Most of us are familiar with the positive mental and physical benefits of playing sports: regular exercise, strong social bonds with teammates, and a way to relieve stress and anxiety. Being an athlete builds positive character strengths and develops leadership skills that translate to other areas of life. Even though sports can be a gateway to student-athletes’ happiness and well-being, when athletes face an injury that sidelines them from the competition, their emotional and social well-being and sense of identity may be negatively impacted. The stress, pressure, and high expectations that athletes face daily can be draining. As coaches, role models, and leaders, we need to advocate for our student-athletes and make mental health a priority in athletics.

Kids need us to be brave so that they can be brave. When I’m feeling fearful and uncomfortable, that’s usually the biggest sign that my students need to have the very conversation I’m afraid to have. This resource, which I call “The Do’s and Don’ts of Facilitating Brave Conversations with Kids,” is a compilation of best practices that I call myself to return to when I’m opting for a silence. I invite all educators and caregivers to join me in this charge.

For most of my career, my mantra regarding avoidance of difficulty has been, “Don’t let children believe ‘The world is dangerous,’ or ‘I can’t handle it.’ One of the problems with the COVID-19 crisis is that some activities that were previously considered normal and non-threatening (e.g. shaking hands, hugging your friends, going to school) are now considered dangerous. We are all navigating this new and seemingly ever-changing environment, determining what parts of the world are actually “dangerous.” So, my focus this year will be on the second statement, “I can’t handle it,” and helping children, adolescents, and adults replace that with a more resilient statement such as, “I can handle it,” “I got this,” or “We can do this.” At home, parents can, and should, adopt these mantras, too, so children can build resilience to handle uncertainty.

Research shows that Social Emotional Learning (SEL) programs like Shipley’s Social, Emotional, Ethical Development (SEED) program can positively impact children’s mental health, social skills, and academic performance. (Taylor, Rebecca D., et al. “Promoting Positive Youth Development Through School-Based Social and Emotional Learning Interventions: A Meta-Analysis of Follow-Up Effects.” Society for Research in Child Development, Inc., 2017, https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12864.) That’s why we devote class time in each grade to this important subject area. In Shipley’s Lower School SEED classes, teacher Betsy Leschinsky (“Mrs. L,” as her students affectionately call her) uses storybooks to anchor her lessons.