S2 EP 31 - SEL Summer Camp Week 4: Garden of Weedy Thoughts: Helping Middle Schoolers Bust Cognitive Distortions & Calm Anxiety

S2 EP 31 - SEL Summer Camp Week 4: Garden of Weedy Thoughts: Helping Middle Schoolers Bust Cognitive Distortions & Calm Anxiety

Your brain can tell a convincing story in seconds, especially when anxiety is in the driver’s seat. One sideways look in the hallway becomes “everyone hates me,” one imperfect grade becomes “I’m doomed,” and suddenly a kid is stuck in a loop of worry, avoidance, or big blowups. We’re calling out those stories for what they are: cognitive distortions, aka thinking traps, and we’re giving you simple ways to pull the weeds before they take over the whole garden. I’m joined by Jessica Ragnio, MSW, LICSW, clinical director at Mightier, to break down how thoughts, emotions, and behaviors feed each other and why middle schoolers are uniquely vulnerable to spiraling. We talk through the real-life moments families recognize immediately: the friend who “ignored” them, the harsh teacher comment they can’t let go of, the comparison trap that crushes confidence, and the perfectionism that keeps everything bottled up. You’ll hear the core distortions by name, including mind reading, catastrophizing, negative filter, and comparison, plus why “just think positive” often lands like a poster slogan instead of real support. Then we shift into tools you can actually use. We walk through evidence-based fact-checking, brainstorming alternate explanations, and finding the feeling underneath the thought so the conversation becomes collaborative instead of a debate. If you want practical CBT-informed strategies for kids, parents, teachers, and therapists, this is your roadmap for building flexible thinking and resilience that lasts. If you found this helpful, subscribe, share it with a parent or educator who needs it, and leave a review so more families can find the show. SPECIAL OFFER: Our friends at Mightier help children build emotional regulation skills through gameplay and biofeedback. Use coupon code: MARYPOPPINS for 15% off. Guest: Jessica Ragnio, MSW, LICSW Clinical Director, Mightier Remember: We don’t stop the waves. We learn how to ride them. Stop. Regulate. Listen. Stay clever, little foxes. 💜🦊 A very special thanks to StellaMix productions and Janine Stella for her incredible production work. Please go to stellamix.com for all of your podcasting needs. Send Suzanne a Question or Comment: [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2384796/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-middle-school-mary-poppins-podcast]

S2 EP 30 - SEL Summer Camp Week 3: Oceans of Emotion: Why Middle Schoolers Feel Everything All at Once

Why does your middle schooler seem happy, anxious, excited, embarrassed, frustrated, and overwhelmed—all before dinner? In Week 3 of our whole family Socioemotional Learning (SEL) Summer Camp series, Suzanne M. Swain, EdS, LMSW, is joined by Jessica Ragnio, MSW, LICSW, Clinical Director at Mightier, to explore the fascinating world of adolescent emotions. Always a good hang with Jessica!  Together, the duo discuss why emotions become more intense during the middle school years, how identity development, independence, social awareness, and puberty shape emotional experiences, and what neuroscience can teach us about the adolescent brain. In this episode, you’ll discover: 🌊 Why middle school emotions can feel like an emotional hurricane 🧠 How the adolescent brain develops differently than the adult brain 💜 Why kids often experience multiple emotions at the same time ⚡ How emotional energy and emotional valence help us better understand feelings 🌡️ Why emotions show up in the body before children always have words for them 🎣 How families can build emotional awareness through conversation and play You’ll also learn why social rejection can genuinely hurt, what cortisol has to do with emotional regulation, and how helping kids recognize body signals can strengthen lifelong emotional intelligence. 🎣 FREE FAMILY ACTIVITY: FISHING FOR FEELINGS Download this week’s activity here: https://www.mightier.com/resources/emotional-awareness-activities/ [https://www.mightier.com/resources/emotional-awareness-activities/] Fishing for Feelings helps families build emotional vocabulary, identify body signals, and create meaningful conversations about emotions in a fun and engaging way. SPECIAL OFFER: Our friends at Mightier help children build emotional regulation skills through gameplay and biofeedback. Use coupon code: MARYPOPPINS for 15% off. Guest: Jessica Ragnio, MSW, LICSW Clinical Director, Mightier Remember: We don’t stop the waves. We learn how to ride them. Stop. Regulate. Listen. Stay clever, little foxes. 💜🦊 A very special thanks to StellaMix productions and Janine Stella for her incredible production work. Please go to stellamix.com for all of your podcasting needs. Send Suzanne a Question or Comment: [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2384796/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-middle-school-mary-poppins-podcast]

