Military-Connected Students

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Why it works

Military-connected students, children of service members, experience distinctive circumstances: frequent relocations (and the academic and social disruption of changing schools often), parental deployments and the associated stress and worry, reintegration when a parent returns, and sometimes grief or injury, alongside strengths like adaptability and resilience. Research points to supports that help: easing school transitions, understanding and acknowledging deployment-related stress, building connection and belonging quickly, flexibility during hard times, and awareness of resources (like the interstate compact that eases transfers). Awareness and support make a real difference.

The research: Research on military-connected students; the Interstate Compact.

The run-of-show

Choose your slot. The agenda, timings, and length update to match.

The core activity: support military-connected students

Teachers leave with supports for the military-connected students in their class.

Identify military-connected students and their current situation (a recent move? a deployment?).
Ease transitions and build connection and belonging quickly.
Understand and acknowledge deployment-related stress.
Offer flexibility and know the available resources.

Ease transitions, acknowledge the stressMilitary-connected students navigate frequent moves and deployments. Ease transitions, build belonging quickly, acknowledge the stress, and know the supports.

Facilitator notes

Ease school transitions, and build connection quickly.
Acknowledge deployment stress, and offer flexibility.
Know resources.

Unseen, the challenges compoundMilitary-connected students who are not understood or supported struggle with the disruption and stress alone. Ease transitions, acknowledge the stress, and connect them to support.

Adapt it

Elementary: transitions, belonging, acknowledging feelings.
Secondary: transitions, deployment stress, flexibility, resources.
All settings: ease transitions, acknowledge stress, connect.

Participant handout

One page for every teacher. Print it, or save it as a PDF.

K12 Academics · Professional Learning

Military-Connected Students: ease and acknowledge

Through the transitions: ease moves, build belonging quickly, acknowledge deployment stress, and know the supports.

The military-connected students and their situation:
How I ease transitions and build belonging quickly:
How I acknowledge deployment-related stress:
The flexibility I offer:
The resources I can connect them to:

Make it stick

Ease and acknowledge:

Ease transitions.
Acknowledge the stress.
Bring a military-connected support that helped to the next PLC.

Common questions

What challenges do military-connected students face?

Frequent moves and school changes, parental deployments and the stress and worry they bring, reintegration, and sometimes grief or a parent's injury, alongside real resilience and adaptability.

How do I support them?

Ease school transitions, build connection and belonging quickly, understand and acknowledge deployment-related stress, offer flexibility during hard times, and know the resources available.

What about academic disruption from moving?

Frequent moves can cause gaps or misalignment. Be aware, assess where they are, fill gaps, and know supports like the interstate compact that eases transfers between states.