Introduction
In recent years, the field of early childhood education has recognised more fully the prevalence and profound impact of trauma on young children’s development. Children exposed to adverse experiences—such as abuse, neglect, loss, impacts from covid, war or displacement—are at risk of disruptions in regulation, attachment, executive functioning and learning (Maynard 2019). Within this context, the trauma-informed classroom has emerged as a vital paradigm: one that not only understands the effects of trauma but creates environments which actively support children’s resilience, regulation and healing. Key to that approach is the use of play—not simply as recreation, but as a rich therapeutic and educational medium. This blog explores how play functions as a valuable resource in trauma-informed classrooms, how sensory-rich environments and Montessori-inspired principles dovetail with trauma-sensitive pedagogy, and how educators can design spaces, materials and relationships that nurture children who have experienced trauma. The discussion draws on seminal scholarship including Phillips (2024) on Montessori as a healing environment, Nicholson & Kurtz (2023) on play and trauma, the LEGO Foundation on learning through play, SAMHSA (2014) on trauma-informed frameworks, and King & Howard (2014) on children’s choice in play.
Why Play Matters in Trauma-Informed Practice
Impact of Trauma on Young Children
Young children who experience trauma frequently live outside their optimal “window of tolerance”: their nervous systems oscillate between hyper-arousal (e.g., anxiety, vigilance) and hypo-arousal (e.g., dissociation). Such states undermine relational engagement and make regulated attention, exploration and learning difficult. SAMHSA (2014) defines trauma as “an event, series of events, or set of circumstances that is experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or life-threatening and that has lasting adverse effects on the individual’s functioning and mental, physical, social, emotional or spiritual well-being” (SAMHSA 2014, p. 7). Given this definition and the implications for young learners, classrooms must be both relationally and physically responsive to trauma.
Play as a Natural Healing Pathway
Play offers a unique pathway for children to express, regulate and connect—even when words fail. Nicholson & Kurtz (2023) assert that “play provides the necessary language to express their thoughts and feelings better than they are able to do verbally… children need daily opportunities to use their natural language—play—to reduce their stress, to learn to cope with adversity, to build resilience, and even to heal from trauma” (Nicholson & Kurtz 2023, p. 3). Through play, children reclaim a sense of agency—countering the powerlessness often associated with traumatic experiences. They experiment with control, variation, repetition and mastery. Play also provides a meaningful vehicle for symbolic processing: children can enact, re-enact, vary and transform experiences within the safety of a playful context, gaining mastery over something that feels uncontrollable. Moreover, sensory-rich, movement-based, relational play helps regulate the nervous system (Nicholson & Kurtz 2023).
King & Howard’s (2014) research adds an important dimension: the notion of choice in play. They found that children’s perception of choice during play correlates with their sense of empowerment, self-efficacy and emotional well-being (King & Howard 2014). For children impacted by trauma, choice is not a luxury—it is foundational to restoring a sense of self-agency.
Trauma-Informed Framework and Play
A trauma-informed approach (TIP) emphasises safety, trust, collaboration, empowerment, voice and choice (SAMHSA 2014). These principles map directly onto quality play experiences: safety (physical and relational), freedom and autonomy (choice), voice (self-directed play), collaboration (peer/adult play), and empowerment (mastery, competence). Thus, embedding play intentionally within a trauma-responsive classroom aligns pedagogically and therapeutically.
Integrating Montessori Principles in a Trauma-Informed Classroom
The legacy of Maria Montessori (1949/2007) offers rich alignment with trauma-informed pedagogy. Phillips (2024) demonstrates that early Montessori classrooms functioned historically as healing environments for children exposed to adversity or trauma (Phillips 2024). This section unpacks key Montessori principles and how they support trauma-sensitive practice.
