Mental & Behavioral Health

Good mental health is important for everyone. Mental health is as important as physical health to our quality of life. Mental health is not simply the absence of mental illness but also means having the skills necessary to cope with life's challenges. If ignored, mental health problems can interfere with children's learning, development, relationships, and physical health.

School psychologists are uniquely trained to deliver high-quality mental and behavioral health services in the school setting to ensure all students have the support they need to be successful in school, at home, and throughout life.

School Psychologists and Mental Health Services 

Resilience and Wellness Promotion

  • How Caregivers Can Foster Resiliency (PDF)

    Adversity is a natural part of life. At some point, we all face difficulties, such as family problems, serious illness, widespread disease, a personal crisis, or a painful loss. Being resilient is important to dealing successfully with life's challenges.

  • How Schools Can Foster Resiliency

    Adversity is a natural part of life. At some point, we all face difficulties, such as family problems, serious illness, widespread disease, a personal crisis, or a painful loss. Being resilient is important to dealing successfully with life’s challenges...

  • Supporting Children's Mental Wellness: Tips for Educators (PDF)

    Educators can encourage mental wellness and promote social, emotional, and academic success. Good mental health is not simply the absence of illness, but also includes skills necessary to cope with life’s challenges...

  • Building Resiliency: Helping Children Learn to Weather Tough Times

    Adversity is a natural part of life. At some point, we all face difficulties, such as family problems, serious illness, a personal crisis, or a painful loss. Being resilient is important to dealing with adversities like these. While most parents hope that their children never face extreme adversity, successfully facing tough situations can actually foster growth and give children the skills to be more resilient in the future.

  • Promoting Student Mental Health at School

    A summary of the research on improving comprehensive school mental health services featured in School Psychology Review Volume 50.

Depression Resources

  • A Brief Overview of Depression

    One of the more common diagnoses for youth is despression. This diagnosis requires specific symptoms or features that exist over a period of time and cause major challenges. These experiences result in considerable struggles in important life areas, like work, school, or with family and friends.

Additional Resources

  • The Science of Reading: A Brief Overview

    The science of reading (SOR) is the accumulation of knowledge from experimental research about reading development, effective instructional practices for reading, and why reading difficulties occur.

  • Anxiety: A Brief Overview

    Anxiety is described as a feeling of worry, unease, nervousness, or fear. It is the most common emotional problem in children but can look very different depending on the child.

  • Behavior Intervention Plans: A Brief Overview

    The concept behind a behavior intervention plan (BIP) is that some students require increased behavioral support at various intensity levels in order to be more successful in school.

  • Nonsuicidal Self-Injury: A Brief Overview

    Nonsuicidal self-injury can be a difficult behavior to identify, and supporting students who employ NSSI requires work from various adults in their lives.

  • Foster Care: An Overview for School Psychologists

    Students in foster cre have experienced disproportionate special education identification, grade retention, disengagement and absenteeism, and exclusionary discipline. With growing knowledge of trauma and how trauma-informed practices improve coping, school psychologists can support students in foster care (and many of their peers) through direct engagement and in consultation with educators.

  • Foster Care: An Overview for Educators and Caregivers

    Across the relatively limited research on educational resilience of youth in foster care, positive relationships with caregivers, their high expectations, and their involvement in students’ education have all been connected to more positive educational outcomes for youth.

  • School Attendance Problems

    Approximately 16% of all students are chronically absent. This handout addresses factors that impact school attendence problems and the roles mental health professionals, school personnel, and caregivers play.

  • Selective Mutism: An Overview for Families

    This handout was created as a resource to help families and caregivers support children with selective mutism.

  • Addressing Selective Mutism in School: A Guide for Educators

    This handout was created as a resource to help educators support children with selective mutism.

  • Comprehensive School-Based Mental and Behavioral Health Services and School Psychologists

    Share this resource with key stakeholders to convey the breadth of your skills at all tiers and the importance of improving staffing ratios.

  • Self-Care for School Psychologists

    Self-care is an important part of our personal professional practice, a key component of prevention for ourselves and the children we serve, and critical to our ability to help others.

Policy Priority

The most positive outcomes occur when mental and behavioral health services are provided by high quality professionals, such as school psychologists, school social workers, and school counselors. NASP is committed to improving the capacity of individual school psychologists to provide school mental and behavioral health services.

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Related Resource

Download a PDF version of this handout to print and share it with stakeholders and members of your school community.

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