Understanding Trauma and Building Resilient Learners Through Emotional Intelligence
Why This Course Matters
As educators, you are not psychologists, yet you often work with students whose behaviour and performance have been deeply shaped by trauma. This course offers teachers and educators essential tools to understand trauma’s impact and to support learners who are struggling, while maintaining balance and harmony in the classroom.
Using a trauma-informed lens, we explore how the autonomic nervous system and principles such as Polyvagal Theory influence emotional regulation and classroom dynamics. We examine how trauma responses – fight, flight, freeze and fawn – can appear in school and learn practical strategies to help students regulate emotions and feel safe enough to learn.
Participants are introduced to emotional intelligence tools and self-regulation techniques that they can use for themselves and their students. By learning to regulate their own emotional states, teachers are better positioned to support learners in doing the same. The course also provides concrete exercises and strategies for creating psychologically safe classrooms where trauma-affected students can grow and build resilience.
What Participants Learn
- Gain a clear understanding of trauma and how it affects student behaviour, learning and relationships.
- Develop emotional intelligence skills to better support students’ emotional wellbeing.
- Learn self-regulation strategies that reduce classroom disruptions and increase positive engagement.
- Be equipped to create safe, supportive classroom environments where high-risk and trauma-affected learners can thrive.
- Build empathy and compassion for students and colleagues, contributing to overall school wellbeing.
How the Course Works
Theory-based learning
Understanding trauma, Polyvagal Theory and the physiological aspects of emotional regulation.
Practical tools
Exercises and strategies to manage distress, promote emotional intelligence and encourage self-regulation.
Classroom scenarios and role-plays
Real-world applications of the content to address trauma responses and challenging behaviour in the classroom.
Group reflection and discussion
Participants share experiences, discuss challenges and co-develop strategies that fit their contexts.
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09:00–09:30 | Welcome, course overview and introductions
09:30–10:15 | What is trauma? Types of trauma and impact on learning
10:15–10:30 | Coffee break
10:30–11:30 | Recognising trauma in everyday classroom behaviour
11:30–12:30 | Reflection: participants’ experiences and first questions
12:30–13:30 | Group sharing and setting personal learning goals
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09:00–09:30 | Recap and warm-up activity
09:30–10:15 | Introduction to Polyvagal Theory and the autonomic nervous system
10:15–10:30 | Coffee break
10:30–11:30 | Fight, flight, freeze and fawn: how these responses show up in classrooms
11:30–12:30 | Case studies: linking theory to real student scenarios
12:30–13:30 | Designing simple regulation-supportive routines for your classroom
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09:00–09:30 | Recap and check-in
09:30–10:15 | Understanding emotional intelligence in teaching and learning
10:15–10:30 | Coffee break
10:30–11:30 | Tools for recognising and naming emotions in self and students
11:30–12:30 | Practical exercises for building emotional awareness and empathy
12:30–13:30 | Reflection: personal strengths and areas for growth
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09:00–09:30 | Recap and emotional warm-up activity
09:30–10:15 | Developing safe emotional language and classroom norms
10:15–10:30 | Coffee break
10:30–11:30 | Role-plays: responding to strong emotions and distress in students
11:30–12:30 | Strategies for creating psychologically safe spaces and promoting healthy expression
12:30–13:30 | Group work: designing emotional check-ins and routines
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09:00–09:30 | Recap and review of key concepts
09:30–10:15 | Linking trauma-informed practice and emotional intelligence to curriculum and school policy
10:15–10:30 | Coffee break
10:30–11:30 | Recommended tools, resources and supports for ongoing development
11:30–12:30 | Planning how to embed strategies into everyday teaching and school culture
12:30–13:30 | Peer feedback on individual and institutional plans
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09:00–09:30 | Recap and final questions
09:30–10:15 | Sharing key learnings and personal reflections
10:15–10:30 | Coffee break
10:30–11:30 | Cultural activity or local exploration linked to wellbeing and resilience
11:30–12:30 | Course evaluation and next steps
12:30–13:30 | Closure and networking
What Participants Take Back
- The ability to recognise trauma responses in themselves and their students.
- Practical self-regulation techniques to foster a calmer, more focused classroom environment.
- Emotional intelligence tools that strengthen student–teacher relationships and build psychologically safe spaces.
- Strategies to support students in learning to regulate their emotional states and navigate distressing situations.
- A clearer understanding of how to use trauma-informed principles, including Polyvagal Theory, to foster social connection and emotional growth in the classroom.
Course Format
- Duration: one-week course (5-6 training days). Alternative formats may be available on request.
- Daily workload: 5-6 hours per day, from 09:00 to 14:00, with one coffee break and several short transitions between activities.
- Language: English.
- Language requirement: participants should have at least an A2/B1 level of English to actively follow the training and take part in discussions and practical work.
- Digital level: no specific digital skills are required. This course focuses on dialogue, group work, and activity-based methods rather than digital tools.
- Equipment: participants are not required to bring laptops or tablets. Materials needed for activities (paper, markers, cards, etc.) are provided
- Target groups: teachers, trainers, youth workers, adult educators, school leaders, and other education professionals.
- Adaptation: examples and activities are adapted to participants’ areas of work, age groups and institutional contexts whenever possible.
- Funding fit: this course is designed to align with Erasmus+ KA1 staff mobility funding for SCH, ADU and VET participants, according to their approved budget and funding rules.
Course Fee
€80 per participant, per training day
This course fee is designed to align with Erasmus+ KA1 staff mobility funding for eligible SCH, ADU and VET participants.
Included in the course fee:
✔Tuition and training materials
✔Pre-arrival information
✔Location infopack
✔Coffee break
✔Training Certificate
✔Europass Certificate
✔Administrative and organisational support related to the course
Travel and Stay Support
We support participants with practical guidance before arrival so they can organise their mobility with more confidence.
We suggest:
✔Accommodation options such as hotels and apartments,
✔Local transportation information, and, airport transfer options,
✔ Half-day and full-day trip ideas, cultural activities and useful local recommendations.
These services are not directly provided by Colony of Creators unless explicitly confirmed in advance, but we do help participants identify the most suitable options for their stay and make the most of their Erasmus+ experience.
100% funded by the Erasmus Plus Program through your Erasmus+ SCH, ADU or VET grant.
Eligible institutions may use Erasmus+ KA1 mobility funding to cover course-related costs according to their approved budget and funding rules.
Request Information About This Erasmus+ AI Course
If you are a teacher, trainer, school leader or Erasmus+ coordinator interested in Smart Teaching: AI-Driven Solutions with ChatGPT and Beyond, use this form to request course details, dates, group options or support for Erasmus+ planning.
