Not less smart. Less stamina.

 

In my experience, kids with trauma backgrounds have just as much potential to be 'smart' as any other kids.  But I have seen over and over and over that kids with trauma just do not have the same academic stamina as kids in a standard classroom.  Asking high-schoolers to read a novel seems like asking them to jump across the Grand Canyon.  Having middle schoolers write an entire paragraph feels like pulling teeth.  With tweezers.  These students are just not accustomed to putting in any kind of sustained effort academically. 

Real-life example:  

ELA teacher has carefully chosen a high-interest, engaging short story for her class to read.  She prints out the short story so the students can read the story easily.   She hands out the page of text to each student.

Response: "Oh hell naw! Miss I told you I don't read!"

I'm sure there are reasons for this lack of academic stamina-- maybe it's changes in the way the brain is able to focus on tasks when affected by trauma, maybe it's a history of disrupted schooling so that stamina was never built, maybe it's a lack of motivation to exert effort because other issues in life just take priority.  Whatever it is, it's very clear that these kids have a very hard time putting in sustained effort academically.

So what's the remedy?  I don't have any quick-fix solution, but here are some things that have sometimes worked for us:

• Structure the class into short segments, switching gears often.  Try not to have any one activity last longer than 10 or 15 minutes.  You may need to start with 5-10 minute blocks. 

• Scaffold!  Start with baby steps that help students feel successful.  Stay with that first step for awhile before building on it.  Give them a lot of wins before moving onto adding a step.

• Have several alternative things that students can be working on if they need a break from something challenging.  Use low-key activities that are still contributing to learning.  Like a review of parts of speech or multiplication facts in a color-by-number worksheet (yes, even for high school!) or working on a map puzzle or a vocabulary word search.  These are activities that feel like a break but are still engaging the student in learning.  In addition, they are easy to accomplish so it gives the student a sense of success before returning to the challenging task.

• If the learning goal doesn't require it, then find an alternative learning method.  For instance, allow students listen to an audiobook if independent reading seems too daunting.

• Letting students choose topics that interest them creates more willingness to engage in effort.  So letting them choose a historical figure to research and make a poster about, for example, will give you more sustained effort if the student chooses the subject because of some personal interest or connection.  If they feel interested or connected they will have more motivation to push through the challenging parts. 

• Create a way to show off the final product.  Many of these kids have never had anyone be proud of their work before, so why try?  But if they know they will be showcasing their posters in the hallway or their poetry might be read at a poetry slam event where other adults are invited, it motivates them to put in more effort because the final results of their labor will be on display.

• Use choice boards or any other way to offer choices.  For example a morning journal could be a response to a prompt, a would-you-rather, or a reflection on a famous quote.  Give all three and let the students choose which to journal on.  This lets them choose the option that they feel the most confident about, creating more of a willingness to try.

Do you have any tricks you have used to build stamina in these type of students?