A child’s development, health, and wellbeing are inextricably interdependent on the level of connection and relationship with their caregivers, culture, school, and community. Children necessitate safe environments, where they can trust adult caretakers to attune, attend, and support them in times of distress and overwhelm. In the repeated experience of being attuned to and supported, the child feels safe enough to connect, which helps them develop the skills and resources to regulate and connect with people and their environment.
In light of this, Restoring Resilience has developed an ecological program that is grounded in neuroscience. The program aims to provide training and resources for children, teachers, and parents on the psychobiology of stress, overwhelm, and trauma, and implement trauma prevention and trauma resolution frameworks both at home and in early educational settings. The “GROW Working with Kids” program teaches children, educators, and parents how to identify underlying physiological drives of challenging behavior and provides Somatic Experiencing interventions to release trapped activation and overwhelm. It also teaches how to reset the autonomic nervous system and restore a sense of safety, trust, and connection. The program includes training for parents, educators, and carers, ensuring that the adults surrounding the child learn how to regulate their own autonomic nervous system. This ensures they can continue co-regulating and supporting the child from a place of presence, health, and sustainability.
Restoring Resilience has conducted the ‘GROW Working with Kids’ program for 24 kindergartens in Victoria. Our data showed that 66% of educators had seen an increase in children fidgeting, being unable to focus, and disruptive in class since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to undertaking the training, 97% of educators felt that they were moderately confident in being able to recognize dysregulation among children in their classrooms. The results post-training showed that 100% of educators felt extremely confident in being able to recognize psychobiological states in children. Lastly, over 100% of educators noticed a reduction in problematic behavior among children in their classroom after undertaking the program.
The ‘GROW Working with Kids’ program is the first to teach children to regulate their autonomic nervous system (ANS), which is a fundamental skill in child development. The program is an invitation to partner and collaborate on trauma prevention, education, and treatment. Restoring Resilience believes a collective and systemic approach is required if we are to see healthier children, families, and communities.
