💜 LET’S MAKE MIDDLE SCHOOL MAKE SENSE.
Middle School Matters.
Middle school is complicated. Together, we’ll make it make sense—with practical tools, ridiculous joy, and real hope.
🌞 SEL SUMMER CAMP In Partnership with Mightier
🌞 Week 1: 🧠 Adolescent Brains: My Kid Isn’t a Little Adult
⭐ Lesson 1 of 6
Middle schoolers aren’t just bigger kids.
They’re growing through one of the biggest brain and emotional changes of their lives. Dr. Jason Kahn and I explain what’s happening inside the adolescent brain and share practical strategies to help you connect before you correct.
🧠 “Connection before correction.”
📥 Free Family Download
Conversation Cards to Unstick Your Thinking
https://www.mightier.com/resources/conversation-cards-about-emotions-by-mightier/
Download this free activity from our friends at Mightier to help your family pause, reflect, and communicate more effectively during stressful moments. Suzanne isn’t paid to recommend Mightier—she simply believes it’s an incredible resource for families.
💜 See you next week!
Next Week: 📱 Are Screens Really the Problem?
🌞 SEL Summer Camp in Partnership with Mightier
📱 Week 2: Are Screens Evil or Not?
⭐ Lesson 2 of 6
Are screens really the villain—or are we asking the wrong question? From video games and social media to homework and group chats, technology is woven into nearly every part of a middle schooler’s life. In this episode, developmental scientist Dr. Jason Kahn and I explore how the adolescent brain responds to screens, why dopamine keeps kids coming back for more, and why banning technology isn’t the answer. You’ll discover practical, research-based strategies to reduce screen-time battles, strengthen family communication, and help your tween build a healthier relationship with technology—without fear, guilt, or endless power struggles.
📱 “Technology is a tool. Relationships teach us how to use it.”
📥 Free Family Download
Game Time Activity Pack &
Battery Blitz Board Game
https://www.mightier.com/resources/game-time-activity-pack-and-battery-blitz-board-game/
Keep the conversation going with this free activity pack from our friends at Mightier! You’ll find fun, interactive ways to help your child think about screen time, build self-regulation skills, practice healthy technology habits, and create family conversations that last long after the devices are turned off.
Transparency Statement
Suzanne isn’t paid to recommend Mightier—she simply believes it’s an incredible resource for families navigating the middle school years.
💜 See you next week!
🌊 Next Week…
Have you ever walked into a room and instantly felt someone else’s mood? What if emotions are actually contagious? Join us next week as we explore the fascinating science of emotions—and discover how understanding them can transform your family’s relationships.
🌞 SEL Summer Camp in Partnership with Mightier
🌊 Week 3: 💜 Oceans of Emotion: Why Feelings Come in Waves
⭐ Lesson 3 of 6
🌊 "Every wave eventually reaches the shore. Every emotion eventually changes."
Middle school emotions can feel like the ocean—calm one moment, stormy the next, and constantly changing with the tide. The good news? Emotions aren't problems to eliminate—they're important messages that help us understand ourselves and the people around us.
In this episode, licensed therapist Jessica Ragnio, MSW, LICSW joins me to explore why tweens experience emotions so intensely, what emotional "energy" and "pleasantness" (valence) really mean, and how families can respond with connection instead of conflict. Together, we'll introduce the Oceans of Emotion model and share practical, research-based tools that help kids recognize, name, and regulate their feelings.
Whether your child struggles with anxiety, frustration, disappointment, excitement, or experiences several emotions at once, you'll leave with simple strategies to strengthen emotional awareness, improve communication, and build a calmer, more connected family.
🎣 Fishing for Feelings Activities
Continue the conversation together with this fun activity from our friends at Mightier! Fishing for Feelings helps families practice recognizing emotions, talking openly about difficult feelings, and remembering that every emotion—even uncomfortable ones—has an important purpose. It's a playful way to build emotional vocabulary while creating stronger family connections.
Download the free activity here:
https://www.mightier.com/resources/emotional-awareness-activities
Transparency Statement
Suzanne isn't paid to recommend Mightier—she simply believes it's an incredible resource for families navigating the middle school years.
💜 See you next week as our Summer Camp adventure continues!
🌱 NEXT WEEK...
What if your child's biggest bully isn't another student...but their own thoughts?
