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In my Pre-K classroom, I can offer flexible seating options, calming spaces, and picture-based visual schedules to help students navigate daily routines confidently. I also include sensory tools, music transitions, and movement breaks to keep students regulated and engaged. These environmental supports help meet students where they are—emotionally and developmentally—so they can focus, participate, and feel successful throughout the day.

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Reading Engage the Brain has deepened my understanding that emotion isn’t separate from learning—it drives it. In Pre-K, I now see how every interaction, tone, and environment cue shapes how safe and open a child’s brain feels to learn. I’ve become more intentional about using calm tones, routines, and joyful connections to activate positive emotions that help students focus and remember. Emotional regulation and engagement truly go hand in hand.

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In Pre-K, one challenge I face in building relatedness is that many students are just beginning to develop emotional awareness and language for expressing feelings. Creating a positive classroom climate means modeling empathy, turn-taking, and problem-solving every day. Some students come from very different home environments, so helping everyone feel safe, valued, and connected takes intentional routines, visuals, and consistent emotional check-ins.

Another challenge is balancing structure and flexibility to meet each child’s needs. As Engage the Brain reminds us, emotional safety and belonging are the foundation for engagement and learning. I focus on greeting every child warmly, celebrating small successes, and fostering a culture where mistakes are part of learning—because strong relationships create the trust needed for their brains to stay open to learning.

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I can make sure to still have flexible seating and ensure students know that any question is not too small to ask because I want to make sure they have everything they need to be successful. Also, students to be open to expressing the needs they have that could be a barrier to their success that day like not eating or an issue with a peer.

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I realized that emotions are more involved in the learning process than I initially realized. I knew engagement and emotions went hand in hand in terms of students like or dislike of a subject, or if a student is dealing with factors outside of school that make it difficult to focus. Emotions influence the learning experience from before the lesson even starts.

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The background knowledge and experiences of the students are limited. The behaviors are another factor that get in the way of learning because I have to stop class to address the repeated behavior of one student or multiple students that repeat the same behavior every day.

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Some options that I can incorporate is offering choice in presentation of assignments, continued flexible seating, and allowing students to share their ideas and reflections in multiple ways.

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I learned that the role of emotion is engagement is really the purpose that I am looking for. Now I just have to keep that in mind and make sure to integrate this into what I am teaching.

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I feel most of the challenges faced are due to a lack of purpose from the students. I believe that they truly have no idea why they are at school. This is so different from the challenges I had 20 years ago when I first started teaching. I spend a lot of time on behavior management. I also notice when trying to build background knowledge, I am having to go to the simplest and basic point of start to try to build to where they need to be to understand it at a grade 4 level.

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I find myself supporting, praising, encouraging them. Giving them that excitement and praise helps them go a long way and push harder. Setting and being the example on how its done to become a better person in their own learning. It's harder for second graders but teaching the little steps will help them grow. Learning comes in many different styles and that is ok. I am always reminding them that we are all different and that is ok. We do not want to be all the same because the world would be boring.

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I see that emotions from myself and the other classmates effect learning hugely. It can throw of the learning and thinking process for each person. When talking to a student I will always ask if this is a big problem or a little problem for them and depending on the response decides the next way to address the emotion. I will also ask a certain student if their body response is matching the rest of their classmates body reaction. It helps to bring the moment to light for them sometimes. Patience is huge even if its difficult some days. I have always reminded the students that the emotion they are feeling is ok to have but how we react and respond from that emotion is where it can affect and we need to know the proper way of working through it.

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I find working in second grade this year that they are so young still that certain learning and bringing knowledge about topics is harder to do compared to older grades I have supported in. They still like saying " I can't do this or that". I have to still remind them that they "can do this or that". They are still growing and building that confidence within. I have one student who will yell and complain that the work is to easy why do they have to do it. I have to discuss and remind him that just because it's easy for him he has to be kind and remember some of his classmates find it hard.

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Always give positive feedback. Make the class so the students enjoy learning and want to be in the class. Be open to what the students have for input to help make the classroom better.

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Students emotions affect their learning and attention. They stress on the situation that might have happened some place else. Also the teacher emotions effect the classroom too.

