Curriculum Not Just for Students – Staff Wellness and Adult Engagement

September 23, 2025/Sources Team

A Program That Supports the Whole School

Sources of Strength’s elementary curriculum isn’t just designed for students, it’s built with adult wellness in mind. Because when we support the people teaching the curriculum, we strengthen the entire school community.

As Matt Hofmeister shared, “We’re not asking adults to implement something to students, we’re inviting them to experience it with students. Social and emotional wellbeing is a lifelong process.”

Humanizing the Classroom

At the most basic level, the curriculum encourages educators to participate alongside their students. This simple shift being part of the process rather than just facilitating it builds community, mutual trust, and connection.
And it goes further. Each lesson includes structured reflection prompts, not just about timing or pacing, but about the personal impact of the material on the educator. Instructors are asked: 

  • What is a Strength you noticed in a student or in your class during this lesson? 
  • What is something you noticed or learned about yourself during this lesson? 
  • Is there a story or experience from this lesson you’d like to capture or remember? 

These moments of reflection create space for vulnerability and honesty, two key ingredients for authentic culture change.

Staff Wellness Is Ongoing, Not One-Off

Beyond the classroom, our model includes a monthly adult wellness component. Educators meet in consistent, small groups throughout the year. These gatherings:

  • Build relational trust amongst all adults in a school community
  • Focuses on adult bellbeing
  • Encourage ongoing personal and professional reflection
  • Reinforce a culture of care that extends beyond students

 “The Sources of Strength program guides adults and students to cope with issues that arise with the Strengths.  As well as allowing them to learn to develop areas of strength.”

This isn’t a one-time PD or beginning-of-year icebreaker. It’s a model designed to make sure the adults in the building feel valued, heard, and connected, just like we want students to.

Want to explore how these strengths show up in real classrooms? Visit our Elementary Curriculum page or schedule a call with our team.

Click below to navigate to any blog in this series:

Posted in