S2 EP 29 - SEL Summer Camp Week 2: Are Screens Evil or Not? Chocolate Cake, Dopamine & the Middle School Brain

💜☂️ Are Screens Evil or Not? Chocolate Cake, Dopamine & the Middle School Brain | SEL Summer Camp Week 2 Why do kids seem glued to their phones? Why do texts, group chats, likes, and social media feel so important during middle school? And are screens really harming kids—or is the answer more complicated than that? In Week 2 of our SEL Summer Camp collaboration with Mightier, Suzanne Swain, EdS, LMSW sits down with developmental scientist Jason Kahn, PhD, co-founder of Mightier, to explore what brain science actually tells us about technology, screen time, dopamine, emotional regulation, social media, friendships, and adolescent development. Together, we discuss:  🧠 The middle school brain and dopamine  📱 Why social media feels so powerful  🍰 The “Chocolate Cake Theory” of technology  💬 Why kids see phones differently than adults  ❤️ The importance of belonging during adolescence  🎮 Healthy technology habits and screen balance  🌱 Boredom, creativity, and imagination  🏕️ Family conversations that reduce conflict and build connection This episode helps parents, educators, counselors, and caregivers better understand how technology interacts with the developing adolescent brain—and how to guide middle schoolers toward healthier digital habits without shame, fear, or constant power struggles. Special SEL Summer Camp Partner: Mightier Mightier uses biofeedback-powered video games to help kids build emotional regulation skills in real time. Middle School Mary Poppins listeners receive 15% off with code MARYPOPPINS at Mightier.com [http://mightier.com/]. 📥 Download this week’s Summer Camp activity guide:  msmarypoppins.com [http://msmarypoppins.com/] 📧 Questions or stories?  SuzanneSwain@gmail.com [SuzanneSwain@gmail.com] #Parenting #MiddleSchool #ScreenTime #SocialMedia #Dopamine #AdolescentBrain #EmotionalRegulation #SEL #SocialEmotionalLearning #ExecutiveFunctioning #Neurodiversity #TweenParenting #TeenParenting #ChildDevelopment #DigitalWellness #Mightier #MiddleSchoolMaryPoppins #BrainScience #ParentingPodcast #FamilyConnection Send Suzanne a Question or Comment: [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2384796/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-middle-school-mary-poppins-podcast]

S2 EP 28 - SEL Summer Camp Week 1: Adolescent Brains: A Powerful Engine, Sensitive Alarm, & Driver Still in Training

