This isn’t the stuff that appears on state-mandated standardized tests, he acknowledges. On March 1, more than 400 Maryland public school students, wearing a rainbow of colors, will be treated to a reading celebration complete with a performance by local musicians, a red carpet welcome, magic show, story time with guest authors featured in NEA’s Read Across America 2017-18 resource calendar and poster, and goody bags after the event. Perhaps searching can help. This makes classrooms more efficient, but it also helps with an even bigger goal: Helping children grow up to be healthy adults. An estimated 45 million educators, parents and students will participate in events nationwide. Nationwide, the National Education Association estimates that 120,000 education jobs will be cut without Congressional aid.

There were very few African or African-American superheroes on television or movies,” said Holland. “Today, kids will have these characters – they will be able to say, ‘I want to be that,’” he said. “I got the chance to take my kids, and they were transfixed because out of all the superhero stories they’ve seen, never have they been to a superhero movie where everybody looks like them. Veteran Illinois special education teacher Kathi Ritchie knows what this looks like in a classroom: “You will see kids struggling with all areas of language, word retrieval, writing… memory suffers hugely. Instead, what helps is to create a trauma-sensitive classroom where kids can feel safe and build resilience. NEA’s first call for every child and every community to enjoy the benefits of reading took place on March 2, 1998, the birthday of Theodor Geisel, more commonly known as Dr. But, even more than that, researchers have found that exposure to unrelenting stress and repeated traumas can change a child’s brain, making it easier to “fight or flee” from perceived dangers and harder to focus and learn. Eventually, his work led to a mega-study, involving tens of thousands of patients, which showed the long-lasting effects of “adverse childhood experiences,” or ACEs, such as child neglect or abuse, or a parent with addiction or imprisoned. Snelgrove, head of guidance services for Brockton (Mass.) Public Schools, would check those addresses against the district’s student database.

NEA’s Read Across America Day originated in 1997 when an NEA reading task force suggested a day of reading to emphasize the fun and adventure of reading.  Vincent Felitti, working with very obese adults, discovered that a shocking majority of his patients had suffered significant traumas during childhood. Their classrooms also are neat and uncluttered.  In addition to former First Lady Michelle Obama, past celebrity participants have included Zac Efron, Taylor Swift, Jessica Alba, Green Bay Packers wide receiver Donald Driver, Carrie Underwood, Gwyneth Paltrow, Alex Rodriguez, Serena Williams, Selena Gomez, Shaquille O’Neal, and many others. “NEA’s Read Across America and National Reading Month are incredible vehicles for focusing attention on the literacy needs and successes of our children, but we know it takes much more than a one-day or one-month long celebration,” said Eskelsen Garcia. “It’s the relationships that kids, teachers, librarians, parents, volunteers and other caring community members form with books that can have a long-term impact on our nation of diverse readers. Although Snelgrove no longer receives faxes from the local police because of revised confidentiality requirements, he hopes the “universal precautions” that Brockton teachers and education support professionals have embraced will catch any student who has experienced trauma. Seuss, who died in 1991. “NEA members rallied and organized reading events across the country, and the effort became the nation’s largest celebration of reading,” said NEA President Lily Eskelsen García. “Since then, NEA’s Read Across America has continued to generate enthusiasm for reading nationwide, always emphasizing the importance of motivating children to read.” NEA’s Read Across America has attracted some of the biggest names in politics, entertainment and sports.

What neuropsychologists have found is that traumatic experiences actually can alter children’s brains. In January 2016, the Library of Congress, Every Child A Reader, and the Children’s Book Council appointed Yang as the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. Understanding this neuroscience makes it possible for educators to create trauma-sensitive classroom. “It’s more than one or two children in your class of 28, it could be closer to 30 percent or more,” Snelgrove tells his colleagues. Senate fails to pass jobs relief soon. When this happens over and again, especially in children under age 5, the brain is fundamentally changed. It can be a scary place out there right now for our students, but a book can transport them to a world that is safe, a world they feel they belong in, and a world in which they believe they can make a difference.” “Reading Is Fundamental is thrilled to partner with the NEA and literacy lovers nationwide to kick off National Reading Month,” said Alicia Levi, RIF CEO. “RIF is dedicated to the promise and opportunity that reading provides and has created the month-long Million homework market Book March campaign to encourage children to read.” As the nation’s largest literacy non-profit and the leading voice for children’s literacy, RIF is committed to a literate America by inspiring a passion for reading among all children. Moreno’s research currently involves the effects of mindfulness exercises on students in some of Chicago’s roughest neighborhoods.

