New CAE Support Series

A new, donor-funded initiative through Shorecrest’s Center for Academic Excellence and Student Well-Being (CAE) brings intentional, research-informed education and support directly to the adults who shape a student's daily experience at Shorecrest. 

Through partnerships with Life Adventures Counseling & Consulting and It's For Kids Occupational Therapists, the CAE Support Series — managed by CAE Director Jennifer Phelps — equips faculty and families with a shared language, practical tools, and ongoing coaching to build a schoolwide culture of well-being. 

In year one:

• Middle School faculty receive full programming and coaching through Life Adventures
• Experiential and Lower School families take part in parenting workshops
• Experiential and Lower School faculty receive monthly OT-led sessions and embedded classroom coaching

The CAE Support Series is designed to expand further into Shorecrest in year two to include Upper School and additional faculty support in ES and LS, and more. This initiative reflects Shorecrest's belief that a child's well-being is built by the intentional investment of the adults around them.

CAE Support Series Workshops for ES & LS Families

A 4-part workshop series for parents and caregivers explores practical, research-grounded tools for supporting elementary children through some of the most common emotional and social challenges: anxiety, screen time, friendship and conflict.

Throughout the series, the book "The Whole-Brain Child" by Daniel J. Siegel, M.D. and Tina Payne Bryson, Ph.D. serves as a consistent anchor text, giving parents a shared framework (understanding how a child's developing brain processes big feelings) that deepens with each session rather than starting over from scratch. No pre-reading is required for any session; both the children's book and the parent anchor text are introduced and explored live in the room, with the goal of giving you a foundation to feel equipped to dig into further on your own afterward. Each workshop is also designed to stand on its own, so you are welcome to attend any single session or all four (those who attend more than one will notice the sessions building on each other and deepening over the course of the series).

Session 1: Understanding Anxiety

Paired with "Wilma Jean The Worry Machine," this session helps you recognize what anxiety looks and feels like from a child's perspective and how to respond in ways that calm rather than reinforce it. Drawing on The Whole-Brain Child's "name it to tame it" approach, you will learn simple, in-the-moment strategies for helping kids identify and move through worry, then practice these skills together before taking home a family activity designed to make naming feelings a natural part of everyday conversation.

Session 2: Navigating Technology Together 

Using “Goodnight Screen” as a springboard, this session tackles one of the most common sources of household tension: screens. You will get a grounded look at how screen time affects attention, sleep, and connection, along with practical language for setting limits without triggering power struggles. The guided activity gives you a chance to practice these conversations before trying them at home, and the take-home challenge invites the whole family to experiment with a tech-free ritual together.

Session 3: Building Friendship Skills

Centered on How to Be a Friend using “Should I Share My Ice Cream?” this session focuses on the everyday skills of making and keeping friends: sharing, taking turns, reading social cues, and handling hurt feelings. You will explore how to coach these skills without stepping in and solving every problem for your child, and practice supportive language before bringing home an activity that turns friendship-building into a shared family project.

Session 4: Working Through Conflict

Anchored by “Enemy Pie,” this session uses The Whole-Brain Child's framework to help parents understand what's happening in a child's brain during conflict and how to guide repair rather than just enforce peace. You will practice de-escalation and repair conversations together, then take home an activity that turns a real or imagined conflict into a chance to build empathy as a family.

Each session follows the same rhythm: a quick connection activity to ground the group, a read-aloud or reference from a children's book that anchors the topic in a child's-eye view, a short foundational lesson on the psychology at play, guided practice so you can try the skills in real time, and a take-home, 'try this together' activity to carry the learning into family life.

Dates geared towards Experiential School families:

• Tuesday, October 20 in the Ohana Community Room, 8:15am
• Tuesday, November 17 in the Ohana Community Room, 8:15am
• Tuesday, December 1 in the Ohana Community Room, 8:15am
• Wednesday, January 13 in the Seminar room, 8:15am

Dates geared towards Lower School families:

• Wednesday, October 21 in the Ohana Community Room, 8:15am
• Wednesday, November 18 in the Ohana Community Room, 8:15am
• Thursday, December 3 in the Ohana Community Room, 8:15am
• Thursday, January 14 in the Ohana Community Room, 8:15am

Meet the Guest Speaker:

Dr. Maurie Lung has spent over 30 years in the field as a therapist, business owner, author, speaker, trainer, and evaluator. She is the founder and CEO of Life Adventures Counseling & Consulting and directs the adventure and nature-based graduate counseling programs at Prescott College, where she also teaches as faculty and supports research projects. She has co-authored books for mental health professionals and written articles on how play and time in nature can heal and restore dignity. She has trained and presented internationally, working with organizations and practitioners around the world who share a belief in nature and experience as a path to healing. On a more personal note, she has a 13 year old and triplet 11 year olds, who are the creators of plenty of adventures in her own household!