Book Review: Reaching and Teaching Children Who Hurt: Strategies for Your Classroom | By: Committee for Children by Susan E. Craig Reading Level: Adult The statistics vary, but most experts would agree that children's exposure to violence has become a public health epidemic, as Susan Craig writes in Reaching and Teaching Children Who Hurt. Craig is an educator, author, and nationally recognized expert in addressing the educational needs of at-risk children and youth. Understandably, teachers often find themselves at a loss in trying to teach children who are struggling with the trauma of being exposed to domestic and community violence. This practical book shows educators how to help students exposed to trauma, providing an overview of the related developmental issues and offering ideas about how to engage children in a “trauma-sensitive manner,” as Craig writes in her preface. Readers learn how violence and other forms of trauma affect a child's school and social success, whether through behavior issues or troubles with attention, memory, and language. While the book focuses on the issues facing children who have been traumatized by domestic and community violence, its lessons can be applied broadly. In fact, as Craig herself says in an interview, “A trauma-sensitive approach to teaching reflects best practices in education. Its emphasis on relationships, safety, and self-regulation benefit all children.” Craig's writing style is clear and logical. She lays out the problem—how exposure to violence actually changes the way children learn—and then presents ways teachers can support children's acquisition of reading and writing skills as well as important social-emotional skills such as self-regulation. One practical suggestion she offers for teachers working with children whose capacity for self-regulation is limited is to provide the children with additional support for activities or times of day that are particularly difficult for them. If transition times are hard for a child, ask him or her to help set up the next activity so that by the time it starts, he or she is already used to the idea. Craig does not forget the teachers either, offering suggestions for making sure that their own physical, psychological, and spiritual health is not neglected as they help children adapt to their stress. Finally, the author emphasizes the importance of (and gives ideas for) integrating a trauma-sensitive perspective into the entire school climate. Reaching and Teaching Children Who Hurt uses recurring elements throughout, including relevant scenarios of students who are struggling with specific academic and/or behavioral problems, text boxes that describe “What You Know” and “What’s New” in the research on children exposed to violence, and sections titled “What Do You Think?” (quizzes with answers) and “What You Can Do” (bulleted lists of specific, detailed suggestions for teachers). The reader is encouraged to actively engage in the learning, which makes it more likely that they will go back to their classrooms and use the ideas presented in the book. For educators who worry that working with children exposed to trauma is out of their realm of expertise, here is an excellent guidebook to help them enter that realm.