurturing environment for all students to succeed in school and life.

Schedule a free consult today to find out how we can assist your staff. The Mind Center, LLC is a thought leadership mental health brand dedicated to helping parents, their kids, and the schools they attend. At The Mind Center LLC, we specialize in psycho-educational evaluations and offer a range of services to support children. Contact us today.

Creating Compassionate Classrooms: A Sneak Peek into Trauma-Informed Education