140. The Anxious Generation Explained: 3 Reasons Your Classroom Feels Harder Now than Ever Before & What to Do About It
Apr 01, 2025
Today’s students are navigating a world that looks nothing like the one most of us grew up in—and if teaching feels harder lately, you’re not imagining it. In this episode, we unpack key insights from Jonathan Haidt’s The Anxious Generation to understand why kids today seem more overwhelmed, anxious, and emotionally fragile than ever before.
We explore the three major shifts impacting this generation—and more importantly, what you can do about it. You’ll walk away with five practical tools to help support your students (and protect your peace) without adding more to your already-full plate.
TOPICS COVERED:
• The dramatic rise in anxiety, depression, and self-harm since 2012—and what social media has to do with it
• Why today’s tech-connected world creates a “developmental mismatch” for young brains
• The overlooked impact of declining independent play on emotional resilience
• Five tools to help you support students in real-time—without burning out
• How routines calm the anxious brain
• The power of peer support in lowering emotional load
• Teaching tech hygiene in a shame-free way
• Easy strategies for building emotional literacy
• Creating small moments of joy that shift classroom energy
• Why small shifts matter more than ever in this new teaching landscape
RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:
- The Anxious Generation by Johnathan Haidt
RELATED RESOURCES:
- Take the FREE Teacher Burnout Roadmap to Burnout Recovery Quiz - Take this short, fun, and informative quiz to discover what you need to sustain your teaching career and begin burnout recovery. This quiz will help you understand what support systems you need, how to prioritize your mental health to live a fulfilling and energized life as a teacher, and what drives your self-care.
- Join the Waitlist for Automate Your Classroom Course - Learn the step-by-step roadmap TO creating a sustainable teacher task simplification and automation system to beat burnout, squash stress, get back YOUR time, and sustain your career in education
- Missing Assignment Google Form to Automatic Email Template - Your Go-To for Teacher Communication Simplification is in this Google Form to Automatic E-mail Guide
- FREE Parent Communication Documentation Form
- Watch the FREE "Balance before Burnout: Work/Life Balance Audit" Mini-workshop
CONNECT WITH BRITTANY:
- Connect with Brittany on Instagram @teachingmindbodyandsoul
- Learn more on TikTok with Brittany @msprincessteach
RELATED EPISODES:
- Episode 70: 4 Types of Teachers Who Need to Set Strategic Boundaries to Beat Burnout This School Year
- Episode 72: From Chaos to Clarity: Using SOPs as the Ultimate Teacher Tool to Simplify, Streamline, and Avoid Burnout
- Episode 41: Sustainability Secrets: Overcoming Stress Responses in the Classroom
- Episode 42: Teach Smarter, Not Harder: Achieving Sustainability without Sacrificing Your Life [SUSTAINABILITY SERIES]
- Episode 43: Teacher Burnout Busting Systems: 3 Steps to Creating a Personalized Lesson Planning System with Sara Marye [SUSTAINABILITY SERIES]
- Episode 44: The Battle Against Teacher Burnout: The Ultimate Strategies for Managing Job Creep in Education [SUSTAINABILITY SERIES]
- Episode 45: 5 Simple Automations to Streamline Teaching & Squash Stress [SUSTAINABILITY SERIES]
MORE ABOUT THE RESILIENT TEACHER PODCAST:
The Resilient Teacher Podcast is the show that will give overwhelmed educators the support, tools, and mindset to reduce teacher burnout and keep teaching sustainable. Each week, Brittany Blackwell, M.Ed. & her guests will share inspiration and actionable steps to avoid or recover from the dreaded teacher burnout. You'll be inspired to individualize self-care and learn to prioritize your well-being and mental health, all while making a bigger impact on your classrooms and community.
SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW ON ITUNES:
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And if you are feeling extra amazing, I would be super grateful if you would leave a review on iTunes, too! Those reviews help other educators who are burned out and needing support find the podcast, and I love shouting you out on the Community Reviewer of the Week Segment! Just click here to review, select "Ratings & Reviews" and "Write a Review" and share what you are loving about the podcast!
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Hey, y'all! I'm Brittany!
