Behavior as a Form of Communication

Ricky Robertson

February 11, 2020Webinar 1 of 4

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Building Resilience in Students Impacted by Adverse Childhood ExperiencesA Whole-Staff Approach

By Victoria E. Romero, Ricky Robertson, and Amber Warner

@Teach4Trustwww.buildingresilienceinstudents.com

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Tier 1• Relationship-Based Teaching• Behavior as a Form of

Communication• Schoolwide SEL• Routines for Regulation• Ready-to-Learn Process• Restorative Practices • Staff Self-Care Plans• Class Meetings• Family & Community

Partnerships• Culturally-Responsive

Interventions & Supports

Learning a New Language

• Is it your fault that you and the student speak different languages?

• Will it be frustrating at times to understand one another?

• Can the student learn to communicate in a different language?

• Will it take time and effort to support the  student in learning a new language?

Understanding how ACEs impacts behavior, I can PLAN for it!

Internalization Externalization

• Anxiety• Low Self-Esteem• Perfectionism• Social Withdrawal• Depression

• Aggression• Tantrums• Disruptive• Non-Compliant• Impulsive

The externalizers grab our attention while the internalizers often suffer in silence.

Behavior is a Form of Communication

Through their behavior, many of our ACEs students are communicating a fundamental need for safety, belonging, and feeling valued within healthy, protective relationships.

The 3 R’s

Routines

Relationships

Regulation

Routines! Routines! Routines!

Routines!

• Do I have a routine for that?

• Be creative about teaching, practicing, and reinforcing routines

– Practice, model, examples/non-examples, role-play, student-led routines, connect routines to student jobs, social stories, discussions

• As a school, revisit routines & expectations after breaks

• Connected & Firm!

Relationship-Based Teaching

Protective relationships are a key factor in fostering student resilience:

Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child

Trauma-Informed Toolkit: Talk, Trust, Feel, Repair

Talk• 2x10• Class Meetings/Circles• Having conversations at eye-level• Greeting students at the door

Trust• Routines• Clear Expectations• Growth Mindset• Positive Representation of

Language, Culture, & Identities

Feel• Classroom Cool Down Spot• Brain in the Palm of the Hand• Body Breaks• SEL Instruction & Groups• Mindfulness

Repair• Community Circles• Acknowledging & learning

from mistakes• Restorative Conversations• Problem-solving with students

Classroom Routines for Regulation

Regulation Tool: A Hand Model of the Brain with Dr. Dan Siegel

Feel: Classroom Routines for Emotional-Regulation

Primary• Routines, routines, routines• Visual Schedule• Growth Mindset• Brain in the Hand• Go Noodle, Yoga Calm, etc.• Cool Down Spot / Peace Corner

(pg. 85)• Art & Journaling• Classroom environment (sensory

supports and flexibility) • Class Meetings

Secondary• Routines, routines, routines• Agenda, Learning Intentions, &

Success Criteria• Growth Mindset (Intellectual

Safety)• Mindful minutes• Use Stress Indicator to develop a

list of strategies as a class• Art & Journaling• Classroom environment (sensory

supports and flexibility)• Class Meetings

Mindfulness with JusTme

Classroom Cool Down Spot (pg. 85)

• A space in the classroom dedicated to self-regulation

• Clearly communicated routine for accessing and using the space

• A strategy and not a punishment

Ready to Learn Process:Integrating SEL into Discipline

• Provides a space and a process for emotional regulation, problem-solving, and restorative practices

• Records and analyzes data for referrals to intervention and support (Teacher & Student)

Trauma-Informed Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)

Primary

• Involves Staff & Students• School-wide Curriculum &

Common Language• Taught by the classroom

teacher • Reinforced daily• Fosters emotional

regulation

Secondary

• Involves Staff & Students• School-wide Curriculum vs.

Combination of Approaches• Common Language• Advisory/Homeroom• Relevant to the lives of the

students• Taught explicitly & infused in

the curriculum

Pg. 146-151

Practicing Off The Page

Keep in Touch!- Ricky Robertson

@Teach4Trust

ricky.robertson@corwin.com

www.buildingresilienceinstudents.com

Thank you!