The "Why" Behind Classroom Behaviors, PreK-5. Jamie Chaves
that allow them to reach a state of regulation together.
Applying a Brain-Based, Relational Lens to the Educational Setting
The research is clear in that our brains grow, develop, and change through relationships and experiences with others.4 Children who have sensory-enriched, relationally safe, consistent, and predictable environments have larger, better developed, and more integrated brains.7,8,9 It is therefore important to focus on the quality of relationships with each student. As a teacher, you have the power to form, change, and mold each developing brain in your class, and help your students form a positive association with learning. By engaging in healthy, stable, foundationally safe relationships as well as sensory-attuned learning environments, teachers have the power to positively impact brain development, brain integration, and overall body and brain-based regulation, ultimately enhancing each student’s ability to learn.
Strategy 1: Engage in Positive, Regulating Experiences
The same concept of brain development, integration, and regulation is true for all of us: parents, professionals, and teachers. Just as children who have relationally safe and sensory-attuned environments are better able to regulate and learn, teachers who are regulated have a larger capacity to connect with students, engage in the joys of students’ learning, and feel energized about what they do. In this way, the IPNB framework and other relational models serve as a form of self-care, support, and understanding for educators. In order for a teacher to effectively co-regulate with a student, the teacher must first be regulated. Oftentimes, dysregulated adults cause a child to be more dysregulated as well, resulting in a cycle of co-dysregulation. This is why it is important that teachers feel supported and equipped to take on the daily challenges they face in the classroom. Teachers must be engaged in positive relationships with those around them every day, as well as engaged in regulating experiences throughout the day.
When we engage in positive, regulating experiences, this helps to facilitate an “integrated brain, empathic relationships, and coherent mind.” These regulating experiences can be small moments throughout the day, such as sitting with a cup of coffee in the morning, walking around the block on your lunch break, eating lunch with a favorite colleague, or writing in a journal a night. When chaos or rigidity takes over, it can negatively impact the way you interact with those around you—especially your students. If you start to experience more chaos or rigidity in your life, particularly related to teaching, it is likely that the integration of your brain/body, relationships, or mind is obstructed.
In his book, The Mindful Brain, Dr. Siegel states,
The human connections that help shape our neural connections are solely missing in modern life. We are not only losing opportunities to attune to each other, but the hectic lives many of us live leave little time for attuning to ourselves.10
It is therefore important that we not only focus our minds on ways to engage, attune, and connect with our students but spend time sending the flow of energy into connecting, engaging, and attuning with ourselves. By allowing ourselves this space, we will open the door to the endless potential of human capacity for compassion, empathy, and love, feel more successful in our lives but also support the next generation in becoming empathetic, compassionate, and loving adults.
Reflective Activity
Now it’s your turn to complete an IPNB triangle for yourself. Think about your relationships, brain/body, and mind. Write a + next to the things that help facilitate the integration of each system or a – next to the things that hinder the integration of each system.
Consider: What areas of your triangle are more integrated than others? What areas are less integrated than others?
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Strategy 2: Reflect Often
Reflection helps cement learning.11 One of the exciting things about life and our brains is that there is no end to self-discovery. Because of this, we will provide opportunities throughout the book for you to integrate the left and right side of your brain by understanding this information in a logical way and also having the opportunity to reflect and “feel” the information on a more experiential level. The “reflective activities” in each chapter will help you, as teachers, to consider various aspects about yourself and your teaching approach in order to better connect with your students’ experiences and enhance your ability to utilize the information in this book.
In his books, Dr. Dan Siegel talks about the foundational importance of COAL: curiosity, openness, acceptance, and love.3,10 We hope to foster this tone throughout our book, as well as provide opportunities for us to use this as a starting point to allow a safe place to reflect together. Here are some questions that you can use to reflect about yourself as you get started. You can keep these questions in mind as you continue to read.
What can I do to regulate myself throughout the day?
What are signs of dysregulation that I notice in myself?
How can I create patterns of empathy, understanding, and trust with even the most challenging students?
Who can I talk to or be with in order to process the events of my day or week?
What areas of teaching are restorative and which areas are draining? Why?
Which of my personal relationships are restorative and/or draining, and how do they impact my teaching?
Next, consider these questions regarding your students. Again, keep these questions in mind as you continue to read this book.
Why might this student be demonstrating this behavior?
Are there patterns of dysregulation that I notice in this student?
How can I come alongside and join with, rather than penalize the student?
What can I do to help this child co-regulate in this moment?
Is there something I am doing that is contributing to a cycle of co-dysregulation?
Am I making false assumptions about this student’s behavior?
What are the strengths of this student, and how can I capture those strengths?
With which students do I need to build stronger relationships?
Not only is it important to use the brain to help our students develop integration, but it is also important to remember how to use the power of the mind in moments of stress and dysregulation. As we get to know ourselves better, and reflect more often, this will help us to have more integration in our brains and our lives. We will then be better able to maintain a regulated stance when confronted with overwhelming situations. Once this happens, we will be better able to use a right hemisphere to right hemisphere connection 11 between teachers and students to portray a regulated, safe, meaningful message of connection and comfort to the other person.6,11 This means connecting emotionally, using mostly nonverbal communication. We will discuss how to do this in moments throughout the book, especially when we talk