Mitigating the Impacts of Adverse Childhood Experiences: The Peace4Kids Approach in the Post-Pandemic Era

Introduction

This chapter integrates research, theory, and mindfulness practices from an interdisciplinary perspective to advocate for a strengths-based approach to mitigate the impacts of adverse childhood experiences, including the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The authors provide a unique blend of firsthand insight and recently collected data that is grounded in developmental psychology, early childhood education, social work, and social justice research. Peace4Kids, a community-based non-profit organization developed two tools: the HAVS™ (Hear, Acknowledge, Validate, Shift) communication tool that is grounded in a daily mindfulness tool called HEART (Hear, Evaluate, Apply, Revise, Thank)-centered connection™. These tools are based on more than two decades of applied practice with children who have experienced adverse childhood experiences. The decision to share these practices was informed by the results of three phases of a recent research study (Ponciano, Abioye, & Gayle, 2020; Ponciano, Nash, & Gayle, 2021) examining how media portrayals influence the expectations that the public has for children who are coping with adversity.

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the number of educators and caregivers who are personally coping with pandemic-related trauma as they simultaneously continue their efforts to support the growth and development of the increasing numbers of children who are coping with adversity themselves. The innovation of the Peace4Kids approach is three-fold: 1) it focuses exclusively on the mindfulness and responses of adult caregivers in their interactions with children, rather than trying to change children’s behavior, and in so doing, creates safe spaces for children who are coping with adversity, 2) it provides self-care for educators and caregivers to manage their own stress while simultaneously increasing their empathy for children and giving children the agency to problem-solve, and 3) it does not replace existing curricula and, instead, is integrated within all contexts, cultures, and approaches to education and child development.

The chapter begins by providing a brief background of childhood adversity. Then the authors set the stage for the Peace4Kids approach by describing the role of equity and justice in creating safe and positive spaces for all children, defining mental models and their influence on behavior, and explaining the research that informs the application of the approach to the post-pandemic era. Finally, the Peace4Kids approach is vividly described through a series of narrative examples and the interview of an early childhood professional. The authors’ aim is to build awareness around how perceptions influence interactions and to introduce HAVS™ communication practices and HEART-centered connections™. It is important to recognize that the implementation of these tools requires time, effort, and practice beyond this reading. Yet, by accomplishing the first step of building awareness and empathy, early childhood environments collectively move towards creating positive expectations for all children who have experienced adversity.