The Kids Mental Health Foundation

Malala Yousafzai, born July 12, 1997, is a Pakistani female education activist and became the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate at the age of 17. She is the youngest Nobel Prize laureate in history. Malala risked her life in pursuit of education and fought for the right for girls to attend school. She was once called the most famous teenager in the world.

Are you in need of some support to set your kids up for success in the new school year? Talking with kids about their experiences and listening to their concerns are great ways to boost their mental health! Use our Back-to-School conversation starters to initiate meaningful conversations with your kids about all things school related. Get your free download here. https://bit.ly/4cdW8ni

Dr. Ariana Hoet, pediatric psychologist and executive clinical director at The Kids Mental Health Foundation, spoke to WDIV-TV in Detroit about kids and technology. See the whole story, including a link to Kids Mental Health Foundation resources, here: https://bit.ly/4dS2b25

How can we support our children and their mental health? By talking and listening to them! Talking with children about their thoughts, feelings and experiences helps their healthy growth and development. When you talk to children openly about their day, you can learn about concerns or problems they are dealing with, help problem solve and build their confidence for facing future difficulties. The more you talk, the easier it is when difficult topics come up! For expert guidance on conversations with kids, go to https://bit.ly/3xEjBiF and search for "Conversation."

Our executive clinical director, Ariana Hoet, was quoted in U.S. News & World Report today on the topic of technology and kids' mental health. In our recent survey, 50% of parents reported concerns about kids spending too much time with technology. According to Dr. Hoet, “Technology is not all good or all bad, but parents should look for warning signs if you feel your child’s balance with technology use is affecting their real-world social connections.”

Our executive clinical director, Dr. Ariana Hoet, talked about back-to-school anxiety and other mental health concerns with the Huffington Post. https://bit.ly/4cAwoSk

Thank you for joining us in spreading educational resources to promote children's mental health. We appreciate every like, share, comment and donation as we publish our free content and resources. We're working hard to reach every family in the U.S. with information about kids' mental health. You're an important part of what we do!

A new CDC report shows that youth mental health is improving slightly - but our expert says it's still not enough. "The best protector of mental health is child-adult relationships and that starts at home with parents and guardians," says Ariana Hoet, Ph.D., executive clinical director of The Kids Mental Health Foundation. Read more in today's USA Today story: https://bit.ly/3WJAX6O

Do you know the importance of school belonging? It's one of the best ways we can help protect our children’s mental health as they navigate the stress of the back-to-school season. School belonging, or feeling connected at school, has many positive mental health benefits for kids. Parents can help by getting more involved with the school and having daily check-ins with kids to ask about their day and how they feel about school. For more tips to help boost your child's connection to school, visit our link. https://bit.ly/46xu90D

Are you a teacher getting ready for the new school year? Getting to know your students is a great way to build classroom community and help all students feel included. We’ve come up with some conversation starters for both elementary and middle school students that you can use with your class. You’ll learn more about them and they’ll learn about each other too. Here's the link - please share with a teacher you know! https://bit.ly/46BqgHZ