At Mammoth Heights, we use a DCSD approved curriculum called Sources of Strength to help our students build their sense of community within and outside of school as well as identify and utilize the many strengths they have in their lives. Read below to learn more about this curriculum and how it is benefiting students at MHE.

What is Sources of Strength?

Sources of Strength is a proactive strengths-based curriculum where students and adults are invited into creating communities where belonging and connection are the norm, leading to increased purpose and agency. Sources of Strength moves to increase health and wellness through empowering individuals and communities of belonging and connection to empower a well world.

Sources of Strength lessons align with the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) core competencies which include relationship skills, social awareness, responsible decision-making, self-management, and self-awareness.

Every lesson incorporates a Talking Circle where students are invited to think, share, and practice building healthy relationships and listening skills as we learn from diverse perspectives. Lessons are interactive with games, emotional regulation practice, and creative expression designed to:

Increase student and adult connections with one another
Invite students to identify the Strengths (protective factors) they have in their lives that help them through life’s ups and downs (see strengths wheel image below)
Develop understanding of how our brain and body communicate to help us regulate
Increase emotional vocabulary
Identify and practice a variety of healthy emotional regulation strategies
Understand the importance of seeking help for oneself, as well as how we can connect others to help in times of need
Empower students and staff alike to be agents of healthy culture change

Why Sources of Strength?

Our community's intermediate and secondary schools, Sierra Middle School and Chaparral High School, both utilize Sources of Strength programming and have seen positive change in their students as a result of its implementation. As a DCSD approved curriculum, our school saw the benefits of implementing the program at the elementary level to help our students gain the full benefit of the program's life-long skill building.

In our first year of implementation, we anonymously surveyed teachers and students and found the following results:

Of the teachers who taught Sources of Strength at least once per week in their classrooms, 91% of teachers reported that students showed improved understanding of their emotions and 75% reported students showed improved regulation of their emotions. These same teachers reported
- - - - Less concerns about behavior and academic growth
        Students successfully using coping skills more frequently
        Students asking for help more often for themselves and others
        An increased sense of classroom community and mutual respect

Comparing 3rd-6th grade student responses from the beginning of the school year to the end:

More students reported feeling like their teacher cared about them
More students reported feeling like their classmates cared about them
More students reported that they felt comfortable asking for help at school if they were upset
The number of trusted adults who students felt comfortable asking for help from increased
More students reported feeling like they knew how to calm down when they felt upset

To learn more about Sources of Strength, click here to visit their website.

To inquire about specific lessons or content material, please feel free to reach out to Jessica Weiss at jweiss2@dcsdk12.com

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