As schools around the Valley are now back in session, mental health is just as important to the school year as ordering textbooks.

School corporations around the country are starting to see the positive aspects of keeping mental health providers nearby.

And the old saying, “let kids be kids” is starting to fall away as parents and teachers alike begin to notice the importance of mental health during the school year.

Theresa White, a licensed therapist with Hamilton Center, encourages adults to understand the validity of a child’s emotions, “Have you ever been a child? Uhm, Children have just as many emotions as adults have. Uhm, they experience the same situations that adults do. Just differently,” said White.

Each school has a team of trained experts ready to help a child in need.

These professionals include school psychologists, school therapists, counselors, and behavioral interventionists.

These individuals have extensive knowledge of child development, and crisis intervention.

White also encourages teachers and parents to pay attention and look for distress in plain sight, “Watch their play. A lot comes out in their play and sometimes as the adults we just assume that they’re just playing it’s just what they do. But they actually are showing you how they’re feeling.”