Trauma in Schools #4 — One District’s Response to Support Students
Viviana Barajas — Nurtured Heart Consultant / Trainer
The Takeaway
The Nurtured Heart Approach is not just about being nice to kids. It’s about connecting with them in meaningful reinforcing ways, which gives them what they wanted all along: to be seen, to be recognized, to realize that they can be more.
“Teenagers are desperate for connection. They're like, "Please see me." So, I don’t find resistance with young people. They describe it as a mystery when they meet me. It's kind of like, ‘Who is this person?‘ But strangely, they’re drawn back; they want to come back into the room. And they ask me, "Do the thing you do." And I say, "What do you mean?" And they're like, "You know, like, when you see us, like when you tell us who we are.”
Our guest
Viviana Barajas is a certified Nurtured Heart trainer. Her experience includes early childhood education, non-profit community work, domestic violence advocacy, early intervention and prevention services for children and families, foster youth advocacy, residential treatment training and support, and program development. She currently serves as the Nurtured Heart Approach Consultant for the Merced Union High School District in Merced, CA.
Viviana has developed a Nurtured Heart Approach mental health high school course for teens, is a certified instructor in Teen Mental Health First Aid, and is the creator of the “Greatness Project,” an organization providing a platform for at-promise youth to share this life-changing method with other youth and adults.
“The six hour introduction training that I do with staff opens their eyes. This is not me telling you how to be a better teacher, this is us talking about being human. And how can we see one another in a way that's intentional, that makes our life more purposeful and less stressful.”
As you listen
• How does the Nurtured Heart Approach focus differently on struggling youth?
• What are the three “stands” of the Nurtured Heart Approach?
• What must you do when you escalate a situation with the child.
• How does Nurtured Heart Approach apply to all members of the school community?
• What is the neuroscience behind the Nurtured Heart Approach?
• How does the Greatness Project — opportunities to see the world in a different way, to lead, and see that they can have impact — reinforce the Nurtured Heart Approach?
In their own words
How does meaningfully connecting with kids pay off for them, their schooling, and their community? Listen to the following two examples:
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