In order for students to feel happy, healthy, safe and secure in schools, it is important that adults in the school take care of themselves first, so they have the energy and resources to help students. Unfortunately, approximately 40% of adults will experience a mental illness during their lifetime and working within educational environments introduces unique stressors (National Council for Behavioral Health, 2020). In fact, 75%-93% of school professionals and 84% of school leaders describe themselves as “stressed” (National Education Association, .n.d.). Additionally, teacher attrition has risen over the last two decades with 40-50% of teachers leave the profession within the first five years on the job (National Education Association, .n.d.). Such stress can lead to burnout, or a state of chronic stress that leads to physical and emotional exhaustion, cynicism, detachment, and feelings of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment (Santoro, 2018). The consequences of burnout are apparent. Educators experiencing burnout may:

• Struggle to connect with their students in positive ways

• Have lower tolerance for classroom disruptions and less sympathy for student problems

• Deliver instruction less effectively

• Withdraw (i.e., less prepared for class each day, more absences, cognitively absent, but physically present)

• Utilize punitive, reactive, and exclusionary discipline practices for student misconduct, at the expense of being responsive to student needs

• Experience decreased productivity

• Negatively influence others within the work environment or profession.

(Clunies-Ross, Little, & Kienhuis, 2008; Jacobsen, 2016; Oberle & Schonert-Reichl, 2016)

Given these possible outcomes, it is essential that school systems and staff work to proactively promote well-being, rather than solely mitigating the effects of burnout. One way to proactively promote well-being is through self-care, which is any activity that we do deliberately in order to take care of our mental, emotional, and physical health and protect our well-being and happiness (Oxford University Press, 2019). Educators benefit from self-care strategies to manage stress and foster well-being. There are many types of self-care including: physical (e.g., exercising, sleeping 8 hours a night), psychological/emotional (e.g., seeing a therapist, writing in a journal), practical (e.g., creating a budget, organizing your closet), spiritual (e.g., meditation, going to your place of worship), relationship/social (e.g., making time to talk and interact with family and friends regularly), and workplace/professional (e.g., taking a mental health day when you need it, turning your email notifications off after work hours). General self-care tips and strategies include:

• Setting professional and personal boundaries

• Engaging in meaningful activities that will rejuvenate you

• Focusing on what you can control and handing things one day at a time

• Scheduling self-care as an appointment and prioritize it

One way to proactively promote well-being is to develop your own personalized self-care plan. It is important to remember that there is no "one-size fits all self-care plan"; however, the following steps can be followed to create your own plan:

• Identify how you cope with stress now

• Ask yourself: What activities do I engage in for self-care now? Use this this self-care assessment to get a sense of the activities you are currently engaging in: Self-Care Assessment (Adapted from Saakvitne & Pearlman, 1996).

• Develop your own self-care plan. Use this template as an example: Individual Self-Care Plan

• Share and follow through on your plan

Positive student-teacher relationships extend a range of important benefits to both teachers and students (Rimm-Kaufman & Sandilos, 2011):

• Teachers: higher job satisfaction, experience of less stress, and lower likelihood of burnout

• Students: heightened academic learning, improved school engagement, enhanced self-regulatory development, reduced disciplinary referrals, and greater overall resilience

Student-teacher relationship strategies include:

• Morning check-ins

• Check-in/check-out

• Using index cards at the beginning of the year to ID students’ supports/activities

• Greeting each student at the door as they enter

• Grounding with students (through mindfulness) before class begins

• Sharing stories, with boundaries

• Attending to own non-verbal behaviors

• Using teacher caring survey

• Sharing appreciations

• Identifying strengths

• Validating concerns

• Attending to own feelings (self-regulation)

• Eating lunch with students

• Saying “hello” to students in the hallway

• Asking, “What’s happening?” before assigning blame

Supporting student-teacher relationships will enhance the efficacy and effectiveness of universal strategies within a trauma-responsive MTSS model.

Training for educators, administrators, and other school staff should be routinely offered to help school staff realize the widespread impact of trauma on their students and staff. This starts with training, which essential for all school staff, rather than just for school counselors and school psychologists (Anderson, Blitz, & Saastamoinen, 2015; Baweja et al., 2016; Dorado et al., 2016).

