I had a plan going into our weekly school-wide Reflections meeting before vacation, but as often happens when working with teens, my plan changed. Reflections is a weekly tradition at Rock Point School—a time to explore big ideas like dignity, spirituality, and how we aspire to live in the world. But on this day, faces looked strained, postures were slouched, and the air felt heavy. I wondered what was going on. So, I asked. My students, as usual, surprised me with the depth and breadth of their answers.

Every “back-to-school” season, teens experience anxiety around schoolwork, schedules, friendships, and activities. They must negotiate new teachers, try-out for activities, and navigate new social situations. This year some teens have been doing online school, while others were in and out of in-person school due to COVID-19. For many teens (and their parents and some school staff), the transition back to full-time in-person school feels daunting.

“Tell me and I forget, teach me and I remember, involve me and I learn.” - attributed to Benjamin Franklin An estimated 50 percent of adults suffer from math anxiety and research indicates that discomfort with numbers can begin as early as first grade. Students who have not experienced success in traditional educational settings exhibit math anxiety frequently — creating a regular challenge at Rock Point School. Let's explore the hands-on approach used by our math department to build confidence by doing.

As classes are beginning, students everywhere are organizing their notebooks and binders and practicing note taking. At Rock Point School, we encourage students, when possible, to take notes by hand. Wondering why?

Earlier this year, I read an NPR interview with Susan Cain, author of Quiet, and most recently of Quiet Power: The Secret Strengths of Introverts. In it, Cain reveals a nationwide growth in understanding that sometimes quiet students are just as engaged, talented, and successful in school as their extroverted peers. Cain points out that as a culture we’ve tended to value the extroverted person for their willingness to contribute, their confidence, their assertiveness. In school, we often encourage extroverted behavior by grading students on class discussion and presentations. But this approach may have missed something important: introverted students need to be valued for who they are, and then led slowly, rather than pushed, out of their comfort zone.