Practice

The 4 People in Schools Who Students Are Most Likely to Call a Mentor

By Arianna Prothero, Reprinted from EducationWeek Ask educators and they’ll tell you that their students’ motivation to work hard and try their best in school is suffering. Eighty percent of teachers, principals, and district leaders surveyed in early 2023 by the EdWeek Research Center said that the pandemic had made their students less motivated. Mentoring […]

Building connections to amplify student voice

By Grace Kuo, Reprinted from along How can inputs from students help educators understand what is or isn’t resonating in their classroom instruction? This key question centered discussion at a workshop moderated by Along leaders at the recent ASU + GSV Summit. Educators say that student inputs are a critical component to building engagement and […]

The Power of a 45-Second Investment in Relationship Building

A short, positive interaction with a student at the start of the school year can pay off all year long. By Lindsay Kervan, Reprinted from edutopia Six years ago, I started an experiment where I spoke with each student during the first week of school. I learned that this 45-second investment in each student, coupled […]

Guide to Being an Ally to Transgender and Nonbinary Young People

By and reprinted from The Trevor Project Welcome! The first step to becoming an ally to transgender and nonbinary people is to learn more; thank you for taking that step with us! It can be tough for transgender and nonbinary people to bear the burden of educating others about their lived experience. Our Guide to […]

Lessons From Generation Work on Incorporating Positive Youth Development Into Employment Training

By Kristin Anderson Moore, Hannah Lantos, and Zakia Redd, Reprinted from Child Trends Moore, K.A., Lantos, H., & Redd, Z. (2023). Lessons from Generation Work on incorporating positive youth development into employment training. Child Trends.  https://www.childtrends.org/blog/lessons-from-generation-work-on-incorporating-positive-youth-development-into-employment-training Generation Work, an initiative launched by the Annie E. Casey Foundation in 2016, aims to connect more of America’s […]

Surviving to Thriving: Developmental Relationships Are the Antidote to Youth Loneliness

By and Reprinted from the Search Institute Loneliness has reached epidemic levels in the United States, and it is hitting our young people hard. It’s a double punch for youth who have already experienced so much loss and isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. There’s no vaccine for loneliness. So what is the answer to the […]

Relationship-Building Behaviors: An Antidote to Loneliness

By Amanda Davis, Reprinted from the National Mentoring Resource Center Loneliness and social isolation have plagued young people in our society long before the COVID-19 pandemic. A national study conducted by Cigna in 2018 found that Gen Z was the loneliest generation in the U.S., with nearly 50% of young people surveyed reporting that they […]

6 tips for talking about Pride month and LGBTQ+ rights with kids

By Ashley Austrew, Reprinted from care Any time is a good time to talk to kids about what it means to be lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and/or questioning (LGBTQ+), but June is an especially important opportunity to get the conversation started. June is Pride month, which commemorates the anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion and […]

Research highlights the importance of a sense of “belonging” in school

By Monika Raniti, Divyangana Rakesh, & Susan M. Sawyer, Reprinted from The Conversation About one in five young Australians will experience a mental health problem like depression or anxiety each year. The COVID pandemic has only intensified mental health concerns in young people. In Australia, decades of investment in early intervention and treatment services have […]

Search Institute: Understanding the connection between developmental assets and developmental relationships

By and Reprinted from the Search Institute Young people are not problems to be solved. Nor are they defined by their risks or challenges. Every person has a wealth of strength and resilience, both within themselves and in their families and communities. But not everyone has equal access to the supports that nurture and grow […]