Freedom within Limits and Choice
Montessori pedagogy emphasises giving children choice within clear boundaries—children choose their work, decide how long to stay, where to sit. Phillips (2022) describes how Montessori’s initial schools catered to children “who had experienced significant exposure to adversity or trauma” and documented improvement in their functioning as part of the “healing” claim (Phillips 2022, p. 4). For trauma-affected children, offering choice within predictable limits counters the helplessness of trauma. King & Howard’s (2014) findings show that children perceive more choice in play when they are playing alone or with known peers, rather than under adult-directed conditions: mean perceived choice in out-of-school club context was 4.16 compared to 2.64 in the school playground (King & Howard 2014, p. 117). Thus choice supports empowerment and self-regulation.
Sensorial and Purposeful Work
Montessori’s sensorial materials (sound boxes, touch tablets, cylinders, etc.) engage hands, body, senses, brain. According to Phillips (2022), these materials offer rhythm, repetition, movement, organisation—all elements supportive of integration and regulation in trauma-affected children. In addition, Montessori practical-life activities (pouring, sweeping, polishing) engage the body in meaningful, purposeful tasks, offering mastery and rhythm. In a trauma-informed classroom, providing sensorial and movement-based activities supports children’s regulation, bodily awareness, and cognitive-emotional integration.
Prepared Environment & Order
Montessori classrooms are intentionally designed: labelled shelves, predictable routines, calm aesthetics, movement pathways. Phillips (2022) argues that such design in early Montessori schools corresponded to their success as “healing schools” for trauma-affected children. Order, clarity, calmness, movement freedom but within structure—all help children whose internal regulation is challenged by traumatic stress to orient, predict and feel safe. According to trauma-informed practice literature, predictability and safety are core elements (SAMHSA 2014).
Mixed-Age Community and Peer Modelling
Montessori emphasises mixed-age communities (e.g., 3-6 years) which foster peer modelling, mentoring, collaboration. This relational dimension supports children’s sense of belonging, peer support and normative relational experiences—critical for children whose relational trust may have been compromised by trauma. Phillips (2022) links these relational affordances with healing environments.
Movement & Rhythm
Montessori pedagogy emphasises movement—children carry trays, walk on the line, move to get materials, return them. Phillips (2022) points to how rhythm, movement, and repetition were implicitly built into Montessori’s healing-oriented schools. For trauma-affected children, movement and embodied experience support regulation (e.g., through proprioceptive, vestibular input) and connection to body, mind and environment.
Sensory Environments, Sensory Equipment & Play Tools: Practical Strategies
Creating a trauma-informed, play-rich classroom entails intentional design of environment, materials and adult–child interactions. Below are key strategies consistent with both the Montessori tradition and play-based trauma research.
Sensory Zones and Equipment
1. Regulation Corner: A dedicated cosy space with soft cushions, low lighting, textured fidgets, weighted blanket, a rhythmic metronome or gentle music. This zone allows children to self-regulate, exit the hustle, re-centre.
2. Movement Zone: Mats for stretching/yoga, stepping stones, balance beams, climbing or gross-motor equipment. Movement supports embodiment, regulation and sensory integration.
3. Sensorial-Work Table: Montessori-inspired sensorial materials (sound boxes, texture tablets, cylinders, smelling jars) alongside loose parts: shells, sticks, fabric pieces, pebbles, wheels. These materials allow repetition, sorting, classification, tactile experience and mastery—all supportive of regulation and cognitive-emotional integration (Phillips 2022).
4. Loose-Parts/Constructive Play Bin: Materials children can choose, assemble, modify, create with—supports agency, creativity, symbolic processing, problem-solving and resilience building. Nicholson & Kurtz (2023) highlight “loose parts” and “repetitive somatosensory play” as powerful strategies for trauma-affected children (Nicholson & Kurtz 2023, p. 44).
5. Outdoor/Nature Play Area: Nature, sandbox, water play, rhythmic outdoor movement—supports regulation, connection to body/environment and integration of sensory experiences.
Play-Based Pedagogy
1. Embed daily opportunities for free play (child-led) and structured play (adult-guided) that incorporate sensory, movement, dramatic, symbolic, expressive arts and outdoor dimensions (Nicholson & Kurtz 2023).
