June 19, 2018,(OR) Daily Astorian: Better behavior, happier kids http://www.dailyastorian.com/SS/opinion/20180619/better-behavior-happier-kids Schools are tasked with teaching reading, writing and arithmetic, but it’s hard for kids to get the lessons when they are upset and misbehaving. That’s why Seaside School District launched an innovative approach to behavioral health in the 2017-18 school year. Mission Control is a calming room where kids can focus on self-regulating their emotions and behavior….. Prior to this year, “There was a real lack of social-emotional education that kids need to know in order to function,” says Rachel Whisler, a behavior support specialist at Seaside Heights Elementary School…. In addition to the Mission Control room, regular classrooms have new flexible seating, including yoga balls, standing tables and cushions, so students can learn where they were most comfortable…. She says kids learn that all feelings are OK. What matters is what they do with them and how they act. They can identify their feelings and not let emotions run the show…. For two years Seaside educators have studied trauma-informed practices that take into account adverse childhood experiences. It involves treating people with compassion and understanding around traumas they may have experienced. ... All staff members and students are trained and familiarized with Mission Control. It is open to everyone and is not used for punishment or reward. It is a place where students can self-regulate their behavior. … Most classrooms have a peace corner that students can access to self-regulate, says Seaside Heights Principal John McAndrews. It is part of the classroom but is a place where the student can use sensory items or cushions to feel more comfortable….
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Childhood Lost
Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).
Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.
Anne Dachel, Media editor, Age of Autism
http://www.ageofautism.com/media/
(John Dachel, Tech. assist.)
What will happen in another 4 years? How can we go on like this? This is a national (and international) problem of monumental proportions. We have an entire new class of children who cannot be accommodated by the system: many are manifestly neurologically impaired. Meanwhile, the government and the medical profession sleep on regardless.
John Stone,
UK media editor, Age of Autism
The generation of American children born after 1990 are arguably the sickest generation in the history of our country.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
It seemed to me that with rising autism prevalence, you’d also see rising autism costs to society, and it turns out, the costs are catastrophic.
They calculated that in 2015 autism cost the United States $268 billion and they projected that if autism continues at its current rate, we’re looking at one trillion dollars a year in autism costs by 2025, so within five years.
Toby Rogers, PhD, Political economist
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