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Atlanta Public Schools, a large and diverse district serving nearly 50,000 students, is showing how a thoughtful, data-informed approach can transform school climate and academic outcomes.

The primary goal of Second Step® Middle School is to equip students with the skills, knowledge, and mindsets that will help them successfully navigate adolescence. During adolescence, individuals experience great changes in their brain, body, and environment. These changes come with challenges as well as opportunities. A central task for adolescents is to understand who they are and develop a coherent sense of self (Erikson, 1968; Marcia, 1980). In addition, adolescents need to learn skills, knowledge, and mindsets that will help them grow into competent individuals and members of society. Research in developmental neuroscience shows that while the brain network in charge of emotional development abruptly becomes more assertive during adolescence, the brain network in charge of reasoning and cognitive control matures at a slower pace (Steinberg, 2007). This sometimes-volatile combination contributes to social-emotional distress (Rapee et al., 2019), interpersonal conflicts (Collins & Steinberg, 2006), and risk-taking (Steinberg, 2004).

Second Step® High School helps school leaders and classroom educators work with students to co-develop learning conditions that provide students with a positive school climate, adaptive experiences and mindsets, and skills and knowledge for navigating adolescence. It uses research-based approaches that support adolescents’ social-emotional development. Research indicates that for social-emotional learning programs for older students, strategies aimed at changing school climate and adolescents’ perceptions of themselves and their world via new experiences are generally more effective than direct skill instruction (Yeager, 2017). So Second Step High School combines all three of the following to promote effective adolescent social-emotional development.

In this webinar, district leaders from Acton-Boxborough Regional School District discuss the holistic approach to choosing a curriculum and how to implement leadership principles in the pilot process. Learn about the Curriculum Review Workbook from Committee for Children, the creators of Second Step® programs, and how it empowers district and school leaders to enhance their programs to improve student outcomes in their school communities.

Balancing screen time and well-being is crucial in our digital landscape. Explore strategies to promote mindfulness, and see how digital tools can support emotional growth.

Looking for great gift ideas? Our Second Step® educators have got you covered. Check out their favorite children’s books that entertain and model essential skills.

Human skills programs can help students build skills that aid them in the challenging but essential process of building literacy.

When teachers faithfully implement human skills programs, they’ll more likely see student outcomes like improved academic skills, prosocial behaviors, and overall well-being.