What to Expect

The RULER Institute Online consists of six weeks of interactive learning in which attendees (a team of 3 to 5 leaders and educators from a school) commit to roughly 2 hours of participation per week. One of the two hours each week is a weekly live sessions with RULER trainers, which includes discussions with other training participants and planning for school-wide implementation. These sessions are recorded in case they cannot be attended live. The other hour per week can be completed on one’s own time and includes discussion boards, reflections, readings, and viewing of short videos. 

The training covers the principles, skills, and tools developed at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence to support individual growth and to improve school climate through social and emotional learning. During the training, school teams prepare for bringing RULER back to their school, starting with how they will train the rest of their school staff.

Please watch our video for more information>>  RULER Institute Online informational video

Sample Training Schedule 

WEEK TOPICS
Welcome and Orientation
  • Getting Started: Training Overview and Logistics
  • Introduction to RULER 
  • Personal Introductions
  • Working in Teams
Week 1:  Emotional Intelligence & RULER
  • Live webinar with Dr. Marc Brackett 
  • Defining Emotions and the “Emotions Matter” Mindset
  • The RULER Skills
  • The RULER Approach
Week 2:  Charter – Building and Sustaining Positive Emotional Climates 
  • Creating a Positive Climate with the Charter
  • Building Your Charter
  • “Living” Your Charter
  • Practice and Planning for Charter Implementation
Week 3:  Mood Meter – Enhancing RULER Skills
  • Introduction to the Mood Meter
  • Recognizing, Understanding, and Labeling with the Mood Meter
  • Expressing & Regulating with the Mood Meter
  • Practice and Planning for Mood Meter Implementation
Week 4:  Meta-Moment – Putting Our Best Self Forward 
  • Introduction to the Meta-Moment
  • Your Best Self 
  • Practice and Planning for Meta-Moment Implementation
Week 5:  Blueprint – Resolving Conflict and Restoring Communities 
  • Introduction to the Blueprint, Conflict, and Empathy
  • The Blueprint Reflection
  • The Blueprint Conference
  • Practice and Planning for Blueprint Implementation
Week 6: Putting It All Together: Planning for Implementation In Your School
  • Next Steps
  • “Graduating” to the RULER Online Platform
  • Planning Your RULER Rollout
A RULER-trained school’s administration, faculty, and staff have access to the RULER Online implementation support platform called RULER Online. RULER Online features staff learning modules, interactive web tools, webinars, and classroom curricular content organized by grade level (preK to 12). The platform also features hundreds of resources including video demos, audio reflections, and guidance on distance learning, practicing mindfulness, engaging and educating families about RULER, and helping students and staff through difficult conversations and traumatic experiences. Monthly RULER newsletters provide recommendations on sequencing meeting content and resources to use in small or large groups throughout the year. 

Please watch the videos below to learn more about RULER Online. 
Staff Personal and Professional Development 

Based on research and what has worked best in hundreds of other RULER schools, we recommend spending about a year on staff/faculty development before bringing RULER skills and tools to your students. This is so that all of the adults in the school can really practice “living” RULER practices before infusing them into the classroom. During the last week of training, you will gain access to two important resources that will guide your school’s RULER rollout planning: 

RULER Implementation Planning Guide
  • This guide provides you with suggested activities to complete during your school’s first phase of implementation, which is devoted to staff development. This resource provides you with activities organized by topic, as well as the recommended approach and duration for each. There are a few blank areas on the schedule for you to complete with your implementation team. 
RULER Online platform
  • Your RULER school’s administration, faculty, and staff have access to the RULER Online platform, which contains collections of staff meeting facilitation guides and hundreds of resources on RULER topics designed to guide groups of school staff in conversations and skill-building activities around emotions, emotional intelligence, and school climate and culture, as well as learning modules that can be completed independently or as a group. The RULER Online platform houses all pre-K to 12 RULER classroom content, as well as family engagement and education materials for Phase 2 of RULER implementation. Check out our RULER Online video for more information.
Family Awareness