Gene Luen Yang I’m so thankful to be partnering with the NEA,” said Yang. “Books help us understand folks who are different from us. That’s so important for the kids, and I’m just happy that I got to play a small part in crafting this character for the new century.” Kwame Alexander is a bestselling author of 25 books, including Rebiybd, the follow-up to his Newbery-medal winning middle grade novel, The Crossover. Seuss’ 114th birthday. Jesse Holland Jesse J. Cool colors reign on the walls.  In addition cartooning, he teaches creative writing through Hamline University’s MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults.

He is also the author of the new book, The Invisibles: The Untold Story of African American Slaves in the White House. Basically, it adapts for survival under the worst conditions. “It’s an appropriate adaptation to their circumstances,” says Amanda Moreno, professor of early-child development at the Erikson Institute in Chicago. “But it comes at enormous cost to schooling, especially with the way we do schooling in this country, which is very standardized.” Traumatized 5-year-olds  are three times more likely to have problems with paying attention, and two times more likely to show aggression. Ritchie also recommends teaching strategies that include predictable classroom routines with advance warning to students of any changes; asking students to repeat verbal instructions, using more written instructions, and also using visual prompts for multi-step directions, like a sticky post-it note on a desk. Apart from employing a mindfulness curricula, or classroom yoga practices, which also are gaining popularity, simply greeting students at the start of the day and “acknowledging their humanity” before diving into tasks will help, Moreno says. That number includes 115,000 classroom teachers and 5,000 education support professionals, based on tallies from the Association’s state affiliates.

All students can benefit from short “movement breaks” every 30 minutes to “reframe the brain,” she says. Reading Is Fundamental has set a goal of one million books collectively read by the end of the month. The Traumatized Brain Back in the 1990s, Dr. Although her study is not yet complete, teachers and principals have told her that the time they are spending on mindfulness actually is leading to more time for instruction. But it is the stuff that engages the “hearts and minds” of teachers and education support professionals, he says. “We’re not perfect, and I know we have a way to go, but when we talk about the ‘whole child,’ we mean it.” By Cynthia McCabe If parents think their children’s classrooms are already too crowded and their teachers are stretched too thin, they’re going to be horrified by what looms next school year when hundreds of thousands of educators will be laid off if the U.S. Sometimes it’s as simple as a beanbag chair.

But even children who haven’t experienced trauma will benefit from the strategies that Brockton teachers and education support professionals have learned through years of training with the Massachusetts-based Trauma and Learning Policy Initiative, and their partnerships with local police, mental health, and child welfare agencies. “Be consistent, be kind, focus on connecting with kids,” he urges. Others may look like they’re zoning out or drifting off, she says. “It can look like kids are shutting down, but their brain is telling them, ‘you need to be safe.’” Calming Colors, Safe Spaces, Mindfulness So what’s an educator to do? First, here’s what not to do: Punish a child for showing the symptoms of a medical disorder. We know that children who read—and are read to—do better in school and in life.” It seems we can’t find what you’re looking for. They don’t remember content-area ideas that have been taught to them; the next day it’s like they never were taught,” she says. “The other thing that is huge is the behavior.” Living in a constant, fear-activated state of hyper-awareness means these children can be quick to rage, Ritchie has seen. Those traumatized 5-year-olds also are three times more likely to have problems with paying attention, and two times more likely to show aggression.

