Welcome Back, Teachers!

Starting the Year with CALM

It’s that magical time of year again - the hum of students reconnecting and the buzz of new beginnings! As we step into a new school year, the CALM Curriculum is here to help you start strong with reminders from your training and activities in the CALM Kit. Grounded in Social Emotional Learning (SEL) to support students in building self-awareness, emotional regulation, empathy, and resilience—skills that are just as critical as academics for lifelong success.

Here are a few reminders and tips to weave CALM into your first weeks back:

1. Connection over Content Before diving into academics, focus on relationship-building. Greet students by name, learn a fact about each of them, and create moments where they feel seen and valued. Using the CALM Say Hello Board is a great way to help students open up and share their morning start with you.

2. SEL Routines Morning check-ins and gratitude circles are powerful daily rituals. Even a two-minute emotion check with CALM's tools, such as the Energy Gauge can help students share and prepare to learn.

3. Normalizing emotions When students can recognize and name their emotions, they become more prepared and empowered to manage them. You can use the CALM Emotion Boards, Books, and Songs to develop and expand their emotional vocabulary, making conversations about feelings more routine.

4. Celebrate Small Wins SEL growth often unfolds gradually, through consistent practice and engagement. Incorporating songs, games, and hands-on activities—like those found in the Melvin & Friends Songs & Games Book —helps children internalize key SEL skills in fun and meaningful ways. Whether it's a child showing empathy during a game, singing along to a song about emotions, or completing a small act of kindness, these moments are powerful indicators that your efforts are making a real impact. Celebrate these small wins—they're the building blocks of lasting emotional growth.

5. Be the CALM you want to See Students mirror our energy. Practice your own regulation and self compassion strategies—deep breathing, mindful pauses, or stretching breaks—so they see calmness in action. Consider narrating your strategies (“I’m taking a breath to reset”) so they learn by example.

As you head into the school year, we remind you that SEL isn’t “one more thing”—it’s the foundation for everything. A classroom that feels safe, connected, and CALM is a place where students are ready to learn and thrive. Share our Free 2-Part CALM Connection Series with the parents of your new students, so that they too have more insight in your classroom activities.

Here’s to a year filled with curiosity, compassion, and calm. Welcome back—you’ve got this!