Not all children cope equally well with the stresses and traumas life throws their way, and every educator recognizes that "deer in the headlights" look some children get when current events and past traumas combine to trigger a fight-or-flight stress response. No matter how safe the classroom may be in reality, trauma deactivates cognitive skills, and learning cannot resume until the child’s equilibrium has been restored.

This important new resource helps educators understand how trauma and stress interfere with cognitive skills, and how classroom and school activities can be used to restore feelings of safety, empowerment, and well-being. Topics include:

• Neurobiology of the developing child and how cognitive lock-out from the neocortex occurs during stress responses
• Strategies for reactivating cognitive skills, memory, and the ability to learn following stress responses
• How acting-out behaviors are linked to stress and trauma
• How to generate a united effort on school safety and violence prevention issues

Teachers, counselors, principals, and administrators will find that these innovative strategies enhance feelings of safety and optimism in all learning environments and programs, transforming hopelessness and anxiety into resiliency and hope.