According to the Learning Policy Institute (2017), the following are features of effective professional development:

1. Content focused

2. Incorporates active learning

3. Supports collaboration

4. Uses models of effective practice

5. Provides coaching and expert support

6. Offers feedback and reflection

When training school staff on trauma-sensitive approaches, additional considerations for trainers include:

1. Start with the self.

2. Center culture and societal identities.

3. Be sensitive to trauma in the room.

4. Model vulnerability and self-regulation.

5. Prioritize connection and show compassion.

6. Make use of stories and humor.

7. Move from theory to practice.

8. Be clear in objectives and be engaging.

9. Highlight individual and building strengths. Pull from success stories.

10. Collaborative and problem-solve with a team. Empower team members.

Although the initial training is important, training should extend into ongoing consultation and professional development to help the knowledge embed itself within the school culture. By building on a strong foundation of social-emotional supports and crisis management practices in schools, ongoing professional development will help school staff recognize the continuum of trauma in students and its impact on academic achievement and development. School staff should share an understanding of trauma' stress on the brain and body, student learning, their behavior, and the need for a school-wide approach to develop skills for coping with such stress (The National Child Traumatic Stress Network, 2017). If school staff are resistant to such efforts, here are some ways to respond (Sporleder & Forbes, 2016):

• “When you are stressed out, does it help you to have someone at that moment telling you not to be upset and to make a better choice?”

• “Let’s look at this from a different angle. Why would we want to give students what they want, because that is exactly what a day of suspension really is.”

• “I agree that this model and paradigm shift is very hard. What do you need from me to support you with this transition?”

• “We know what the research says about trauma-impacted students; how can we go back to a traditional model, when the research is telling us that it does not work?”

• “Would you like to problem solve some strategies that might make the implementation a smoother transition for you?”

• “Have you tried talking with colleagues that have found the model helpful?”

Self-regulation represents a variety of skills that involve the ability to regulate cognition, behavior, and emotion (Lonigan, Darcey, & Phillips, 2017). Although a variety of definitions for self-regulation exist, most models of self-regulation include the constructs of executive functioning, attentional control, and effortful control. The development of self-regulation has been linked with the development of the prefrontal cortex and its function of activation and inhibition of other brain regions (Garon, Bryson, & Smith, 2008) as well as underlying hormonal systems associated with stress reactivity (Berry et al., 2012). Children with better developed self-regulation are better equipped to handle the demands of educational environments through behaviors such as attention, sustained engagement, and memory for rules (Blair & Raver, 2015).

Students who have experienced trauma be highly sensitive to sensory input as a result of increased activation of their sympathetic nervous system and elevated cortisol levels. This can additionally impact their ability to interpret and communicate emotions and regulate stress. As a result, students who have experienced trauma may struggle with self-regulation and may benefit from practices and interventions that teach and foster self-regulation skills. Such practices can be incorporated into the classroom to benefit all students, at a universal level. The following list includes routines that can be implemented in classrooms to teach and support students' self-regulation skills.

1. Peace corner: A peace corner is a private, designated, and calming space in the classroom where students can take a break and re-establish their readiness to learn. Peace corners allow students to be mindful about what's happening around them and practice regulating their emotions. Importantly, peace corners normalize the practice of taking a break to check in with your thoughts and feelings and contribute to a feeling that the classroom is safe and secure. Before encouraging students to use the space, it is essential that expectations for the peace corner are clear. Click this link for ideas and considerations on how to implement a peace corner in your classroom: The Classroom Calming Corner.

2. Brain breaks: A brain break, a break from whatever students are focusing on, can help reduce stress, anxiety and frustration and improve attention, self-regulation and productivity (MacNeill, 2017). Brain breaks should be planned learning activities that activate different regions of the brain. By switching the type of mental activity, brain breaks shift brain communication to networks with fresh supplies of neurotransmitters, allowing the ones used from the previous task to restore themselves. For more information on the neuroscience of brain breaks, click here: Using Brain Breaks to Restore Students' Focus. Depending on students' ages and focus, brain break frequency will vary. For elementary students, brain breaks should occur for every 10-15 minutes of concentrated study; for middle and high school students, brain breaks should occur for every 20-30 minutes of concentrated study. Examples of brain breaks include: physical activities, guided meditation, and drawing. Click here for more brain break activity ideas: 101 Brain Breaks & Brain Based Educational Activities.

