ABSTRACT
Child mental health is the healthy social-emotional and behavioral development of a child, which includes the child’s ability to maintain healthy relationships and cope with daily problems. Early signs of mental health issues in children are often manifested in externalizing and internalizing maladaptive behaviors. Mental health issues in children have either biological causes or a combination of neurobiological and environmental causes. Environmental factors that contribute to a child’s mental health issues are—at home and in the community—adverse childhood experiences, which have serious mental, behavioral, and physical health consequences that are lifelong and can even be passed on to the next generation. Mental health issues in children include obsessions and compulsions, aggressive behaviors, depression, anxiety, attachment disorders, PTSD, and other conditions. A successful trauma-informed approach that is based on understanding the child, promoting warm and positive teacher–child relationships, and a positive behavioral approach via functional behavior analysis can help teachers understand the child and support them appropriately.