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One problem we have is a short attention span. With students always on their phone and want the short quick answer.

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I have already started to give students more wiggle room when it comes to meeting the target goal. Not everything is a one size fits all and different students can show they understand in a variety of ways. In one class I had the end of the lesson include different stations where they could choose how to show me they understood the material. I noticed more meaningful and engaged work when I gave them the opportunity to choose what works best for them while still meeting my goal.

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I have learned that I can have a large impact on the emotions that students have during my lessons. I try to make my lessons meaningful but by giving them more options I can increase learning and motivation.

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I think the challenges I face in building relatedness are different for each class. I teach SEL so it's very important to me that my classroom space brings a sense of belongingness. Classroom community is something I feel strongly about but there are many things that can get in the way of that. I find that there is often a difference in values between what I feel is important and what my students feel is important. Class sizes can have an impact. I have some classes that are quite a bit larger than others and I notice the relationship I have with them is different. Sometimes students have issues that go on outside of my classroom and that is brought into my space and has to be addressed so it doesn't interfere with the overall feel I want to have in my space.

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I am going to continue providing multiple means of engagement for my students. I also think showing more photos of what we are discussing may help them understand better or be more interested.

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I previously worked in a 6:1+2 behavior program. With this experience, I learned early on that social emotional needs need to be met first before any learning will happen. When kiddos do not have their emotions in check, they will not pay attention or retain the information being present.

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With the area we live in, a lot of students have never left this area. Therefore, it can be a struggle to get them to understand other concepts and cultures.

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I can incorporate multiple means of engagment in my classroom to support the demands, goals and challenges in my classroom routine. Every student is different, and finding something that is engaging for each student to help them learn, would be beneficial. I also would incorporate flexibility within my classroom. This is important especially with being a 12:1:1 classroom.

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Reading Engage the Brain helped me learn that emotions and learning are not two separate things. Emotion is what drives learning with students. It was a good refresher as well, on how we should always make our students feel safe and valued in our classrooms. By doing this, students will want to learn more and would be more engaged.

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Ruth-Anne mentioned this as a struggle that she has with building relatedness, and I honestly couldn't relate more. Meeting the diverse emotional and social needs of my students can be difficult. I have 6 students, 3 of whom I had last year. Having 3 new students with various social and emotional needs definitely has its struggles. I always strive to create a welcoming and calm classroom, and make it known that we are all a family, here to help each other grow.

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I try to give my students structure, predictability, and independence. I explicitly teach my first graders, provide choices, use positive reinforcement, and adapt routines when things do not go well.

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I have learned that emotions definitely impact learning. Emotions act as a powerful motivator for learning. Using a variety of interactive and open-ended tasks can help engage students' emotions in different ways.

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I teach first grade, so I feel like background knowledge is a challenge. My students are so young that a lot of what we are learning is being learned for the first time. It will definitely get better as they get older, but it is challenging right now.

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Something I can incorporate into my environment is allowing the children time to get themself organized to be successful in the school year. This could include owed work, and binder or locker organization.

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I have learned to be more open with the kids, especially if I am struggling with a topic, they are problem struggling as well, and we can work together.

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One challenge I face is many of the children come in with a mindset towards math. They already feel they do not understand anything and will never understand. I build that relationship with the kids I work with and let them know I also go to classes like they do I am relearning all the same material they are. Also how in math we are all bad at it first and just have to practice. For example, on one of their homework's there was a question I personally have to do 4 time, so when many of them came to me and said " I never figure this out" I informed them that I would help them and how long it took me to do it. Showing emotions can making connections.

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I would like to continue to work on being more flexible in how I teach my students things. I find that I get into too much of a routine with how I teach my students and it may not be helping them in the long run.

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I learned a lot about how my student's emotions can affect their learning but I also learned how my own can get in the way of my student's learning too.

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Lacking background knowledge can be difficult especially with students I am working with you have low intelligibility. If I do not know what they are talking about or referencing and I am also already having a hard time understanding them if can add extra frustration for my students.

