This study describes the development and preliminary validation of the Traumatic Stress Screen for Children and Adolescents (TSSCA),a six-item screening measure for trauma exposure and traumatic stress symptoms. Using two samples of youth presenting at community practice settings (n1 = 134,n2 = 137),reliability,discriminative validity,and criterion-related validity were calculated for the TSSCA. Results support the TSSCA as an empirically derived,reliable,and valid screening measure for exposure to trauma and symptoms of traumatic stress for youth ages 5 to 18.