The whole child approach in education aims to meet the academic, social, emotional, physical, and cognitive needs of each child to promote their success. This approach recognizes that students come from diverse backgrounds and have unique needs.

The Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) model was introduced in 2014 to emphasize the importance of keeping youth healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged with a focus on student success.

The implementation of the whole child approach in K-12 schools has been associated with improved social and emotional skills, higher academic achievement, graduation rates and attendance, as well as a reduction in disciplinary incidents and mental health issues.

Best practices for implementing the whole child approach in K-12 schools include personalized learning, social emotional learning, health and wellness, family and community engagement, and enrichment activities.

Strategies that support the implementation of this approach include building positive classrooms and safe school environments, developing positive relationships with students, and providing access to behavioral and mental health resources, among others.

These strategies align with the importance of creating a supportive and inclusive learning environment that promotes student well-being and academic success by addressing basic needs and implementing wraparound interventions and support to address student success:

1. Health (e.g., behavior, mental health, health, nutrition, etc.)
2. Multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS): Tiers 1, 2, 3
3. Academic growth (e.g., school climate and safety, learning gains, trauma informed care, social and emotional learning (SEL))

The whole child approach in K-12 schools can have a positive impact on student outcomes. National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data confirms the consequential impact events these last few years had on student achievement and well-being.

With students’ learning, safety, and well-being at top-of-mind for parents and educators, academic recovery requires comprehensive, evidence-based solutions that take a holistic view of students’ social, emotional, and academic learning.

In tandem with interventions focused on academic content and skills, SEL strategies create conditions that enhance student learning. Research demonstrates that social and emotional learning bolsters academic achievement.

PCG’s incorporates a whole child student wellness approach that builds on the umbrella of the WCSS model to provide you solutions that can help address student success across a variety of areas to support keeping youth healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged.