Teachers will recognize the need to identify and regulate their own emotions. Teachers will also recognize the need to create a series of strategies and responses for difficult situations.
IDENTIFYING EMOTIONS. Identifying emotions involves paying attention to what you are feeling and labeling it. Giving yourself permission to experience an emotion, by labeling it, is the first step to understanding, processing, and regulating your emotions. Once you identify what you are feeling, you can make a plan to manage what you are feeling appropriately.
The basic emotions include happiness, sadness, anger, anticipation, fear, loneliness, jealousy, and disgust.
COMMUNICATING EMOTIONS. Once we know how we are feeling and we communicate those emotions, it is easier for others to support us.
EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE. Emotional Intelligence is being able to observe and identify emotions in others and then label it. We can observe the emotions of others by paying attention to facial expressions, non-verbal clues, body language, the words they use, and their actions. Sometimes it is helpful to simply ask people what they are feeling.
SELF-REGULATING EMOTIONS. We regulate our emotions when we identify, label, and then behave appropriately. We cannot control what happens to us, but we can control how we respond to different scenarios. One of the first steps of self-regulation is accepting our emotions and acknowledging that they are real and must be dealt with.
Activity 1: (5 Minutes) DEFINITION QUOTE & DISCUSSION
Read this quote as a group:
“Self-regulation is the ability to manage your emotions and behavior in accordance with the demands of the situation. It includes being able to resist highly emotional reactions to upsetting stimuli, to calm yourself down when you get upset, to adjust to a change in expectations, and to handle frustration without an outburst. It is a set of skills that enables children, as they mature, to direct their own behavior towards a goal, despite the unpredictability of the world and our own feelings.” (Marc Brackett, Permission to Feel)
Have a discussion:
Next, pass out the article, “Emotional Development in Childhood,” by Carolyn Saarni, PhD, from the Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development to each teacher. Have teachers read through the information, paying special attention to the age group that they teach. Invite them to make notes about real situations that they have witnessed that align with the descriptions (e.g., My 7-year-old nephew gets easily embarrassed when he makes a mistake). Once they have read through the article, have teachers share examples that they noted with people that they are sitting next to.
Activity 2: (15 Minutes) EMOTIONAL RESPONSES
Invite educators to reflect for 3 seconds and silently name an emotion that they are feeling.
Read and discuss the quotes and ideas:
Have a discussion:
Pass out the Feelings Wheel handout, from Dr. Gloria Willcox. Ask teachers to scan it carefully and find a synonym or two for the emotion that they identified at the beginning of the activity.
Have a discussion:
Divide into 5 groups and assign each group an emotion to discuss. Then pass out the Emotional Responses handout and invite each group to answer the questions together. Once complete, have each group present their answers to the whole group.
Read and discuss the ideas:
Have a discussion:
Activity 3: (20 Minutes) VIDEO AND DISCUSSION
Watch the video “Permission to Feel” by Marc Brakett, founder and director of Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence.
As a group, review and discuss some key ideas from the video:
Have a discussion:
Read the quote and discuss:
“Self-regulation is the ability to manage your emotions and behavior in accordance with the demands of the situation. It includes being able to resist highly emotional reactions to upsetting stimuli, to calm yourself down when you get upset, to adjust to a change in expectations, and to handle frustration without an outburst.” (Child Mind Institute)
Activity 4: (10 Minutes) MEDITATION MOMENT
Read some short quotes about meditation and/or stillness:
Pass out the Meditation Moment Ideas handout to each teacher. Give educators 10 minutes to practice strategies from the handout.
Have a discussion:
As a group, brainstorm emotionally charged situations that occur frequently in schools. List them on a whiteboard.
Then break into smaller groups, circle up chairs, and have groups discuss how to respond well within these situations. Have educators share tips and tricks that they have used or personal examples.
Extension: Watch the video, “How to Embrace Emotions At Work” by
Liz Fosslien at TED and discuss how to appropriately share emotions in a
healthy work environment.
Activity 6: (10 Minutes) EMOTIONAL REMINDERS
Create a meditation vision board, PPT, playlist, etc.
Educators can share with a neighbor, if desired.
When something upsetting occurs, it may be tempting to react quickly in an emotional outburst. Quick reactions can result in regrettable choices. Instead of being reactive, be proactive by using a technique called “S.T.O.P.” (developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn, a prominent mindfulness researcher).
S = Stop. Stop what you’re doing and put things down for a moment.
T = Take. Take 2–3 nice, deep breaths.
O = Observe. Observe how you are feeling. Note what thoughts, feelings, or emotions are running through your mind. Realize that thoughts are not permanent—they come and they go. Research shows that the simple act of naming your emotions can turn the volume down on the fear circuits in the brain, resulting in a feeling of calm. Notice your body and how you are standing or sitting. Notice your posture or if you have any aches and pains.
P = Pull back, get perspective, proceed with what works. Proceed with something that can support you in the moment. Call a friend, take a walk, etc. Try this the next time you feel anxious. Notice how stopping and tuning into how you are feeling can change your perspective.
Have a discussion:
Read the quote:
“Accept yourself, love yourself, and keep moving forward. If you want to fly, you have to give up what weighs you down.” (Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart)
Next Instructions:
Post the following resources for teachers to note for their personal use:
The video, “Breathing Meditation” from the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center gently guides you through a simple breathing practice to help you focus your awareness.