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I would like to be more mindful of my schedule and building it in a way that supports my regulation and student's regulation. This would mean balancing heavy cases with ones that are not as demanding throughout each day and week. It would mean not having lessons at the very end of the day. I would also like to take some of my lessons and add options into them to support choice and increase engagement and regulation for students. For example I may allow students to write or draw, or listen to audio/watch a video. It would be great to allow these options for presenting information as well. I would also like to find more ways for students to make connections to their own worlds with memories and practice scenario.

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I was able to realize that not only is emotion part of learning, it's necessary for strong learning to take place. This isn't something I had considered in the past when planning lessons, but will now keep in mind.

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I am always challenged to break things down enough to relate to my youngest students. It's tough to think like a 4/5 year old again. Even if we could get it right, the world is a lot different now growing up than when we did. It's hard to know what students have/have not been exposed to when trying to connect.

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I can use more visuals, timers, movement breaks, student choice/voice, and help them with organization skills.

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This book really highlighted the importance of how emotion and learning are interconnected and will make me be more mindful of this in the future.

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One challenge I face in building relatedness with my small group of ELLs is overcoming language barriers that can make communication and connection more difficult. There are also differences in cultural backgrounds that can affect how students express themselves and/or interact with peers that can be a challenge for some.

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I can give students the option of choice in my classroom. Want to sit on the counter? Sure as long as you're working. Want to write in your fancy new pen? Sure as long as you have white out! Want to create a video explaining your learning instead of an essay? Sure as long as you hit the rubric points. Want to integrate your family/pets/interests into the lesson? Absolutely! I will continue to model expectations and consider the sensory inputs when assigning tasks.

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After reading this book I have considered emotion in relation to attention/engagement and deeper learning in our environment. After reading this book, specifically chapter 7, I do not want to become one of the 20% of teachers who do not return to the profession due to whichever reason. I want to be passionate about the topics I am teaching and not pigeonholed into curriculums that lack creativity. I will continue to supplement my teaching with meaningful moments and consider the link emotion has within all we do in the learning environment.

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A challenge that I face including relatedness in the climate and culture of my learning environment are the fact my own children are 20 and 16 and I do not know a lot of the newer, pop culture references to tie them into our day. I know some of the social media slang and they are always mortified by my use of it!

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As a TA, I can incorporate options for students to earn choice time. In UPK we often do brain breaks and then a calmer yoga one. They work really well to help the students regulate themselves and be ready to sit and listen.

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This book study helped me see that emotion and learning go hand in hand. If we help our students find the ways to learn and understand the material, and give them support, it helps build confidence in them and sends them into a deeper understanding of the learning material.

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The challenges I face in our building is the lack of support most of our students have at home. Many students don't experience the "normal" upbringing and I struggle with wanting to help save them all.

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Modeling is very important when it comes to math. I always do a few problems with them, give them time to complete the rest , and if need be model again.

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Emotions can fuel or hinder learning.

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The beginning of the year is crucial to building relatedness. I focus only on building relationships, showing my students my room is a safe place, and mutual respect the first two days. This continues along with academics. Having set that tone, there are few times I have to speak to them behaviorally.

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I can provide students with choices in the classroom. Choices in their physical and academic environments. I provide students opportunities to work individually, in a group, standing, sitting, etc. I present a regimented but approachable teaching style as well.

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I have been reminded that emotions are essential to learning. This is what will engage our students...they must buy into the class and curriculum with emotions. Then learning will be a more fulfilling experience.

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I feel students struggle with trust issues when we are working to build a positive learning environment together; one in which all students can feel comfortable to share their thoughts. Students have developed an internal fear of facing challenges and change so they try to protect themselves by not being open minded and opening themselves up to new opportunities. My ability to build and create a trusting environment in the classroom is what can propel them into wanting to step out of comfort zones and build confidence by trying new things.

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As the librarian, I can ensure that the library has a diverse range of books that support all learners, encompassing a wide range of emotions, interests, and reading levels. I can display books and titles that are mirrors and windows for students and make sure that I have high interest/low level titles. I can carve out a space for anyone in the library and find something that can connect/relate to them.

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No, because I have done many book studies that emphasize this same concept. Most of the books I have read in the past mainly focused on trauma and how it affects the brain, emotions, and learning. I have found this book to focus strictly on emotion and engagement without the trauma. Both are informative and helpful.

