S3 EP11 - SEL Summer Camp Week 1: Adolescent Brains: A Powerful Engine, Sensitive Alarm, & Driver Still in Training

<p><b>☀️ SEL Summer Camp is Here!</b></p><p>Pack your curiosity, grab your emotional toolkit, and join us for a one-of-a-kind summer adventure!</p><p>Middle School Mary Poppins is teaming up with Mightier for a special six-week <b>SEL (Social Emotional Learning) Summer Camp</b> designed specifically for middle school families.</p><p>Together, we’ll explore the fascinating world of emotions, friendships, technology, anxiety, anger, communication, and the developing adolescent brain through engaging conversations, family activities, brain science, and practical tools you can use right away.</p><p>Joining Suzanne throughout the series is <b>Jason Kahn, PhD, Chief Science Officer at Mightier</b>, who brings years of expertise in developmental psychology, emotional regulation, and helping kids build resilience through play.</p><p>Each week we’ll tackle a new topic:</p><p>🧠 <b>Week 1: </b>S2 EP 28 - SEL Summer Camp Week 1 - <b>Adolescent Brains: A Powerful Engine, Sensitive Alarm, &amp; Driver Still in Training</b><br/> Understanding the middle school brain and why adolescents think, feel, and react differently than adults.</p><p>📚Camp Week 1 Download:<br/>https://www.mightier.com/resources/5-steps-to-unstick-your-thinking-for-parents/<br/><br/>💜This article contains a list of strategies for parents &amp; families that prompt them to stop and reflect in the moment of disagreement or miscommunication with their child. The strategies help families separate out their own emotions and perspective in order to better see their child&apos;s perspective. </p><p>Future Camp Sessions &amp; Topics:</p><p>📱 <b>Week 2: Are Screens Evil or Not?</b><br/> Technology, dopamine, gaming, and finding healthy family balance.</p><p>🌊 <b>Week 3: Oceans of Emotion</b><br/> Exploring feelings, emotional awareness, and the surprising ways emotions work together.</p><p>🌱 <b>Week 4: Garden of Weedy Thoughts</b><br/> Understanding anxiety, self-esteem, and those pesky cognitive distortions that can take over our thinking.</p><p>🌋 <b>Week 5: Volcano of Anger</b><br/> Learning what lives underneath anger and how to regulate big emotions before they erupt.</p><p>🤝 <b>Week 6: Social Skills Lab</b><br/> Building friendships, communication skills, empathy, and confidence through connection.</p><p>Throughout the summer, families will receive conversation starters, activities, reflection questions, and practical strategies that make Social Emotional Learning fun, meaningful, and accessible.