When students have gone through trauma, learning is severely hindered. In this season, there is a lot of compounding existing unaddressed traumas in our students lives. Each part of a students brain is altered when they experience trauma. We are living in a world that the layers of trauma are building and the students who are in our classroom are feeling the weight. Many students are feeling overwhelmed and finding it difficult to retain any new information. As educators, it is important to understand where our students are at and how we can help them or walk alongside them in this process. There is a book called The Day Trauma Came to Class, and they mention Golden Rules of the Classroom. They work in a virtual setting as well, and they are (1) We Have All Been Through Things, (2) We All Have Value, and (3) We Are All in This Together. During this time, it is important to remind your students we are in this together, you have value and we are going to get through tough things because we have all already experienced them.
By: Joyel Vandenboogart