3. Zones of Regulation: The Zones of Regulation framework was created to help students gain skills in consciously regulating their actions using a cognitive behavioral approach to increase self-awareness, self-regulation, and problem solving abilities. This includes regulating one's sensory needs, emotions, and impulse to meet the demands of the environment, reach one's goals, and behave in a socially appropriate way. Although this curriculum is typically used with small groups of students (tier 2), The Zones framework can be used at a universal, tier 1 level. More specifically, Zones includes shared language (e.g., red zone, yellow zone, green zone, and blue zone) that all members within the school can use to foster a safe space that welcomes space to practice self-regulation and awareness.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests that all school reopening plans address adherence to behaviors that prevent the spread of COVID-19. When used consistently and correctly, masks are important to help slow the spread of COVID-19 (CDC, 2020). The use of masks in educational settings will likely present some challenges, especially for younger students and/or students with special healthcare or educational needs.

It is essential that wearing a mask at school becomes the new normal. Educators must teach students the importance of wearing masks and demonstrate how to appropriately wear a mask. One way to ensure that masks are the new normal is to present the clear and consistent expectation for all students and staff that masks will be required in school. At the Tier 1 level, this expectation can be taught and reinforced for all students. For example, teachers can remind students to wear their masks at the beginning of every new class period. Additionally, schools can display age appropriate posters and materials with visual cues that show the proper way to wear a face covering in classrooms and hallways. Importantly, school staff must model appropriate mask use.

Although the expectation of wearing a mask may be clear, stigma, discrimination, or bullying may arise due to wearing a mask. Schools must have a plan to prevent and address these behaviors. However, when wearing a mask is a normal behavior that is simply part of the school's culture, students are less likely to bully others for wearing a mask. Additionally, not all families will agree with school policies about masks. Schools should have a plan in place to address these challenges and should refer parents, caregivers, and guardians to CDC's guidelines on cloth face coverings.

Other strategies to support students’ wearing masks in schools include (CDC, 2020):

• Include cloth face coverings on school supply lists and provide cloth face coverings as needed to students, teachers, staff, or visitors who do not have them available.

• Include clear face coverings on school supply lists for teachers and staff who regularly interact with students who are deaf or hard of hearing, students learning to read, students with disabilities, and those who rely on lip reading as a part of learning, such as students who are English Language Learners.

• Ensure that students and staff are aware of the correct use of cloth face coverings, including wearing cloth face coverings over the nose and mouth and securely around the face.

• Encourage parents, caregivers, and guardians to practice wearing cloth face coverings with students at home before the first day of school. If parents, caregivers, and guardians model appropriate use of face coverings and help students get used to wearing them, students may be more comfortable using them.

• Introduce students with sensory concerns/tactile sensitivities to face coverings with a variety of materials, prints, and textures, and allow them to choose which face covering is most comfortable.

• Use behavioral techniques such as positive reinforcement to increase the likelihood that students will comply with face covering guidance and other prevention practices.

• Display age appropriate posters and materials with visual cues that show the proper way to wear a face covering in classrooms and hallways. Consider incorporating images of popular influencers promoting or modeling use of cloth face coverings.

• Include reminders about face coverings in daily announcements, school newspapers, etc. Consider including how to properly use, take off, and wash cloth face coverings in back-to-school communications educational materials.