2. Use symbolic dramatic play to allow children to process internal worlds: enact scenes of mastery, depart from chaos, experiment with outcomes. Symbolic play provides a “safe place” for children to rehearse and reconstruct their sense of agency and narrative (Nicholson & Kurtz 2023).
3. Offer materials and tasks that are repetitive yet flexible—this supports predictability (which trauma-affected children crave) and variation (which promotes growth). For example, Montessori sensorial cylinders: the task is similar each time—but always offers mastery, progression, movement, order.
4. Encourage peer interaction and mentoring, consistent with Montessori’s mixed-age community ethos. Children affected by trauma benefit from peer modelling of regulation, choice, relational engagement.
5. Adults must adopt a stance of observer/guide (Montessori’s teacher as “director”) rather than dictatorial controller. Observation allows adults to identify when a child is dysregulated and to scaffold entry into play, without interfering unnecessarily. This aligns with trauma-informed principle of Voice & Choice (SAMHSA 2014).
Integrate movement and rhythm intentionally: walking on lines, carrying trays, rhythmic music, dance, clapping games. These support nervous-system regulation and link body, mind and environment—particularly important for trauma recovery (Phillips 2022).
Environment Design Principles
Predictable routines (arrival, free play, snack, outdoor, reflection) create temporal order and safety—countering the unpredictability trauma fosters.
Clear organisation and order: Child-height shelves labelled; materials in sequence; movement pathways evident; minimal clutter. Montessori emphasises aesthetic calm and order; Phillips (2022) reports this was foundational for early “healing” Montessori schools.
Choice-accessible materials: Children should be able to choose their materials, decide when to begin or end, return materials to shelf—this supports ownership, competence, responsibility and self-regulation. King & Howard (2014) found children’s sense of play and empowerment increases with perceived choice.
Natural materials and soft colour palette: Trauma-affected children may be heightened in sensory sensitivity; calm aesthetic, natural materials (wood, textile, stone) reduce sensory overload.
Movement pathways and sensory transitions: Children move from one zone to another; rather than continuous sitting. Movement supports regulation.
Reflection space: After free play, children may benefit from guided reflection: “What did you do? How did you feel? What choice did you make?” This integrates metacognitive awareness and supports trauma-informed practice (Nicholson & Kurtz 2023).
Building Resilience through Play
Resilience is not simply “bouncing back” but the ongoing capacity to engage, adapt, learn and thrive after adversity. Play supports resilience in multiple ways.
1. Mastery of micro-challenges: Through play children attempt tasks, fail, repeat, vary—building competence, mastery and confidence. Trauma often undermines sense of mastery; play rebuilds it.
2. Relational practice: Play is relational—children engage with peers/adults, practice turn-taking, negotiation, collaboration, conflict resolution. This relational rehearsal supports children’s relational health after trauma. Nicholson & Kurtz (2023) emphasise that relationships + play support healing and resilience.
3. Regulation and window of tolerance expansion: Sensory, movement and rhythmic play support nervous-system regulation. Repeatedly experiencing “just-right” challenge within safety broadens the child’s window of tolerance, enabling better engagement in classroom tasks.
4. Symbolic processing and narrative reconstruction: Through dramatic and symbolic play children can process internal states, experiment with roles, rehearse new script-lines for their lives. Since trauma often leaves children with fragmented narratives, play provides space to reconstruct meaning and identity.
5. Agency, voice & choice: Choice in play fosters agency and voice—key tenets of trauma-informed practice (SAMHSA 2014). King & Howard (2014) found that greater perceived choice correlates with higher empowerment and self-esteem in children.
6. Creating relocation to the future: Play allows children to imagine, build, test, imagine again. It lets them define possibilities beyond trauma, fostering hope and future-oriented thinking.
