Collaborative for Child & Family Resilience

The Collaborative for Child & Family Resilience arose from a shared commitment by Yale Child Study Center (YCSC) and Scholastic to explore how literacy can be used to foster resilience among children and families. We believe in a multi-generational approach to literacy, grounded in storytelling, social connections, and place-based learning to strengthen communities.

We are focused on conducting research and developing resources that embrace these methods, while increasing positive academic and health outcomes for children and families nationwide. We are committed to helping communities develop supportive networks, celebrate place, and rewrite the narratives of their futures.

Members of the collaborative are deeply engaged in this work, with the aim of furthering research on how literacy and health are connected through on-the-ground program implementation as well as workshops and summits that bring researchers, educators, healthcare practitioners, and families together.

Inspiration for the YCSC-Scholastic Collaborative stemmed from Discover Together, developed in 2012 in collaboration with Sewanee: The University of the South, Tracy City Elementary School, and local partners. Discover Together consists of a collection of programs operating in Grundy County, Tennessee offering resources to increase social connectedness, build pride in community, and utilize the power of narrative across generations.

Evolving in line with the community’s strengths and needs, Discover Together has grown substantially, supported in part by a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Today, the initiative’s varied programs work toward building support networks and mitigating chronic family stress. Serving as a model for further innovation, Discover Together has garnered recognition for its promising approach to addressing rural poverty in a multi-generational way.

This work has been extended through the YCSC-Scholastic Collaborative, as a way to address poverty in both rural and urban settings, reach more children and families, have a lasting impact in more communities, and improve children’s academic and mental health outcomes.

We work to advance research and contribute to the development of resources, programs, and curriculum that improve academic and health outcomes for children, their families, and communities. This work is conducted in the following ways.

The collaborative serves as a forum for researchers, health care professionals, educators, and families to come together and exchange ideas, share best practices, and cultivate new approaches for improving outcomes for vulnerable children and families from a diverse range of communities.

Our white paper, Using Literacy-Based Approaches to Promote Social Competence and Foster Resilience, provides a research foundation for the approach piloted through Discover Together and remains central to the work of the collaborative.

In a survey of programs addressing education in areas of rural poverty conducted by the Center for the Study of Social Policy, Discover Together emerged as one of the six most promising practices. This was based on our literacy, place-based, and multi-generational approach, described in Strengthening Support for Young Parents and Their Children: A Focus on Low-Income Rural and Suburban American Families

The collaborative offers periodic professional development training, workshops, courses, and summits for teachers, healthcare professionals, families, and community members that provide access to information, research, and programs relevant to the following areas of focus:

• The roots of resilience and building resilient communities
• The power of story and personal narrative
• Early childhood education
• Place-based education
• Social emotional learning and teaching
• Multi-generational approaches to learning
• Equity in mental health care access
• Family engagement in education
• Building whole family literacy

Our research contributes to the creation of programs, curriculum, and resources that support the successful development of children and their families. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we developed First Aid for Feelings: A Workbook to Help Kids Cope During the Coronavirus Pandemic, a free workbook written by child development expert Denise Daniels, RN, MS. This comforting resource was designed to help children alleviate stress and anxiety and to provide a sense of control during changing times. The workbook aimed to encourage children to express their thoughts and feelings while providing parents and caregivers with simple strategies to help kids handle emotions.

First Aid for Feelings: A Workbook to Help Kids Cope During the Coronavirus Pandemic is a free workbook from the Yale Child Study Center–Scholastic Collaborative, written by child development expert Denise Daniels, RN, MS. This comforting resource is designed to help children alleviate stress and anxiety and to provide a sense of control during changing times. The workbook will encourage children to express their thoughts and feelings while providing parents and caregivers with simple strategies to help kids handle emotions.

Download the workbook in English or Spanish.