April 17, 2018, Chicago Tribune: U46 schools testing pilot program to help kids work through traumas http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/elgin-courier-news/news/ct-ecn-u46-trauma-informed-care-st-0418-story.html … At Abbott, educators have been conducting these types of exercises as part of a School District U46 pilot program on trauma-informed care. Five schools currently participate in the hope that the exercises and other initiatives can help students achieve success in the face of stressful situations — some of them significant — that they have or will in the future. The assumption is all students go through some type of trauma in their childhood years inside and outside of school. Some of them — parental neglect, sexual assault, physical or emotional abuse — can have a devastating effect on a child’s ability to move forward, officials said. … The Abbott resiliency team also trained teachers to use MIND UP curriculum, which focuses on learning about the brain and how it is impacted by trauma and stress. Teachers are also taught ways to identify students who may be dealing with a traumatic life situation that is causing them stress, Abbott said. … Some students have been asked to take an Adverse Childhood Experiences questionnaire, through which officials can determine if the child has experienced any of 10 stressors. The questionnaire asks about physical, verbal or sexual abuse, physical or emotional neglect, their relationship with parents or guardians, and other issues. Abbott said she would like all students to take the questionnaire or something similar so officials can have a large-picture view of the problems students may be experiencing. …
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