Permission to Feel
By Marc Brackett
ABOUT THE BOOK
For this second F-M community read, FM Zen members selected Permission to Feel by Marc Brackett, Ph.D., founder and director of the Yale University Center for Emotional Intelligence. After reading Brackett’s book in Summer of 2020, some district faculty also participated in an inservice opportunity offered by Yale University based on the book, led by Dana Pierce, school counselor and facilitator of F-M Zen.
Why this book for the Big Read?
For so long in education, and in our society, our emotional health has taken a back seat to things like academic achievement and personal “success”. We all feel, we have emotions, and yet, many of us fail to embrace this very part of us that makes us most human. Emotions tell us what to pay attention to and what to remember; in truth, emotions are essential for learning. Marc Brackett encourages us to become “emotion scientists” who can learn to Recognize, Understand, Label, Express, and Regulate our emotions and thus be more able to thrive in every aspect of our lives. This is a challenging time in our world, and perhaps it’s the perfect time to learn about and begin to practice these skills in support of our students’ social emotional well-being and overall personal success.
What others are saying about Permission to Feel...
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"In Permission to Feel, Marc Brackett, a professor at Yale University’s Child Study Center and the founding director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, presents an evidence-based approach to managing our emotions. He makes a persuasive case that our feelings aren’t impediments but provide important information that can change of our lives for the better – when we give ourselves permission to feel them.
Building on his own early life experiences and his work in the field of emotional Intelligence, Brackett has developed a simple and effective plan to improve the lives of children and adults. He provides a system for understanding our emotions and using them wisely so that they help, rather than hinder, our success and well-being. By integrating psychological research, educational practice, and compelling stories, his book is a guide to understanding your emotions as a key to unlocking your fullest potential" (Psychology Today).