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Relationships and connections are a huge part of a school culture, especially where I work. We are always focusing on the Positivity Project and emphasizing how our words and actions affect others. Absenteeism is an epidemic in our county and the value of an education no longer seems to a priority. When I research ideas, incentives and programs online about how to get kids to attend school, they all emphasize the importance of relatedness.

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Options I incorporate into my schedule is free gym time or outside time. It gets the kiddos moving and a break from work.

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I have learned that emotions are directly connected to learning. The emotional environment of the classroom directly effects the learning experience for the student.

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The challenges I experience in our building is the amount of behaviors from the students. The numbers are growing each year with effects gen Ed learning.

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I have SEL in my classroom/office, so I have to have a routine that is the same for each class. I always start with "the question of the day", it can be fun or a serious question. Then we do high's and low's of the day. All of my SEL lessons are in the afternoon so the students always have something to share. I always end the class with some sort of motivational quote. Having a basic routine is huge for students.

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I have always known that emotions are tied into learning but there is always a time and a place. The ability to control ones emotions in a appropriate way is where I connect with the students. Making them feel safe and heard will be their steps to being successful. Some, as we know, are a little tougher to crack but building that trust and relationship will be something the students will never forget. I want to be that person for them. The ability to remember those teachers I had that had a profound effect on me is huge.

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I struggle with how the kids are being raised. I really have to remember that parents are not raising their kids as I raised mine. There are different challenges with families and while I may not agree, its not the students fault. Starting from there, I will teach students everything and anything I can to help them. I also strongly encourage them to know that there is a great big world out there with endless possibilities and they should want to see it.

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I support classroom routines by providing options like visuals, models, and choice in how students show learning. These strategies reduce anxiety, promote independence, and help all students stay focused and engaged while meeting the demands and goals of daily classroom tasks.

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Engage the Brain helped me see that emotion isn’t separate from learning—it drives it. I now focus on creating emotionally safe, relevant lessons that spark curiosity and connection. When students feel valued and interested, their engagement and understanding deepen.

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One challenge I face in building relatedness is meeting the diverse emotional and social needs of my students. Some connect easily, while others take more time to feel comfortable and trust others. Balancing academics with time for relationship-building can also be difficult. I work to create a supportive climate by greeting students by name, encouraging collaboration, and promoting respect. As Posey emphasizes in Engage the Brain, students need emotional safety to learn. When they feel valued and connected, they are more engaged, willing to take risks, and help build a positive classroom culture where everyone can learn together.

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In the classroom, I can make sure needs are being met through multiple means of engagement. Students can express themselves using a variety of tools, physical and virtual manipulatives, white boards, drawing an illustration ect.

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Emotions are a part of learning, growing, and becoming civilized people. I have always known this, but this text reminds me that emotions aren't something to hide. It is a natural part of being a human.

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Sometimes the lack of background knowledge can be a barrier, however, this simply takes time and patience.

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As a counselor I would like to start to support and help the upper elementary students learn to organize materials (lockers), and learn to study. These are life skills that will help kids for their entire academic career. Once kids hit 5th grade I feel like they are expected to “study” and organize but how much of this is taught? I think I could help with some executive functioning skills that would support goals, demands, and routines for the upper grade levels.

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I really like how Posey tells us in chapter 7 that teaching is emotional work and that it must be in order to be effective. I agree with the statement on page 146; “you feel personally responsible for every single success and failure of your students; you even dream about them. As a school counselor my work is always emotional but I enjoyed the perspective of adding emotions to teaching from a teacher’s point of view.

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Since relatedness is a part of the overall culture and climate of a classroom. I am often just a guest that visits the classroom and the culture and climate is often out of my hands. It is hard to have much of an influence. I only would get involved with relatedness if there was a problem or if students were not valuing variability. Then I could support creating a more connected culture and climate along with the teacher.

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I can incorporate flexible options into my classroom environment. I can incorporate more visuals, checklists, timers, movement breaks, organized space, etc...

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I have learned that emotion is not separate from learning...it drives it and is the starting point for learning.

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One challenge that I face is student backgrounds and experiences. When talking about a topic, I have some students who have never left Ogdensburg. Another challenge is time and academic load.