In phase 1 of RULER implementation, we recommend generating awareness with parents and caregivers about your school’s commitment to RULER. We recommend sharing information about how RULER helps children develop the social and emotional skills that will benefit them across their lives, as well as how RULER aligns with Common Core Standards, equity and culturally responsive pedagogy, and your school mission. Below are some examples of resources your educators can share with parents and caregivers to create awareness about RULER.
Classroom Implementation

After the adults in a school community have adopted RULER and can serve as role models to the students, they are ready to introduce RULER to students. All pre-K to 12 classroom instruction materials exist in an electronic format on RULER Online. RULER is designed to be adapted for use in various classroom contexts and the diverse students within them, giving educators opportunities to embed culturally responsive reading material, current events, and real-life examples, that will resonate with their students’ lives.

Early Childhood

Designed for pre-kindergarten students ages 3 to 5, RULER for Early Childhood is a developmentally appropriate approach to teaching students to utilize the five skills of emotional intelligence. Learn more about RULER for Early Childhood in this video. 

All classroom curricula are located on RULER Online, the online implementation support platform that all staff and faculty in your school or organization may access with an active RULER Training and Implementation Support Package or RULER Subscription.

Elementary School

RULER for Elementary School (K-5) is a developmentally appropriate and comprehensive curriculum that contextualizes and builds students’ emotional intelligence within their experience of the world. Each grade consists of 18 units, which include both units on strengthening emotion skills and units focused on building emotion vocabulary. Learn more about RULER for Elementary School in this video.

All classroom curricula are located on RULER Online, the online implementation support platform that all staff and faculty in your school or organization may access with an active RULER Training and Implementation Support Package or RULER Subscription. Please click the links below to access sample classroom instruction.

Middle School

RULER for Middle School (grades 6 – 8) aims to contextualize students’ understanding of emotions and emotional intelligence within their understanding of the real world. It is comprised of five units per grade, and each unit culminates in a content-specific, standards-aligned project. Learn more about RULER for Middle School in this video.

All classroom curricula are located on RULER Online, the online implementation support platform that all staff and faculty in your school or organization may access with an active RULER Training and Implementation Support Package or RULER Subscription. Please click the links below to access sample classroom instruction.

High School

The RULER for High School (grades 9-12) classroom instruction is a flexible curriculum that can be implemented in unique ways to meet the needs of your school. The curriculum is divided into four years, with each year offering 20 lessons that cover topics related to grade-appropriate student development in the skills of emotional intelligence. Learn more about RULER for High School in this video.

All classroom curricula are located on RULER Online, the online implementation support platform that all staff and faculty in your school or organization may access with an active RULER Training and Implementation Support Package or RULER Subscription. Please click the link below to access sample classroom instruction.

Family Engagement

Now that your school staff has laid the foundation in Phase 1, it’s time to empower students and actively engage families in RULER implementation. Our RULER for Families resources explain what classroom implementation will look like in the school, and provide opportunities for families to learn about the RULER Tools. Below are some example resources that support the introduction of student implementation, updates about RULER throughout the year, and student-led RULER activities that can be used at home. Please click the link below to access sample RULER for Families content.

Selecting the SEL approach that is right for your school community is an important exercise. RULER integrates seamlessly with many other school-based initiatives and its goals and methods overlap with those of other SEL and character education programs. In general, RULER becomes the backdrop for all initiatives, providing a common language and a positive and safe climate in which to teach other academic and SEL topics.

RULER aligns with CASEL’s SEL Framework. For more information, please review our SEL Competencies Crosswalk.

Next Steps

Attending a RULER training is the first step for schools (pre-K to 12) looking to implement RULER. Our training institutes focus on building a growth mindset and common language around emotions, skill development in emotional intelligence, and the building and sustaining of positive social and emotional climates where all stakeholders in the school feel empowered to learn, work, and achieve.

We invite you to join us for our next RULER Institute Online or RULER Institute at Yale. For more information, please visit the training page on our website and download our brochure.