Many people are experiencing grief during the COVID-19 pandemic (CDC, 2020). Grief is a normal response to loss during or after a disaster or other traumatic event. Grief can happen in response to loss of life, as well as to drastic changes to daily routines and ways of life that usually bring us comfort and a feeling of stability. Common grief reactions include (CDC, 2020):

• Shock, disbelief, or denial

• Anxiety

• Distress

• Anger

• Periods of sadness

• Loss of sleep and loss of appetite

Children may show grief differently than adults and often have a hard time understanding and coping with the loss of a loved one (The National Child Traumatic Stress Network [NCTSN, n.d.). Sometimes children appear sad and talk about missing the person or act out. Other times, they play, interact with friends, and do their usual activities. Children may also grieve over loss of routines such as going to school and playing with friends. As the school year begins and students return to school, teachers and staff play an important role in helping students process their grief.

To support a student who may be experiencing grief or a loss, educators can (CDC, 2020; NJASP, 2020):

• Give children permission to grieve by allowing time for children to talk or to express thoughts or feelings in creative ways.

• Create opportunities for students to express themselves in nonverbal ways, as well as opportunities to process emotions verbally through sharing stories.

• Provide age and developmentally appropriate answers.

• Encourage morning check-ins for all students.

• Practice calming and coping strategies at a classroom wide level, such as incorporating brain breaks and a peace corner into your classroom routine.

• Practice self-care and model coping strategies for your students.

• Maintain routines as much as possible.

For many, the effects of COVID-19 extend beyond medical concerns. Concerns over COVID-19 can make children and families anxious and may also lead to placing blame on others who are perceived to be associated with the outbreak. Though the initial spread of COVID-19 occurred in China, it is important to inform students in a developmentally appropriate manner that the disease is linked to a geographic location and not to a race or nationality. People who identify as Asian American or Pacific Islander (AAPI) are currently being subjected to racism related to the COVID-19 virus (National Association of School Psychologists [NASP], 2020).

To address these issues in schools, teachers, administrators, and other school staff must play a leading role in combating racism surrounding COVID-19, by replacing misinformation with facts and protecting their most vulnerable students by creating a safe and supportive space. In the face of so much misinformation and unconscious biases, educators can play a powerful role in disrupting and preventing the racism associated with COVID-19. Children look to adults for guidance on how to respond to stressful events. Teachers, administrators, and other school staff can help students understand the importance of treating all people with dignity and not associating entire groups of people with events that occur in different parts of the country or world (NASP, 2020). COVID-19 does not recognize race, nationality, or ethnicity. Individuals of Chinese ancestry, or of any other Asian nationality, are not more vulnerable to this illness. Accurate information is essential to minimize anxiety about COVID-19 and ensuring that Asian communities are not unfairly targeted or stigmatized. To help in this effort, teachers must model acceptance and compassion in their words and behavior.

Tips for school staff include (NASP, 2020):

• Model acceptance and compassion

• Provide useful and factual information

• Quickly correct any negative language that may cause stigma by sharing accurate information about how the virus spreads

• Stop any type of harassment or bullying immediately

• Discuss how it would feel to be blamed unfairly by association

• Explore student's fears

• Emphasize positive, familiar images of diverse groups

• Identify heroes of varying backgrounds involved in response to traumatic events

• Read books with your students that address prejudice, tolerance, and hate

• Discuss historical instance of American intolerance (e.g., internment of Japanese Americans after Pearl Harbor) in your classroom

When you hear, read, or watch news about Covid-19, you may feel anxious and show signs of stress, even if you are at low or no risk of getting sick. These signs of stress are completely normal (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [SAMSA], 2014). In the wake of Covid-19, monitor your own physical and mental health. Know the signs of stress in yourself and your loved ones. You can manage and alleviate your stress by taking time to take care of yourself. Ways to relieve stress include (SAMSA, 2014):

1. Keep things in perspective. Set limits on how much time you spend reading or watching the news. Take time away from the news to focus on things in your life that are going well and that you can control.

2. Get the facts. Find people and resources that you can depend on for accurate information, like the Center for Disease Control and the World Health Organization.

3. Pay attention to your body and emotions. Know that feeling stressed, anxious, depressed, guilty, or angry is common. Connect with others who might be experiencing similar emotions.

Administrators, faculty and staff at primarily white or otherwise privileged institutions must question how racism has affected their school, students and community through a systems-level perspective. Through a systems-level approach, the following questions and points should be considered to best address issues of racial injustice:

• If you don’t have any Black students or faculty, why is that?

