As children return to the structure of classrooms and old routines, some may be experiencing re-entry anxiety. This anxiety reflects an understandable uneasiness about letting go of some of the practices and behaviors that kept us safer during COVID-19. In addition to new classroom safety restrictions, which can heighten stress, ancillary pandemic adjustments may make this transition more challenging. Younger children, who have spent the pandemic in close contact with their parent, may experience difficulty separating, while some older children may be carrying the weight of their parents' anxieties, in addition to their own.
Teachers are highly skilled professionals who support the academic, social, and emotional development of children with diverse needs and skills, and this year, those needs are magnified.
Here are some strategies to help teachers reduce students' anxiety in the classroom. Whether it is a little one in kindergarten or a high-school teen, these strategies can help ease their worry.
Prioritize mental health. Emotions drive attention. When a child is struggling to manage their emotions or behavior, it becomes difficult for them to absorb information. There's never been a better a time to teach emotion regulation and stress management in the classroom. Try these quick and simple calming activities to help the children make their brains available to learn:
-
Have students draw an outline of a body and identify where in their body they feel various feelings. This helps them tune into muscle tension, increasing heart rate, or shallow breathing that sets the stage for learning what to do to calm their nervous system.
-
Use a drawing of a thermometer and have students rate their stress or the intensity of a feeling. Encourage them to practice different calming strategies then rate their feelings before and after to see what works best for them.
-
Teach different deep breathing strategies such as breathing in through the nose, pausing, and then slowly breathing out through the mouth. Kids often need creative and concrete ways to engage with these strategies such as pretending to blow bubbles as slowly and as big as they can. Many enjoy using 5-finger breathing, in which the child spreads the fingers of one hand out like a star and then uses the index finger of the opposite hand to trace their hand. Starting from the base of the thumb, have children breathe in through the nose as they trace upward to the tip of the thumb, pausing at the tip while holding their breath, and then breathing out slowly as they trace down the other side. Repeat on each finger.
Focus on connection. A strong child-teacher relationship has a long-lasting impact on a child's academic and social-emotional wellbeing. Navigating the needs of large classes can make providing individual attention a challenge, but the investment pays huge dividends. Try these tips:
-
Establish a personal connection with each student by learning some of their preferred hobbies, likes and dislikes.
-
Flip the script about what being called to talk to the teacher means. Have short but meaningful one-on-one meetings with students to provide support, learning reflection, positive feedback, and connection time.
Create ritual. To help students feel safe, teachers can focus on creating predictability in their classrooms. Begin the day with rituals such as deep breathing or gratitude exercises. Include frequent movement breaks throughout the day. Movement can be a helpful way to complete the stress cycle and return our nervous systems to their "rest and digest" state. Encourage discussion of feelings and create safe spaces for children to go to when overwhelmed. These rituals can be grounding to children and help them know what to expect. In times of uncertainty, having the element of predictability is an incredible and rare gift.
Take time. Recognize and acknowledge that adjusting to in-person learning will take longer for some children. Everyone adjusts at their own pace. Reflect openly to students how it may take time to readjust to being back in the classroom and that's okay.
Take care of yourself . Remember to extend compassion to yourself as a teacher. Teachers have been placed in a difficult situation and are managing the best they can. Acknowledge you are doing your best and focus on what you have control over. Practicing the fundamentals of self-care, such as proper sleep, exercise, and nutrition, is key, in addition to identifying and engaging your systems of support (a friend, family member, or therapist, for example). As a teacher, having an outlet for your voice to be heard and validated can increase your sense of perceived support and resilience.
