Teacher nonverbal communication is important to the learning environment. The problem to be addressed throughout this study was how teacher nonverbal communication in the classroom influences student motivation and desire to learn. The purpose of this descriptive case study was to examine the impact teacher nonverbal communication has on at-risk student motivation in a middle school environment where Positive Behavioral Intervention Support (PBIS) was being implemented to help at-risk students with their behavior and motivation. The qualitative method worked best for this research because it studied a group of individuals through the use of observations, and interviews. The qualitative method allowed the researcher to use open ended data gathering techniques and build relationship with the subjects (Ducharme, 2014). The data collection strategy consisted of two anonymous interview surveys using Survey Monkey and a set of observations on the teacher participants. The secondary teacher participants from grades 6-8 in an rural school district in Virginia were asked open-ended questions about their perceptions of the impact nonverbal communication has on student motivation in the classroom as it is linked to eye-contact, facial expression and body movement. DeDoose software was used to analyze data. Various main themes and subthemes were extracted from the data collected by the researcher. The results indicated that teacher's nonverbal behavior such as eye-contact, smiling, and body movement had an impact on student's behavior. Two recommendations for practice included: (a) to survey students on their interest, likes, and dislikes about the learning environment and the curriculum; (b) to provide teacher training on teacher nonverbal communication, instructional strategies, and self-awareness to increase interaction with students to improve teacher-student relationships. Recommendations for future research included (a) a qualitative narrative study to explore teacher perceptions of how nonverbal communication impacts student motivation; (b) a quantitative study that involves teachers and students perceptions of how nonverbal communication impacts student motivation. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]