There’s a kind of shift that happens in schools, and at home, that’s hard to explain if you haven’t felt it yourself.

Everything looks normal on the surface.

The routine is the same.

The plan hasn’t changed.

And yet… something feels off.

A student walks in quieter than usual.

A child comes home holding something they can’t quite name.

The room feels heavier, even though no one has said anything out loud.

If you work with tweens.

If you live with one.

If you care for kids in that in-between space where emotions move faster than words…

You’ve probably seen this.

Not the full story.

Just the moment where learning, connection, and safety seem to slip slightly out of alignment.

This week’s podcast sits inside that space.

Not to fix it.

Not to analyze anyone.

But to stay with the moment long enough to notice what’s really being asked of the adults in the room.

It’s a conversation about what quietly competes with learning…

and what it takes to respond with steadiness when emotions arrive first.

If this feels familiar, you’re not alone.

And you’re not imagining it.

If this resonates, I invite you to listen.

After a school break, many tweens and teens return to the classroom:

• Looking unmotivated, disconnected, or shut down.
• Homework goes missing.
• Work feels overwhelming.
• Some students freeze, avoid tasks, or ask to leave the room altogether.

In this episode of Bouncing Back with Karen Brisport, Karen helps parents and educators understand what’s really happening beneath these behaviors, and why they’re not signs of laziness or defiance.

Drawing on her background as a school counselor, Karen explains how breaks can disrupt routines, confidence, and academic stamina, making learning feel hard again.

You’ll learn how to decode common post-break behaviors, re-establish classroom routines with compassion, and support students as they rebuild focus and engagement.

Karen shares practical, trauma-informed strategies for easing students back into learning, strengthening home-school partnerships, and recognizing effort in ways that restore confidence and connection.

This conversation is a reminder that when adults respond with understanding instead of pressure, students feel safer, and learning can begin again.

Returning to school after a break can feel unexpectedly emotional for middle schoolers and the adults who support them. In this episode of Bouncing Back with Karen Brisport, Karen explores why the transition back to routine is often bittersweet for tweens and teens.

Karen breaks down what’s really happening beneath irritability, overwhelm, and big reactions to small problems, explaining how freedom, structure, and a developing nervous system collide at the start of a new school period. She offers trauma-informed insight into why these behaviors make sense developmentally and how adults can respond with empathy without lowering expectations.

Parents and educators will walk away with practical, compassionate strategies to help middle schoolers regulate stress, feel emotionally safe, and rebuild routines at a healthy pace. This episode is a reassuring reminder that with connection, validation, and consistency, families and classrooms can move through transitions and bounce back stronger together.