Massachusetts elementary school’s innovative approach to student mental health
By Mary Saladna
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HUDSON, Massachusetts (WCVB) — As mental health challenges persist in the classroom, a Hudson elementary school is taking a new approach to help both students and staff.
“It’s been a lifesaver,” said Rachel Scanlon as she pointed to the office that has been transformed into a safe space for kids. What was the Assistant Principal’s office at Farley Elementary School, is now filled with sensory tools to help any child who needs a quick break.
Scanlon, the principal at the school, said the students use items like a bounce pad to self-regulate with the goal of getting back to a place where they feel safe and focused so they can learn.
“If kids are not emotionally regulated, if they don’t feel safe, if they don’t feel connected, there’s no way we’re going to teach them anything having to do with math or reading,” Scanlon said.
Teachers at Farley Elementary decided years ago they needed a plan and some training to help kids dealing with trauma that was translating into disruptive behaviors in the classroom. That help came in the form of state-funded training led by the Justice Resource Institute.
“We had that combination of the trauma that was already existing and the impact of COVID and that sparked some pretty serious mental health needs for our students,” said Tara Sagor, the Director of Training and Trauma Response at JRI.
Sagor, who is also a Farley parent, has been leading the customized mental health outreach at the school.
“The goal is to move away from the directive: ‘Don’t do this,’ ‘Stop doing this,” she said. “When any caregiver sees a behavior from a child, I want their first thought to be: ‘I wonder what the need is underlying this behavior.'”
Sagor said most kids are not looking for attention, they’re looking for connection. Her mission is to give teachers the techniques and tools to provide that.
The “reset areas” created throughout the school are key to that — and teachers are seeing the results.
“It’s a safe place and they know it’s not punitive,” said teacher Michelle Farley. “They can come and get themselves in control then get back to work.”
Sagor says that’s the entire idea.
“I do believe if we put more time into this idea of the difference between a limit-setting moment and a regulation moment, it’s going to make everybody’s lives easier,” she said.
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