The Inner Life of Students

Building social and emotional strength in schools and life

Gil Noam Ed.D., Dr. Habil

Pandemic Blues: Lessons from Psychotherapy for Everyday Life

It's a new year and we're already feeling burnout: What we can do to help ourselves and others.

What Role Should Schools Have in Preventing Shootings?

COVID has created much suffering. Let’s work hard and fast so that the suffering and mental health problems don’t turn deadly in other schools and districts.

No Education Without Optimism

What do children and youth need right now? It’s not political screaming matches. Youth need optimism, purpose, and a future they can look forward to.

Optimism: The Other Stimulus Schools Need to Reopen

Schools are starting to reopen. How can you portray and convey optimism in a way that reflects the current moment?

After the Inauguration

This is what we can do to foster the next generations of scientifically-informed citizens.

The Psychological Challenges for Students and Teachers Ahead

There are three concrete things that educators, policymakers, parents, and adults can do to help students and schools navigate back-to-school challenges.

Surviving and Thriving When Schools Reopen

How parents can help their children survive and thrive, no matter how schools reopen.

Reopening Our Schools

The psychological experience of students has often been left out of reopening plans. This is what schools should do to change that.

The Third Month

How do we reprioritize and stay well, even as we slowly reopen?

A Framework for Staying Sane in a Year of Uncertainty

These are the essential psychological elements we must balance in the age of social distancing.

Anger

Why we should allow ourselves to feel anger in this crisis.

An Introductory Offer to the Future

COVID-19 has started to accelerate many trends in our lives. How will they impact our relationships going forward?

Flexibility in the Midst of Crisis

In the midst of a pandemic, flexibility is a crucial skill we all need to hone.

Responding to the Resilience Backlash

This is why recent criticisms of resilience have been unfair.

Afterschool Ignored in the Democratic Debates

Why it is important to focus on afterschool in political discussions.

Are Mental Health Disorder Rates in Youth Really Increasing?

Recent studies have pointed to alarming increases in mental health issues in youth. Are these true increases, or are other factors at play?

Bringing the Summer Into the School Day

How can we support social-emotional learning during the school day?

Three Mass Shootings in a Week: Addressing Mental Health

Where should we focus our resources on within mental health to prevent gun violence?

Strong Relationships Are Crucial in Treating ADHD

In this post, I will argue for a third, crucial element for successful treatment of ADHD: positive relationships with trusted adults.

Asking the Hard Questions about ADHD

A more holistic approach to development—which inevitably takes much more skill, patience, and time—will lead to far fewer children on long-term medication.

Development or Diagnosis?

Although prescriptions for children can be beneficial in specific cases, the millions of students that have been put on ADHD medications may represent a sloppy practice.

Is After School the Future of School?

Could great after school education become the model for the school day of the future?

The Role of Relationships in the Aftermath of a Hurricane

As hurricanes become more destructive and more frequent, we need to build large regional response teams that are prepared to mobilize in times of crisis.

Summer Assignment: Know Every Child

I think we’ve got some homework to do as adults this summer. It’s to get to know the children in our lives and communities.

Upending the Hierarchy of Learning

We are in the middle of a worldwide knowledge revolution. What is the role of the teacher, who is no longer the primary source of knowledge for students?

Trauma at the Border: When a Hard Line Becomes a Red Line

An executive action to stop these separations does not walk back the trauma these separated children have experienced, nor will it undo the pain they are experiencing right now.

How Do We Help Students Feel Safe in School Again?

If we want to have any chance of stopping this cycle of violence and trauma in school, we have to be ready to listen to what our students tell us.

In Support of the Students: Making Schools Safe Again

The mental health system alone can't predict and prevent school shootings because there is not one profile that can predict who will commit violence in school.

Social-Emotional Development in a Hyper-Competitive Age

Our current political situation is a logical conclusion of many years of celebrating competition and success that are achieved at the expense of others.