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“This book offers educators a window into the minds of children who come to school playing defense, children who deeply mistrust the intentions of the very people who so want to teach and guide them. In these pages, educators will find what they need to know to help these students experience school as a safe-enough place to let down the walls to learning and start to reap the benefits of being in school. Please read Belonging and pass it along to everyone you know who wants to make school a safe haven for all children.”—Jonathan Baylin, coauthor of The Neurobiology of Attachment-focused Therapy

 

“Anchored in principles of interpersonal neurobiology, Dr. Phillips Dr. Hughes again inspire readers to reconsider trauma repair from the lens of neuroscience. This research-informed roadmap invites parents, stewards, practitioners, and allies to work in concert with schools and educators to co-create a trauma-informed path toward posttraumatic growth of children. This is a brilliantly crafted call to action!”—Jennifer Shaw, Gil Institute

 

“The book Belonging is a must read for educators, principals, teachers, educational assistants, administrators, parents and social service professionals. It offers a hands-on, how-to guide for transforming a classroom and school into trauma-informed safe-spaces for our vulnerable children. All day treatment and small behavior classes need to adopt this model. I have had the privilege of attending the Belong classroom on several occasions and am always amazed at the wonderful relationship the classroom staff has developed with these children who have attachment/trauma issues. Their method is tried and true.”

— Duane Durham, program manager, Therapeutic Family Care, Cobourg, Ontario

 

“Belonging is an exciting contribution to the growing, international emphasis on neuroscience-informed schooling. The ways of “doing school” outlined in this book will benefit not only children and young people living with the outcomes of trauma but also their classmates and all the wonderful people working hard to educate them. The authors have drawn from the real worlds of students and translated vital areas of theory in a way that can be incorporated easily into any classroom and any school. I look forward to sharing this work with our schools in Australia!”

— Judith Howard, senior academic, Queensland University of Technology