Second Step® Middle School
Program highlights
- Real‑world, adolescent‑relevant scenarios
- Evidence‑based climate outcomes
- Collaboration and problem‑solving activities
- Tools for focused learning
- Simple plug‑and‑teach lessons
Make an impact at your middle school
Caring relationships
ELA grades
Teacher-student relationships
School belonging
Overall school climate
Four powerful, research-backed program units
Unit 1: Mindsets & Goals
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- Builds a resilient growth mindset that strengthens academic and social confidence
- Teaches research-based goal-setting strategies to drive focus, follow-through, and motivation
- Helps students identify their personal strengths and understand the unique aspects of their identities
- Encourages students to set and achieve personal and group goals, fostering collaboration and accountability
- Transforms challenges and mistakes into opportunities for reflection, learning, and belonging
Unit 2: Developing a Positive Sense of Self
- Teaches students how to identify their guiding principles and personal values
- Helps students explore the core elements of their self-concept and identity
- Builds confidence through practical strategies that support positive self-talk, agency, and self-belief
- Encourages students to envision who they want to become and take intentional steps toward that vision
- Strengthens a classroom culture where students view themselves with optimism, purpose, and self-respect
Unit 3: Thoughts, Emotions & Decisions
- Teaches students to recognize strong emotions and unhelpful thought patterns
- Builds skills to apply effective emotion-management strategies that reduce stress
- Reinforces the idea that all emotions are valuable signals that help students understand their environment
- Helps students respond to emotions in healthy, constructive ways that support their needs and goals
- Supports classrooms where emotional experiences are normalized, understood, and addressed thoughtfully
Unit 4: Managing Relationships & Social Conflict
- Teaches students strategies for developing and maintaining healthy relationships
- Builds strong perspective-taking skills so students can better understand others’ viewpoints
- Teaches effective approaches for managing and resolving conflict constructively
- Reinforces understanding and honoring differences across personal, familial, and cultural backgrounds
- Strengthens students’ communication, collaboration, and problem-solving abilities
Sample a lesson
Help students thrive with supportive tiered interventions
Small group lessons
Targeted small group lessons that build specific skills—like emotion regulation, flexible thinking, and problem‑solving—for students who need more than universal instruction
Resources for individual supports
Additional resources, including behavior support tools and educator guidance, that help educators address higher-need, individualized skills gaps
Assessment Toolkit
A built‑in Assessment Toolkit with a universal screener, teacher-report human skills rubric, and progress‑monitoring guidance to identify needs and track growth
Reinforce the program with supplemental content
Optional unit: Recognizing Bullying & Harassment
6 lessons per grade
School leaders can opt to include this optional unit at no additional charge via their Leader Dashboard. Students learn how to recognize bullying and harassment, stand up safely to bullying, and respond appropriately to harassment.
Advisory activities
Advisory activities are optional Class Challenges, Class Meetings, and Service-Learning Projects that foster a sense of belonging and extend core Second Step Middle School learning by inviting students to explore and apply human skills to real-world topics.
Professional development that improves implementation
Training that helps educators support student collaboration, reduce disciplinary issues, and create consistent, positive environments for middle schoolers
Second Step® programs strengthen school climate in Hillsborough County
Discover how Hillsborough County Public Schools advanced their commitment to whole‑child education through Second Step programs. This case study highlights efforts to improve school climate, strengthen human skills, and support educators with consistent, evidence‑based practices. See how a large, diverse district embedded human skills instruction into daily routines, boosted student engagement, and created more supportive learning environments.
