Jefferson Elementary School Principal Kip Wilson presenting before the USD 428 Board of Education on Nov. 29, 2018.
Last year, Jefferson Elementary School in Great Bend identified a goal of becoming a more trauma informed school. Principal Kip Wilson says that means identifying the needs of the students when they are stressed or angry and practices that teachers and staff can use to calm the students down.
In the past, many schools told students to self-regulate if they were in a situation where they couldn’t calm down. Wilson says Jefferson has switched their approach.
Kip Wilson Audio
Wilson added this approach can apply to all students and not just those that come from a difficult background.
Identifiable stress zones help locate a student’s stress level and whether or not he or she is able to talk about the situation that made them upset.
Kip Wilson Audio
The ultimate goal is to get students that are having a hard time with social and emotional behaviors to be able to understand what is happening and know how to calm themselves down.