Middle schoolers are living on an emotional roller coaster, and a few lectures on mental health won’t cut it. This 3-week Mental Health & SEL unit was created with a child psychologist to help 6–8th graders better understand their emotions, identify their needs, and learn realistic coping skills to manage them.

Over 13 days, students will discuss, role-play, analyze scenarios, speak with trusted adults and peers, and dig deeper into what it takes to live a balanced and mentally healthy life.

Here’s the breakdown of the unit:

Week 1: Mental Health 101

• FUN mental health bell ringers.. gifs included :p

• Mental health simulation game about charging your “batteries”

• Lesson on identifying feelings, facts, and needs

• Stress lesson and card game

• Parent interview on emotional resilience

• Comfort vs. challenge lesson on true happiness

• Self-harm & suicide prevention lesson + webquest

Week 2: Tech and Mental Health

• World café discussion on social media’s impact on mental health

• Mental health and AI lesson

• Hero’s Journey film project prep

Week 3

• Talking to friends about mental health role-plays

• Hero’s Journey film project presentations

Take a look at the preview to see the full unit scope and sequence.

Includes:

• Day-by-day unit guide with NHES standards

• Editable Google Slides lessons

• Worksheets and student activities

• WebQuests

• Interactive project-based assessment

• Parent interview activity

• Grading rubrics

• Discussion activities

• Mental health bell ringers