07/19/2025
“Can we please just have time to set up our rooms before sitting through a full day of PD?”
Teachers have been saying this for years.
And the science agrees.
What if we designed back-to-school professional development with the brain in mind?
Using Dr. Bruce Perry’s Sequence of Engagement—Regulate → Relate → Reason—we can reimagine what the first days back could look like:
✔️ Regulate: Allow teachers time to prepare their classrooms and settle in. A regulated nervous system is the foundation for meaningful engagement.
🤝 Relate: Create space to connect—especially for new staff—to build relationships, foster belonging, and strengthen collaborative bonds.
🧠Reason: Only after regulation and connection should we introduce cognitively demanding PD, mandatory trainings, or keynote speakers.
This isn’t about lowering expectations. It’s about sequencing experiences to match the brain’s optimal learning state.
If we want trauma-informed schools, we must begin with trauma-informed PD.
💬 Share this visual. Start a conversation with your leadership team. There’s a better way to begin the school year.
