As we step into another school year, it remains crucial to recognize the mental health challenges our nation’s school-age children face. Going back to school can be an exciting time filled with new friends, new social events, and new extracurriculars. But returning to school also means re-entering the virtual spaces that exist in tandem with the classroom – which can be both helpful and harmful. For young people, online spaces can bring with them feelings of exclusion, body image concerns, misinformation, cyberbullying, harassment, and violent content – all of which have an impact on mental health.

Mental Health America (MHA) is dedicated to providing quality resources that can be used to facilitate these kinds of conversations. Through this toolkit, we aim to equip you with the social media knowledge you need to support the young people in your life, whether that is as a parent, caregiver, teacher, coach, counselor, or school administrator.