☀️ SEL Summer Camp is Here! Pack your curiosity, grab your emotional toolkit, and join us for a one-of-a-kind summer adventure! Middle School Mary Poppins is teaming up with Mightier for a special six-week SEL (Social Emotional Learning) Summer Camp designed specifically for middle school families. Together, we’ll explore the fascinating world of emotions, friendships, technology, anxiety, anger, communication, and the developing adolescent brain through engaging conversations, family activities, brain science, and practical tools you can use right away. Joining Suzanne throughout the series is Jason Kahn, PhD, Chief Science Officer at Mightier, who brings years of expertise in developmental psychology, emotional regulation, and helping kids build resilience through play. Each week we’ll tackle a new topic: 🧠 Week 1: S2 EP 28 - SEL Summer Camp Week 1 - Adolescent Brains: A Powerful Engine, Sensitive Alarm, & Driver Still in Training Understanding the middle school brain and why adolescents think, feel, and react differently than adults. 📚Camp Week 1 Download: https://www.mightier.com/resources/5-steps-to-unstick-your-thinking-for-parents/ 💜This article contains a list of strategies for parents & families that prompt them to stop and reflect in the moment of disagreement or miscommunication with their child. The strategies help families separate out their own emotions and perspective in order to better see their child's perspective.  Future Camp Sessions & Topics: 📱 Week 2: Are Screens Evil or Not? Technology, dopamine, gaming, and finding healthy family balance. 🌊 Week 3: Oceans of Emotion Exploring feelings, emotional awareness, and the surprising ways emotions work together. 🌱 Week 4: Garden of Weedy Thoughts Understanding anxiety, self-esteem, and those pesky cognitive distortions that can take over our thinking. 🌋 Week 5: Volcano of Anger Learning what lives underneath anger and how to regulate big emotions before they erupt. 🤝 Week 6: Social Skills Lab Building friendships, communication skills, empathy, and confidence through connection. Throughout the summer, families will receive conversation starters, activities, reflection questions, and practical strategies that make Social Emotional Learning fun, meaningful, and accessible. Why MSMP is Partnering with Mightier At Middle School Mary Poppins, we believe emotional regulation isn’t something kids magically know how to do. It’s a skill. And skills require practice. That’s why we’re excited to partner with Mightier, a program that helps children build emotional regulation skills through biofeedback-powered games that teach kids how to recognize what’s happening inside their bodies and practice calming strategies in real time. 💜 Special Offer for Middle School Mary Poppins Families Receive 15% OFF Mightier with code: MARYPOPPINS Whether you’re a parent, grandparent, teacher, counselor, therapist, or simply someone who loves a middle schooler, this series is for you. So grab your camp gear, bring your curiosity, and join us as we spend six weeks exploring the most important classroom your child will ever have: Their brain. See you at camp! ☂️ Suzanne Swain, EdS, LMSW  Middle School Mary Poppins 🦊 Stay clever, little foxes 🏆Shoutout to StellaMix Studios for making this possible! 🤗🔥💜 Send Suzanne a Question or Comment: [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2384796/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-middle-school-mary-poppins-podcast]

S2 EP 27 - Plain-Talk ~ Showing Grace: Don’t You Forget About Me

Middle school can feel like a daily showdown… until you realize the kid isn’t always the problem. Sometimes the kid is the signal. In this episode of The Middle School Mary Poppins Podcast, Suzanne Swain, EDS LMSW explores the moments that make adults throw their hands in the air and ask, “Seriously?!” — and why that reaction is understandable, but often aimed at the wrong target. When behavior goes sideways, we tend to place the full weight of the situation on a 12- or 13-year-old navigating hormones, identity development, social pressure, emotional overwhelm, and a brain that is still developing impulse control and executive functioning. That isn’t an excuse for harmful behavior… it’s a roadmap for understanding it. Drawing from years of real middle school classroom management experience, Suzanne walks listeners through a systems-based approach to behavior that focuses on emotional safety, clear expectations, simple procedures, and consistent boundaries. You’ll hear why consistency matters more than intensity, why fewer rules often work better than dozens of threats, and how becoming “annoyingly predictable” can actually help kids feel safer and more regulated. The episode also explores metacognition — the adult skill of noticing what’s happening internally before reacting externally — and how our own regulation often shapes the emotional climate around children. But structure alone is never enough. Kids also need connection. This episode unpacks the idea of “connection before correction” and why trust, co-regulation, and emotional repair are critical parts of accountability. Suzanne also discusses some of the hidden stressors affecting today’s tweens and teens, including chronic sleep deprivation, overstimulation, emotional exhaustion, and constant screen saturation. Blending neuroscience, humor, emotional critical thinking, and real classroom insight, this conversation offers a more compassionate lens for understanding middle schoolers without removing accountability or structure. 💜 ND Friendly Listening Note: MSMP is designed with neurodivergent listeners in mind. Ads and interruptions are intentionally kept to a minimum and placed thoughtfully for continuity and emotional regulation support. ☂️ ENTER THE NEW CONTEST: head to the website and join the mailing list for a chance to win a 45 minute family session with Suzanne!  💜☂️Visit msmarypoppins.com [http://msmarypoppins.com/] for resources, updates, and ways to support the show. Produced by StellaMix Podcast Productions. Reach out to my high school buddy Janine for all of your podcast needs as she is the wizard you need!  🌐 stellamix.com [http://stellamix.com/] 🦊Stay clever, little foxes. You got this!  Send Suzanne a Question or Comment: [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2384796/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-middle-school-mary-poppins-podcast]