Wayfinder

10/08/2026

One of our team members had a chance encounter with a Wayfinder partner while out in the wild! She was thrilled to discover that the partner was using Wayfinder activities with her bridesmaids as part of their weekend itinerary—Group Handshake and Imaginary Potluck were a hit. We’re grateful to see partners embedding us in personal milestones in their lives, in addition to using our activities with students at school. 💚.

10/07/2026

National Principals Month is a chance to thank the leaders who set the tone for their schools every day. Principals build positive school cultures, support teachers and staff, and create spaces where every student can grow.

Show your principal how much they mean to your school community with our free printable appreciation cards.

Get three card designs students and staff can share with your school leaders here:
💌 https://wfndr.co/4yr6Lid

10/06/2026

“We’re often in a responsive space with bullying, trying to mitigate the effects of something that happened in the community. But with Wayfinder activities and lessons, you’re focusing on skills like empathy, self-awareness, and collaboration, giving students the ability to engage with each other in a more healthy and productive way.” Wayfinder’s MTSS Curriculum Designer, Natasha Mihm

Students who know how to recognize bullying and speak up change the culture from the inside. Here's how schools are building those skills with Wayfinder.

🗞️ Read the new blog here:

Bullying prevention starts with nurturing social and emotional competencies. Wayfinder offers the tools students need to manage healthy interactions.

09/29/2026

When a peer steps in, bullying stops more than half the time (57%).

Students have real power to stop bullying. But stepping in is hard. It takes ongoing practice to stay calm, notice how others are feeling, and pause before acting.

This Bullying Prevention Month, add staying power to the work your schools are already doing. Our free resource includes quick PreK-12 activities, from learning to say "stop" effectively to exploring what it means to be an upstander. Each one takes just 5-20 minutes.

Plus, see how Wayfinder helps districts like yours build belonging all year so that bullying stops before it starts.

👉 Get the resource: https://wfndr.co/4y2Qxv2

09/24/2026

Middle school is a big transition, and at Lincoln Middle School in Oceanside, CA, students and educators agree that belonging is what makes all the difference. When students feel seen and valued, they show up, take risks, and grow.

Learn more about how Wayfinder supports Belonging at: https://wfndr.co/4rP1UoV

09/24/2026

Starting middle school is one of the most stressful events K-12 students go through together. When that transition goes poorly, it can take a heavy toll on academics, motivation, and feelings of connection.

The need for belonging isn't unique to middle school, but the emotional and developmental volatility of early adolescence makes it extra critical.

Wayfinder's Belonging in Middle School Resource Pack offers research-backed teaching + learning strategies for leaders and educators supporting students in grades 6–8, plus some of our most-loved activities and lessons for each grade.

👉 Get the pack here: https://wfndr.co/47i2t0E

09/18/2026

35,000 decisions are made per person, per day. How can we equip students with the skills to make better decisions in school and + life?

Students' brains are actively developing the ability to make good decisions, especially during the middle and high school years. Reasoning, weighing consequences, and metacognition become essential skills students must learn to make conscious, intentional choices—like showing up to school on time, completing homework, and treating peers and adults in the building with respect.

Developed with the Decision Education Foundation, Wayfinder's Responsible Decision Making Resource Pack turns decision science into a framework that middle and high school students can use in the classroom. It includes ready-to-use activities, slide decks, and discussion guides to put it into practice.

✏️ Get our Responsible Decision Making Resource Pack here: https://wfndr.co/4hcPYZ3

09/17/2026

📍 Last stop on our road trip! Denver, CO ⛰️

Super Sea Star, Helpful Harlow, and Resilient Riley covered thousands of miles this summer (alpine lakes, steep trails, a few too many road trip snacks) and wrapped it all up on a Denver rooftop with the Wayfinder Marketing team. The plushies had a *lot* to share!

The road trip stops this summer put our elementary curriculum and characters on the map. 🗺️ They also highlighted our six Core Skills for all ages: Self-Awareness, Adaptability, Empathy, Collaboration, Agency, and Purpose.

These skills don't work alone, and students don't build them one at a time; they build them together, on trails and in classrooms and at kitchen tables. Just like our Wayfinder team does every day at work.

Our job is to help schools build human skills. We're heading into this school year ready to do exactly that. 🫶

09/15/2026

Principal Myeshia Whigham has been reading through student feedback about their experience with Wayfinder, and the story students tell is clear: when middle schoolers get real time to talk with their peers and their advisor, everything else gets stronger too—including their academics.

“Wayfinder has really helped us strengthen our academic success through relationships,” Dr. Whigham says. “It's become a schoolwide tool for building those relationships, and when kids feel comfortable and like they belong, they want to come to school. The data backs it up.”

Now Dr. Whigham shares her toolkit with other middle schools, so they know it's possible—without adding a heavy lift for educators. More advisors running advisory in a meaningful way. A student experience that keeps getting better.

Here's to year three with Wayfinder. 🎒

09/14/2026

📍 Road trip stop 17: Yellowstone National Park, WY

Helpful Harlow explored the most geothermally active place on Earth—Yellowstone! She followed the trails of the local herds to explore the 10,000 geysers and hydrothermal features across the park.

What looks like chaos from above (steam, mud pots, geysers erupting on their own schedules...) is actually one interconnected system underground, all fed by the same heat source. Harlow's takeaway: the wildest + trickiest things usually make more sense once you understand what's underneath. 🌋

It's a good reminder for the classroom, too. A student's behavior, mood, or motivation can look unpredictable on the surface—but there's almost always something underneath driving it. Self-awareness and empathy help us look past the surface and see what's really going on, for ourselves and for each other.

Learn more about our six Core Skills and how they help students understand what's underneath ⬇️
https://wfndr.co/4cICMtv