The Military Child Well-being Toolkit

The MCEC Military Child Well-being Toolkit has been created to provide accessible social-emotional supports and resources directly to parents, educators, school counselors, administrators, and other youth-serving professionals working with military-connected youth.

Mindfulness

– Robin Sharma

MINDFULNESS is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us. Mindfulness is a quality that every human being already possesses. Way to approach everyday life that makes living more enjoyable and less stressful.

– Bhante Henepola Gunaratana
  • A choice YOU can make 
  • Being aware of how you feel and what you are experiencing 
  • Being in the present moment 
  • Choosing to be nice to yourself and others 
  • Approaching life with curiosity and kindness instead of judgement and criticism 
  • Bringing an open awareness of the present moment 
  • Paying attention with purpose  
  • Focusing on the here and now 
  • Training your mind to level up with kindness 
  • Engaging in everyday life 
  • Actively listening with the goal of understanding
  • Pausing your reactions and responses
  • Practicing paying attention to yourself and others with kindness and appreciation.
Parents & Professionals
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Parents of Young Children
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School Leadership
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Brading, T. (2020, September 30). Holistic health added to Army Fitness doctrine. U.S. Army. https://www.army.mil 

Cozza, S. J., Knobloch, L. K., Gewirtz, A. H., DeVoe, E. R., Gorman, L. A., Flake, E. M., … & Lerner, R. M. (2018). Lessons learned and future recommendations for conducting research with military children and families. In Hughes- Kirchubel, L., Wadsworth, S., Riggs, D. (eds.), A  battle plan for supporting military families (pp. 265-287). Springer, Cham. https://10.1007/978-3-319-68984-5   

Doran. (n.d.). There’s a S.M.A.R.T. way to write management’s goals and objectives. Management Review, 70(11), 35–36.     https://doi.org/info:doi/

Drigas, A. S., & Papoutsi, C. (2018). A new layered model on emotional intelligence. Behavioral Sciences (Basel, Switzerland), 8(5), 45.   https://doi.org/10.3390/bs8050045 

Goleman D.P. (1995). Emotional intelligence: Why it can matter more than IQ for character, health and lifelong achievement. Bantam Books.  

Gribble, R., Mahar, A. L., Keeling, M., Sullivan, K., McKeown, S., Burchill, S., … & Castro, C. A. (2020). Are we family? A scoping review of how  military families are defined in mental health and substance use research. Journal of Military, Veteran and Family Health, 6(2), 85-119.  https://doi.org/10.3138/jmvfh-2019-0054 

Hughes-Kirchubel, L., Wadsworth, S.M. (2018). Introduction to a battle plan for supporting military families. In Hughes- Kirchubel, L., Wadsworth, S., Riggs, D. (eds.), A battle plan for supporting military families (pp. 1-10). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68984-5_1  

Klug, H. J. P., & Maier, G. W. (2015). Linking goal progress and subjective well-being: A meta-analysis. Journal of Happiness Studies: An   Interdisciplinary Forum on Subjective Well-Being, 16(1), 37-65. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-013-9493-0  

Masten, A. S. (2018). Resilience theory and research on children and families: Past, present, and promise. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 10(1), 12-31. https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12255 

Masten, A. S. (2021). MULTISYSTEM RESILIENCE: PATHWAYS TO AN INTEGRATED FRAMEWORK. Research in Human Development, 18(3), 153-163. https://doi.org/10.1080/15427609.2021.1958604

Maybery, D. J., Goodyear, M. J., Reupert, A. E., & Harkness, M. K. (2013). Goal setting within family care planning: families with complex needs.  The Medical journal of Australia, 199(3), S37–S39. https://doi.org/10.5694/mja11.11179 

Mullet, N., Fuss, C., Lyddon, L., Mondloch, D., Neal, S., Nelson Goff, B. S., … & Ruhlmann, L. M. (2021). Finding our new normal: A 10-year   follow-up study with US Army veterans and their spouses. Journal of Couple & Relationship Therapy, 1-25.      https://doi.org/10.1080/15332691.2021.1945986 

Office of the Surgeon General (OSG). (2021). Protecting youth mental health: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory. US Department of Health and  Human Services. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK575984/  

Pexton, S., Farrants, J., & Yule, W. (2018). The impact of fathers’ military deployment on child adjustment. The support needs of primary school children and their families separated during active military service: A pilot study. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 23(1), 110–124.  https://doi.org/10.1177/1359104517724494 

Siegel, D. J., & Bryson, P. H. D. T. P. (2012). The whole-brain child. Random House. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/camh.12053_6  

Sigelman, C. K., Friedman, S. L., & Kildon, J. (2019). Communication, context, and well-being among military couples. Military Behavioral Health,  7(4), 363-375. https://doi.org/10.1080/21635781.2019.1646173 

Sullivan, R. M., Cozza, S. J., & Dougherty, J. G. (2019). Children of military families. Child and adolescent psychiatric clinics of North America,   28(3), 337–348. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chc.2019.02.004  

Theiss, J. A. (2018). Family communication and resilience. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 46(1), 10-13.   https://doi.org/10.1080/00909882.2018.1426706 

Disclosure Statement: These tools are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website.

Have a Question? Ask an MSC!

If you have a question about academic transition, education options, or how to best meet the needs of your military-connected child, connect with a Military Student Consultant. 

Our MSCs truly understand the challenges related to military life and they stand ready to serve.

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