Many educators are already familiar with core DBT skills like mindfulness and distress tolerance, but how do we go beyond traditional interventions to address persistent classroom anxiety? This session will introduce innovative, real-time DBT-based strategies that foster autonomy, build resilience, and encourage emotional regulation in students struggling with anxiety. This session will be interactive and solution-focused, giving teachers new, creative approaches to help anxious students break avoidance cycles and build confidence while maintaining academic rigor and classroom flow.
Teachers often see students with depression disengage, withdraw, or struggle with academic persistence. While DBT’s core skills—validation, opposite action, and behavioral activation—are essential, what happens when those aren't enough? This session will go deeper, offering creative DBT-informed strategies to help students reconnect, re-engage, and find momentum, even when motivation is low. This session will move beyond traditional encouragement and validation to provide actionable, classroom-friendly interventions that increase engagement, reduce shutdowns, and help students build a sense of agency in their learning.
School avoidance is one of the most complex challenges educators face, often driven by a mix of anxiety, depression, executive dysfunction, and environmental triggers. While exposure therapy and behavioral contracts can help, what if students refuse to engage? This session goes beyond traditional DBT approaches to explore creative, flexible strategies that encourage school reintegration without reinforcing avoidance patterns. By blending behavioral science, real-world classroom strategies, and DBT-based interventions, this session will provide educators with practical ways to guide students back to school, build emotional resilience, and sustain attendance success. Participants do not need to attend Part 2, if it doesn’t work for their schedule.
School avoidance is one of the most complex challenges educators face, often driven by a mix of anxiety, depression, executive dysfunction, and environmental triggers. While exposure therapy and behavioral contracts can help, what if students refuse to engage? This session goes beyond traditional DBT approaches to explore creative, flexible strategies that encourage school reintegration without reinforcing avoidance patterns. By blending behavioral science, real-world classroom strategies, and DBT-based interventions, this session will provide educators with practical ways to guide students back to school, build emotional resilience, and sustain attendance success. Participants do not need to attend Part 1, if it doesn’t work for their schedule.
