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What is Adverse Childhood Experiences? 

ACEs are trauma-causing experiences children either witnessed or personally experience including:

  • physical abuse

  • emotional abuse

  • sexual abuse

  • physical neglect

  • emotional neglect

  • caregiver mental sickness

  • domestic violence

  • substance abuse

  • divorce

  • close relative in jail

CAAEYC  2024

Equity Centered Trauma-Informed Practices in Early Care and Development

The more ACEs a child experiences, the higher the stakes are for health, behavioral, and academic issues.

Children experiencing ACEs, without supportive and responsive adults can cause toxic stress, the excessive activation of the stress response system hindering healthy early brain development. This lack of healthy brain development causes: 

  • memory problems

  • behavioral issues

  • health concerns

  • mental healthy sickness

Handouts for ACE comprehension
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