It starts early and it affects students and teachers: in fact, kindergartners who have had tough experiences score below-average in reading and math, even when other factors like household income and parental education are considered, a study published this year found. You will see kids struggling with all areas of language, word retrieval, writing… memory suffers hugely. – Kathi Ritchie, special education teacher. A regular contributor to NPR’s Morning Edition, he is the recipient of several awards, including The Coretta Scott King Author Honor, The Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Prize, Three NAACP Image Award Nominations, The NCTE Charlotte Huck Honor, and the 2017 Inaugural Pat Conroy Legacy Award. In times of great stress, or trauma, the brain activates its deeply instinctive, “fight, flight, or freeze” responses, while dialing down the areas of the brain where learning, especially around language, takes place. Alexander writes for children of all ages. In their subconscious efforts to self-protect, they often can be perceived as defiant, disrespectful or overly aggressive.   As our world grows more complex and more connected, this skill becomes more and more necessary.” This RAA Day will celebrate Dr.

Those children often grow up to be adults who are more likely to be sick, to be violent, to miss work, and to marry often.   Then, Holland was asked by Marvel to write the novel, Black Panther: Who is the Black Panther?  The film Black Panther shattered box office records with over $404 million over the holiday weekend. “Growing up, I didn’t have those type of heroes on the big screen. Search for: See Also: Surviving the Teenage Brain: What Educators Need to Know Are Block Schedules the Stress-Buster Students Need? Trauma-sensitive teachers often offer a “comfort zone” to their students, a safe space where kids can retreat and calm down.

A little overwhelmed, right? It’s worse for hyper-aroused children. Trauma and stressor disorders can be found in the most up-to-date Bible of mental health disorders and diagnoses, the DSM-V, which means they are a real medical issue. Now when children take time to read, they can take credit for the books they read by entering the number of books on RIF’s interactive book counter at rif.org/millionbookmarch. Out-of-school suspensions are an inappropriate response and likely feed the school-to-prison pipeline. Teachers and education support professionals around the country are already receiving pink slips for the next school year — just five months away — as state legislatures are preparing to pass 2011 budget plans that are heavy with layoffs and hiring freezes to close budget deficits.

Think about how you feel coming home to a messy house, Snelgrove says. They tend to be forgetful. Inside was a slip of paper with a student’s name and a quick prescription for “TLC.” A Sunday night, disrupted by violence, panic, and 911 calls, surely will make it difficult for a child to settle down to learn on Monday morning. With all the demands placed on teachers, it can be difficult, even “radical,” for teachers to slow down the pace of their classes and to take time with every student, but it will pay dividends, she says. To encourage others to participate and be part of our national kickoff, NEA will also host a Facebook Live Q&A with RAA guest authors Jesse J. When a match came up, he’d alert the counselor at that child’s school, who, in turn, would take a red envelope and deliver it to the child’s teacher. For several years, John Snelgrove began his workweek with a lengthy fax from the local police, listing the home addresses where officers had answered domestic violence calls over the weekend.

Holland has been writing since 2005, his books mainly focusing on African-American history, and was approached by an editor at Lucas Films in 2016 about writing the backstory for a character named Finn in the “Star Wars” trilogy. To maintain momentum for National Reading Month throughout March, RIF has created the Million Book March campaign, counting a million books read nationwide. Holland is the Race, Ethnicity and Demographics reporter for the Associated Press. In Brockton, Snelgrove appreciates his district’s leaders for investing in years of trauma-related training for teachers and education support professionals, and developing partnerships with police, mental health, and child welfare agencies. Since then, it’s become clear that the damaging effects of trauma are not saved until adulthood.

Kwame Alexander “I’m thrilled that NEA, RIF and other organizations are recognizing the need for more diverse books and I’m honored to serve as the 2018 NEA Read Across America Ambassador,” said Kwame Alexander. “We need diverse books to be mirrors and windows so all young people can not only see themselves in literature, but see outside themselves, which makes them more aware of our connections as human beings.” Gene Luen Yang’s book American Born Chinese was the first graphic novel to be nominated for a National Book Award and the first to win the American Library Association’s Printz Award. Students refocus more quickly after transitions, and calm down after upsets. Holland, Gene Luen Yang and Kwame Alexander and classrooms nationwide.