Join us as we step into the Garden of Weedy Thoughts, where we'll uncover why anxious thinking grows so quickly during the middle school years, how cognitive distortions take root, and what families can do to gently pull those weeds before they crowd out confidence. You'll discover practical ways to help your child challenge unhelpful thoughts and grow healthier, more resilient thinking.
🌞 SEL Summer Camp in Partnership with Mightier
🌱 Garden of Weedy Thoughts: Pulling Thinking Traps Before They Take Root
🌱 Week 4: Garden of Weedy Thoughts: Helping Middle Schoolers Bust Cognitive Distortions & Calm Anxiety
⭐ Lesson 4 of 6
Thoughts grow like a garden—and sometimes weeds appear before we even realize they're there. Middle schoolers often experience "thinking traps" such as catastrophizing, black-and-white thinking, mind reading, and expecting the worst. Left unchecked, these thoughts can fuel anxiety, frustration, and self-doubt.
In this episode, Jessica Ragnio, MSW, LICSW, and I explore why anxious brains naturally focus on danger, how cognitive distortions quietly influence emotions and behavior, and what parents, teachers, and caregivers can do to help. You'll discover practical, research-based strategies to teach children how to recognize unhelpful thoughts, question them with curiosity instead of fear, and replace them with healthier, more balanced thinking.
By learning to pull emotional weeds before they take over, families can grow resilience, confidence, emotional regulation, and healthier ways of responding to life's everyday challenges.
📥 Free Family Download
🌱 Thought Awareness & Reframing Activities
https://www.mightier.com/resources/weeds-badge-activities/
Keep the learning growing with this free family activity from our friends at Mightier. Together you'll practice identifying "weedy thoughts," spotting common thinking traps, and replacing them with healthier, more realistic ways of thinking. These engaging activities encourage meaningful conversations, strengthen emotional awareness, reduce anxiety, and help your child become the gardener of their own mind.
Transparency Statement
Suzanne isn't paid to recommend Mightier—she simply believes it's an incredible resource for families navigating the middle school years.
💜 See you next week!
🌋 Next Week: What happens when little frustrations slowly build until they suddenly explode? Is anger really the problem—or is it protecting something deeper? Join us next week as we explore the science of anger, why volcanoes are the perfect metaphor for emotional regulation, and simple strategies to help your child recognize the warning signs before emotions boil over. You'll leave with practical tools to help your family cool the lava before it reaches the top.
SELSummerCamp #MiddleSchoolMaryPoppins #MiddleSchoolMatters #EmotionalRegulation #Anxiety #Parenting #ExecutiveFunction #CBT #ThinkingTraps #Neurodiversity #MiddleSchool #Mightier #SocialEmotionalLearning #MentalHealth #BrainScience
🌞 SEL Summer Camp in Partnership with Mightier
🌋 Volcano of Anger: Helping Middle Schoolers Turn Big Feelings into Strength
⭐️Lesson 5 of 6:
Anger isn’t the enemy—it’s information.
In this special SEL Summer Camp episode, Suzanne M. Swain, EdS, LMSW, and special guest Jessica Ragnio, MSW, LICSW, Clinical Director at Mightier, explore why anger often protects what matters most and how middle schoolers can learn to channel it into courage, leadership, and healthy action.
Using the image of a volcano, we discover that anger can erupt in explosive bursts—or build slowly over time, just like lava. And just as volcanoes created the Hawaiian Islands, our biggest emotions can help build something beautiful when we learn to understand and regulate them.
Along the way, we’ll visit a festive Hawaiian luau, say aloha to Moana-inspired island wisdom, laugh as Lieutenant Steve gets chased by a tiny coconut warrior, and learn practical ways to recognize what anger is trying to tell us before it boils over.
🌺 In this episode you’ll discover:
- Why anger is often a protective emotion.
- What happens in the brain and body during anger.
- The difference between fast and slow “lava.”
- Healthy ways to regulate big emotions before they erupt.
- How to help kids transform anger into confidence, resilience, and problem-solving.
🎉 Free Family Activity: Volcano Adventure from Mightier
💜 Use code MARYPOPPINS to save 15% on Mightier and help your child build emotional regulation skills through play.
Because even volcanoes can create islands.
Stop. Regulate. Listen. 🌋💜
