Supporting Learning and Well-Being During the Coronavirus Crisis
Our Message to Educators
We send our heartfelt support to you and your loved ones—including your students—during this extraordinary moment in time.
It’s no surprise that teachers across the globe are rising to the occasion and educating their students, whether connecting online, sharing activity packets, recording read-alouds, or inventing other creative teaching methods—while taking care of their own loved ones and trying to stay healthy.
Because that’s what teachers do—and we acknowledge you with gratitude and awe.
In support of your efforts, we have compiled Greater Good in Education practices and other resources that offer ways to address student and adult anxiety in this time of uncertainty, and that cultivate our human connection through kindness, compassion, and other prosocial qualities. If there is something you need or that you think will benefit others, please do not hesitate to reach out to us.
As educators we know that classrooms in the future may look back at this time and wonder what it was like to live through this. May the memories brought forward be filled with those moments where we took care of each other—and may those moments become not just memories, but our new reality.
Practices for Educators and Parents
Practices for Student Learning
- Honoring World and Community for Elementary Students
- Honoring World and Community for Secondary Students
- Discover Your Purpose: Eight Practices for Middle School, High School and College
- Contemplation and Creativity
- SEL Lessons for Online Learning (Grades K-2)
- SEL Lessons for Online Learning (Grades 3-5)
- SEL Lessons for Online Learning (Middle School)
- SEL Lessons for Online Learning (High School)
Practices for Parents to Try
Practices to Support Student Mental Health and Well-Being
- Addressing Stress and Anxiety in Elementary Students
- Addressing Stress and Anxiety in Middle/High School Students
- Addressing Stress and Anxiety in College Students
Practices to Support Educator Mental Health and Well-Being
Practices for Staying Connected
Other Greater Good Resources for Educators and Parents
Greater Good Articles for Educators
- How to Teach Online So All Students Feel Like They Belong: Educators can foster belonging and inclusion for all students, even online.
- Can the Lockdown Push Schools in a Positive Direction?: Here are five ways that COVID-19 could change education for the better.
- How to Support Teachers’ Emotional Needs Right Now: Schools can develop a plan to help teachers who are feeling anxious and overwhelmed.
- How Teachers Can Navigate Difficult Emotions During School Closures: Here are some tools for staying calm and centered amid the coronavirus crisis.
- How Colleges Today Are Supporting Students’ Mental Health: Colleges and universities are addressing well-being in students with new and innovative approaches.
- How Self-Compassion Can Help Teens De-stress: Teen stress is on the rise, especially now. According to a new study, learning mindfulness and self-compassion can help teens cope.
- Five Ways to Support Students Affected by Trauma: Teachers can help students recognize their strengths and build resilience.
- How to Stay Empathic without Suffering So Much: Four steps to a healthier, more helpful, and more sustainable form of empathy.
- Four Ways to Gain Perspective on Negative Events: Here are four simple techniques for “self-distancing,” a research-tested way to break cycles of rumination and recrimination.
- How to Support Stressed-Out Teachers: Teachers who work with traumatized students may suffer from chronic stress and vicarious trauma—without even realizing it. Here are some things school leaders can do to help them.
Greater Good Articles to Share with Parents
- Will the Pandemic Have a Lasting Impact on My Kids?: Research on wars, natural disasters, and other crises reveals how to protect our children’s mental health.
- How to Reduce the Stress of Homeschooling on Everyone: A school psychologist offers advice to parents on how to support their child during school closures.
- Science of Happiness Podcast Episode 64: Helping Kids Think About the Good: Sheltering-at-home with kids? These questions can help them, and us, focus on the good things in life.
- How to Help Teens Handle the Loss of Proms and Graduations: Losing these ceremonies is a big deal. We need to help them grieve.
- How to Help Teens Shelter in Place: Teens are not made for isolation, which makes COVID-19 especially hard on them. Here’s how to help your teenager to see the bigger picture.
- How School Closures Can Strengthen Your Family: Read three tips for how to cope if your kid’s school closes, from Christine Carter.
- Three Ways to Boost Your Resilience as a Parent: Take these steps to feel less overwhelmed.
- Why Parents Need a Little Self-Compassion: Here are three practices to bring a little mindfulness and calm to your busy day.
- Emotion Coaching: One of the Most Important Parenting Practices in the History of the Universe: Here are ways to help kids navigate challenging emotions now and in the future.
- How to Decipher the Emotions Behind Your Child’s Behaviors: Being open to your child’s thoughts and feelings can help with the trickiest parenting struggles.
Greater Good Videos
- How to Help Your Child’s Compassion Grow: Parents can encourage their kids to practice kindness and caring toward themselves and others.
- How to Help Your Kids Feel Loved: Loving bonds between parents and kids can help kids grow into compassionate adults.
- Train Your Brain to Be Kinder: Boost your kindness by sending kind thoughts to someone you love—and to someone you don’t get along with—with a little guidance from these students.
Practices
Do you want to dive deeper into the science behind our GGIE practices? Enroll in one of our online courses for educators!