When emotional distress interferes with learning, a classroom teacher can use some practical strategies to help a student work through the pain.

Teary-eyed, Jake approached Mrs. Olson's desk as soon as he entered the room. "What's wrong, Jake?" Mrs. Olson asked in a soft, concerned voice. "I couldn't find my cat this morning and when I was getting on the bus, Stevie pointed to a dead cat in the road and said, 'Hey, Jake. That's your cat.'"

Within seconds, the other first graders gathered around Jake. "What's wrong, lake?" "Why is Jake crying?" With her arm around Jake, Mrs. Olson drew him to the group area and invited the class to join them. "Jake's cat died. Let's talk about this. Has anyone else ever had a pet or someone they love die?"

Modeling caring behavior, role playing, and creating and enforcing classroom and school rules are all time-honored strategies used by teachers to create classroom environments that foster safety, empathy, a sense of belonging, and respect for self, others, and property. During times of crises in children's lives, these strategies are heightened in importance.

Administrators, classroom teachers, school counselors, psychologists, and other school staff members are expected-often without warning-to lead students through times of fear, anger, mistrust, and grief. Many education professionals experience feelings of inadequacy about how to handle difficult situations that arise in the lives of their students, and yet caring educators have responsibilities to students and to themselves during times of crisis.