The Military Child Well-being Toolkit

The MCEC Military Child Well-being Toolkit has been created to provide accessible social-emotional supports and resources directly to parents, educators, school counselors, administrators, and other youth-serving professionals working with military-connected youth.

– Tony Robbins

SOCIAL SKILLS: The ability to establish and maintain healthy and supportive relationships and to effectively navigate diverse settings and group.

Social Skills include the personal ability to communicate clearly, actively listen, cooperate, collaborate to solve problems, negotiate conflict effectively, navigate differing social and cultural settings, provide leadership, and seek opportunities to be service-minded, and solution-focused. Examples include:

  • Communicating effectively
  • Developing positive relationships
  • Demonstrating diverse and cultural awareness
  • Practicing teamwork and collaborative problem-solving
  • Resolving conflict constructively
  • Resisting negative social pressure
  • Demonstrating personal leadership skills in groups
  • Focusing on solutions
  • Finding opportunities to serve
  • Championing the rights of others
Kenneth Cloke
– Michelle Tillis Lederman
Parents & Professionals
Parents of Young Children
School Leadership
1 2

Brading, T. (2020, September 30). Holistic health added to Army Fitness doctrine. U.S. Army. https://www.army.mil

Cozza, S. J., Knobloch, L. K., Gewirtz, A. H., DeVoe, E. R., Gorman, L. A., Flake, E. M., … & Lerner, R. M. (2018). Lessons learned and future recommendations for conducting research with military children and families. In Hughes- Kirchubel, L., Wadsworth, S., Riggs, D. (eds.), A battle plan for supporting military families (pp. 265-287). Springer, Cham. https://10.1007/978-3-319-68984-5

Doran. (n.d.). There’s a S.M.A.R.T. way to write management’s goals and objectives. Management Review, 70(11), 35–36.  https://doi.org/info:doi/

Drigas, A. S., & Papoutsi, C. (2018). A new layered model on emotional intelligence. Behavioral Sciences (Basel, Switzerland), 8(5), 45. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs8050045

Goleman D.P. (1995). Emotional intelligence: Why it can matter more than IQ for character, health and lifelong achievement. Bantam Books.

Gribble, R., Mahar, A. L., Keeling, M., Sullivan, K., McKeown, S., Burchill, S., … & Castro, C. A. (2020). Are we family? A scoping review of how military families are defined in mental health and substance use research. Journal of Military, Veteran and Family Health, 6(2), 85-119. https://doi.org/10.3138/jmvfh-2019-0054

Hughes-Kirchubel, L., Wadsworth, S.M. (2018). Introduction to a battle plan for supporting military families. In Hughes- Kirchubel, L., Wadsworth, S., Riggs, D. (eds.), A battle plan for supporting military families (pp. 1-10). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68984-5_1

Klug, H. J. P., & Maier, G. W. (2015). Linking goal progress and subjective well-being: A meta-analysis. Journal of Happiness Studies: An Interdisciplinary Forum on Subjective Well-Being, 16(1), 37-65. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-013-9493-0

Masten, A. S. (2018). Resilience theory and research on children and families: Past, present, and promise. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 10(1), 12-31. https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12255

Masten, A. S. (2021). MULTISYSTEM RESILIENCE: PATHWAYS TO AN INTEGRATED FRAMEWORK. Research in Human Development, 18(3), 153-163. https://doi.org/10.1080/15427609.2021.1958604 .

Maybery, D. J., Goodyear, M. J., Reupert, A. E., & Harkness, M. K. (2013). Goal setting within family care planning: families with complex needs. The Medical journal of Australia, 199(3), S37–S39. https://doi.org/10.5694/mja11.11179

Mullet, N., Fuss, C., Lyddon, L., Mondloch, D., Neal, S., Nelson Goff, B. S., … & Ruhlmann, L. M. (2021). Finding our new normal: A 10-year follow-up study with US Army veterans and their spouses. Journal of Couple & Relationship Therapy, 1-25. https://doi.org/10.1080/15332691.2021.1945986

Office of the Surgeon General (OSG). (2021). Protecting youth mental health: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory. US Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK575984/

Pexton, S., Farrants, J., & Yule, W. (2018). The impact of fathers’ military deployment on child adjustment. The support needs of primary school children and their families separated during active military service: A pilot study. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 23(1), 110–124. https://doi.org/10.1177/1359104517724494

Siegel, D. J., & Bryson, P. H. D. T. P. (2012). The whole-brain child. Random House. https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/camh.12053_6

Sigelman, C. K., Friedman, S. L., & Kildon, J. (2019). Communication, context, and well-being among military couples. Military Behavioral Health, 7(4), 363-375. https://doi.org/10.1080/21635781.2019.1646173

Sullivan, R. M., Cozza, S. J., & Dougherty, J. G. (2019). Children of military families. Child and adolescent psychiatric clinics of North America, 28(3), 337–348. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chc.2019.02.004

Theiss, J. A. (2018). Family communication and resilience. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 46(1), 10-13. https://doi.org/10.1080/00909882.2018.1426706

Disclosure Statement: These tools are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website.

Have a Question? Ask an MSC!

If you have a question about academic transition, education options, or how to best meet the needs of your military-connected child, connect with a Military Student Consultant. 

Our MSCs truly understand the challenges related to military life and they stand ready to serve.

What can we help you find?

Popular searches:

Return to site