By embedding play as a core pedagogical strategy—not just in enrichment time but as part of daily curriculum—educators intervene not only in learning but in regulation, attachment and resilience building.
Implications for Educators
From the above synthesis emerges several implications for early childhood educators working with children experiencing trauma.
Conscious environmental design
Educators must intentionally design the physical environment: sensory zones, movement pathways, natural materials, order and choice. The prepared environment (Montessori-inspired) is not incidental—it is therapeutic and educational.
Embedding play as core pedagogy
Rather than viewing play as a “break” from instruction, treat play as central to regulation, expression and learning. Plan for daily free play, structured play, sensory-movement play, dramatic/symbolic play—all within a trauma-responsive framework.
Adult stance: observe, support, scaffold
Educators adopt the role of observer first, then gentle guide as needed. They must titrate their intervention (too much control reduces perceived choice and empowerment, as King & Howard (2014) found). They must attune to children’s arousal states, intervene to scaffold regulation, invite children into “just-right” challenge and reflection.
Foster choice and agency
From material selection to play partners to timing, children must have meaningful choices. This supports empowerment and aligns with trauma-informed principle of voice, choice and collaboration (SAMHSA 2014).
Sense-making and reflection
After play episodes, educators may invite children to reflect: “What did you choose? What did you feel? What did you make happen?” This metacognitive step supports narrative reconstruction and resilience building.
Professional development and systemic integration
Institutions must support trauma-informed practices across systems (not just within one classroom). SAMHSA’s “six key principles” of trauma-informed care (safety; trustworthiness; peer support; collaboration; empowerment; cultural/historical sensitivity) provide a framework for whole-institution practice (SAMHSA 2014). Phillips (2024) developed a CPD programme based on Montessori-trauma integration for early-childhood teachers (Phillips 2024).
Sensory equipment and resources
Ensure availability of sensorial materials (Montessori cylinders, texture tablets, sound boxes), movement equipment, loose parts and nature play materials. These support regulation, agency, mastery, embodiment and play.
Conclusion
To summarise, play is far more than “fun time”; in trauma-informed early childhood contexts it is a core healing and pedagogical tool. It provides children who have experienced adversity with pathways to regulate, express, collaborate, master, choose, and rebuild narrative and agency. Integrating the Montessori tradition’s emphasis on sensorial work, movement, freedom within limits and the prepared environment aligns powerfully with trauma-informed pedagogy. Grounded in scholarship from Phillips (2024), Nicholson & Kurtz (2023), King & Howard (2014), and frameworks such as SAMHSA (2014), the strategy of designing sensory-rich, movement-infused, choice-based play environments is supported by robust theory and evidence. For educators committed to supporting children impacted by trauma, the challenge is not simply to include play, but to make play central—to embed it intentionally in environment, materials, relationships and curriculum—and thereby create learning spaces where children can heal, grow, and thrive.
References
King, P. & Howard, J. (2014) ‘Children’s perceptions of choice in relation to their play at home, in the school playground and at the out-of-school club’, Children & Society, 28(2), pp. 116–127.
Maynard, B.R. (2019) ‘Effects of trauma-informed approaches in schools: a review of the empirical literature 2013–2018’, Review of Educational Research, 89(3), pp. 363-389.
Montessori, M. (1949/2007) The Absorbent Mind. (Revised edition). Oxford: Clio Press.
Nicholson, J. & Kurtz, J. et al. (2023) Supporting Young Children to Cope, Build Resilience, and Heal from Trauma through Play: A Practical Guide for Early Childhood Educators. London: Routledge.
Phillips, B. (2024) The Montessori school as a ‘healing’ environment: translating childhood trauma research into effective, trauma-informed, educational practice. PhD thesis, National University of Ireland Maynooth.
SAMHSA (2014) SAMHSA’s concept of trauma and guidance for a trauma-informed approach. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
The LEGO Foundation (2021) Learning through Play: Increasing impact, reducing inequality. Billund: LEGO Foundation.
Dr M’s thoughts 