NCTE Panel on Mental Health for Young People
December 4, 2024
Our NCTE panel on Mental Health: (l. to r.) Nancy Bo Flood, Torrey Maldonado, Sarah Baker, Executive Director of SCBWI, S.D. Nelson, and Ann Jacobus
Stories help us make sense of our world. Stories also help us understand ourselves and others. At the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) conference, our panel of four spoke about the importance of story — of books — to help address the alarming increase in mental health challenges faced by young people, including suicide. Self-harm and especially suicide is the second leading cause of death of children and young adults — children as young as only five years old. (A big thank you to SCBWI for sponsoring this panel.)
What do stories offer? Books help break the silence. Silence creates isolation, feelings of shame, guilt and fear — all of these create a sense of hopelessness and “I’m the only one who feels this way.”
Books offer hope! They show how other young people can can break isolation and reach out for help. Reaching out might begin with talking with a friend, a trusted teacher or coach. And that person listens. Says “I care.”
Books offer a safe place to begin talking.
A listing of excellent books that show by example what the reader can do to seek help or encourage a friend to seek help. Breaking the silence saves lives.
“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” (Leo Buscaglia)
And the potential to save a life.