• If your school primarily serves folks with high socioeconomic status, what policies and events led to that?

• Examine your school data. Are racial minority students overrepresented in special education? Are minority students more likely to receive office disciplinary referrals (ODRs)? Are they underrepresented in gifted and talented programs?

• Schools need to consider how they can help create more integration in their community by having open and honest discussions with their parents and caregivers about the benefits of diverse schools.

• Schools must question policies (e.g., requirements for truancy, and codes for dress and hair) that have made it historically difficult for more diverse populations to join their school community.

• Examine your district's hiring policies.

• Teachers must work to re-evaluate their curriculum to incorporate diverse perspectives. Although it is easy to simply follow along to the teaching standards and core curricula have been developed, it’s important to remember that our education system has been founded on historically racist practices, including silencing those from disenfranchised communities.

Although many people are uncomfortable discussing racial differences, experts say that when it comes to talking to children, diversity and discrimination are subjects that shouldn’t be ignored (American Psychological Association [APA], 2016). All children can benefit from talking openly about diversity and bias (National Association of School Psychologists, 2017). But for kids in groups more likely to be a target of discrimination, such conversations can be even more critical. Educators play a crucial role in helping students talk openly about the historical roots and contemporary manifestations of social inequality and discrimination. Learning how to communicate about such topics as white privilege, power, police violence, economic inequality and mass incarceration requires practice, and facilitating critical conversations with students demands courage and skill.

However, before engaging in conversations with students, it is critical that educators first self-reflect on their own identities, question their biases and assumptions, and think critically. This guide developed by Teaching Tolerance provides educators with the tools to have critical conversations with themselves and offers classroom-ready strategies that teachers can use to reflect, plan discussions, and to facilitate conversations with students.

Psychological First Aid (PFA) is an evidence-informed intervention model to assist students, families, school personnel, and school partners in the immediate aftermath of an emergency (The National Child Traumatic Stress Network [NCTSN, n.d.). PFA is designed to reduce the initial distress caused by traumatic events and to foster short and long term adaptive functioning and coping. Rather than assuming that all survivors will develop severe mental health problems or long-term difficulties in recovery, PFA it is based on an understanding that disaster survivors and others affected by such events will experience a broad range of early reactions.

In the aftermath of George Floyd's murder and in midst the Black Lives Matter movement, racial injustices, and COVID-19, Psychological First Aid (PFA) training should be offered to school staff to help children, adolescents, adults, and families in the immediate aftermath of a disaster, terrorism, or other traumatic incidents. Any staff member, regardless of whether they have had mental health training, can deliver aspects of PFA-S and can contribute to the school recovery by functioning within the PFA framework. PFA should be provided in school settings for a variety of reasons, including (NCTSN, 2009):

1. Schools are typically the first service agencies to resume operations after a disaster/emergency and can become a primary source of community support during and after the incident.

2. Preparing for emergencies is critical for all school staff.

3. Emergencies affect students; academic and social achievement.

4. Trauma-related distress can have long-term impact if untreated.

5. Brief interventions can produce positive results that last.

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network developed a guide to train all school staff members in Psychological First Aid for Schools (PFA-S), which can be found here: PFA-S Field Operations Guide. Additionally, several organizations offer training in PFA by webinar. Click here for more information on training.

Podcasts and Recordings for Adults:

• Talking Race With Young Children (NPR)

• Author Jason Reynolds helps young people understand what led to the protests we’ve seen what children can do to build a less racist society.

• Talking with Youth About Heated Topics w/ Rosetta Lee (AISNE, Rosetta Lee)

• Supporting Kids Of Color in The Wake of Racialized Violence: Part One (Embrace Race)

• Code Switch (NPR)

• Pod Save The People (Crooked Media)

• 1619 (NY times)

• "Seeing White" Series (Scene on Radio)

• Eula Bliss: Let’s Talk About Whiteness (On Being with Krista Tippett)

• “What is Systemic Racism?” 8-Part Video Series (Race Forward)

• The Danger of a Single Story (TED Talk)

• TED Talks to Help You Understand Racism in America (TED)

To Support Conversations about Race with White and Non-Black Children of Color:

• Your 5-yr-old is Already Racially Biased. Here’s what you can do about it. (EmbraceRace)

• A White Families’ Guide for Talking About Racism (Education with an Apron)

• A POC Families’ Guide for Talking about Racism (Education with an Apron)

• Talking with Children about Racism, Police Brutality, and Protests (Aha! Parenting)

• How to Talk to Your Kids About Race, Racism, and Police Violence (WBUR)

• George Floyd. Amaud Arbery. Breonna Taylor. What do we tell our children? (USA Today)

• Talking to Children After Racial Incidents (Penn Graduate School of Education)

• These Books Can Help you Explain Racism and Protest to Your Kids (NY Times)

To Support Conversations about Race with Black Children:

• Becoming a Parent in the Age of Black Lives Matter (Atlantic)

• A Black Families’ Guide for Talking About Racism (Education with an Apron)

• Having ‘The Talk’: Expert Guidance on Preparing Kids for Police Interactions (NPR)

• Here’s How W. Kamau Bell Talks About Race with His Kids (Buzzfeed)

• How to Talk to Your Kids About Race, Racism, and Police Violence (WBUR)

• George Floyd. Amaud Arbery. Breonna Taylor. What do we tell our children? (USA Today)

• Talking with Children about Racism, Police Brutality, and Protests (Aha! Parenting)

• These Books Can Help you Explain Racism and Protest to Your Kids (NY Times)

Book for Younger Children:

Children’s books that celebrate Black identity:

• Black Books Matter: Children’s Books Celebrating Black Boys (Conscious Kid)

• Black Girl Magic: 33 Picture Books Featuring Black Female Protagonists (Brightly)

Children’s books about race and resistance:

• 31 Children's books to support conversations on race, racism and resistance (Embrace Race)

• Children's Books About Peaceful Protests (Biracial Bookworms)

Children’s books about white privilege:

• Children's Books about White Privilege (Pragmatic Mom)

Diverse Picture Booklists:

• Coretta Scott King Book Award Winners (Common Sense Media)

• Diverse BookFinder | Identify & Explore Multicultural Picture Books

Books for Older Children:

• This Book is Anti-Racist is by educator Tiffany Jewell, and includes 20 lessons on “how to wake up, take action, and do the work.”

• Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You, by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi, is the young adult version of Ibram X. Kendi’s seminal work, Stamped from the Beginning. These texts helps young people understand the history of racism in the United States, and how they can become young anti-racist leaders.

• Woke: A Young Poet’s Call to Justice is a collection of poems to inspire young people to stay woke and become a new generation of activists.

• Say Her Name (Poems to Empower) is a collection of poems that celebrates the creativity, resilience, and courage of Black women and girls.

• We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices is a collection by authors of color sharing wisdom, stories, and reminders intended to inspire, motivate, offer hope, and encourage readers to make a difference.

• Resist, by Veronica Chambers, is a series of 35 profiles of ordinary people who stood up against tyranny and injustice.

Books for Adults:

• The Fire Next Time James Baldwin

• How To Be An Antiracist Dr. Ibram X. Kendi

• Citizen Claudia Rankine

• Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? Dr. Beverly Tatum

• The Warmth of Other Suns Isabel Wilkerson

• How Does it Feel to Be a Problem? Moustafa Bayoumi

• When They Call you a Terrorist Patrisse Khan-Cullors & Asha Bandele

• I’m Still Here Austin Channing Brown

• Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race Reni Eddo-Lodge

• Raising White Kids Jennifer Harvey

• Racism Without Racists Eduardo Bonilla-Silva

• Black Feminist Thought Patricia Hill Collins

• Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower Dr. Brittney Cooper

• Heavy: An American Memoir Kiese Laymon

• Just Mercy Bryan Stevenson

• Me and White Supremacy Layla F. Saad

• Raising Our Hands Jenna Arnold

• Redefining Realness Janet Mock

• Sister Outsider Audre Lorde

• So You Want to Talk About Race Ijeoma Oluo

• The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
  Michelle Alexander

• White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism Robin DiAngelo