Rooted in Education. Grounded in Mental Health.

Balancing Acts was born out of a shared observation: schools need practical tools to address student wellbeing before challenges reach a crisis point.

Concerned classroom teachers and licensed mental health providers came together to create a program that doesn’t just inform today’s kids about mental health—it equips them with tools they can practice every day for a lifetime. Together, they’ve developed a dynamic and adaptive curriculum that blends educational best practices with clinical expertise in ways that feel developmentally aligned and natural in every early adolescent classroom.

Why We Do This Work

The need for proactive, school-based mental health education has never been more urgent.

Balancing Acts was created in direct response to these needs.

In 2021, the U.S. Surgeon General declared a youth mental health crisis, urging schools to take a more proactive role in supporting students (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)


Medical providers have declared a national emergency, citing “rising levels of mental illness, a severe shortage of therapists and treatment options, and insufficient research to explain the trend”.(New York Times)

Studies show that students with strong social-emotional skills have improved academic performance, classroom behavior, and long-term well-being (CASEL Research)


Teachers overwhelmingly report they need more proactive support in facilitating conversations about stress, resilience, and emotional health with their students. (RAND Corporation)

What Makes Balancing Acts Different

Unlike general awareness or short-term programs, Balancing Acts is a curriculum that offers:

  • An ecosystem of support with a comprehensive and proactive approach to addressing the complex and ever-evolving needs of students coming of age in the twenty-first century.


    Collaborative creation: Built by classroom teachers and mental health professionals, ensuring content is both pedagogically sound and clinically responsible.

  • A dynamic, developmentally-appropriate, and culturally-responsive program geared toward learners in their early to middle adolescence developmental stage.

    Teacher-first design: A full year of lessons and activities written with educators in mind—easy to use, adaptable, andrespectful of limited class time.

  • Adaptable, interdisciplinary coursework providing students with the tools and teachings they need to better understand the world of mental health so they can enter adulthood as emotionally-equipped, healthy-minded individuals.

    Proactive focus: Instead of waiting for a crisis, students build tools to manage stress, develop resilience, and practice empathy every day.

At Balancing Acts, we envision a world where every young person is empowered with the mental health literacy and emotional strength to thrive in school, relationships, and the world around them.

Schools like yours are reporting impactful benefits from using Balancing Acts, such as:

Proof in Practice

Increased student use of coping mechanisms during high-stress times (like test-taking season)

More respectful peer-to-peer interactions

Increased teacher confidence when discussing sensitive topics with students

“I loved learning about coping mechanisms to help me push back my stressors. It helped me learn about methods that made stressors less effective against me.”

- River, 11 years old

Bring the only comprehensive turnkey mental health curriculum to your school.

Meet Our Founder

Balancing Acts was established in 2022 by veteran educator Natalie Babcock.

Natalie holds a Master's in Education, an Elementary Teaching credential, a Bachelor's degree in Education, and an Associate's degree in Early Childhood Education. She is an Evergreen Certified Youth Mental Health Specialist.

In addition to her time in the classroom, Natalie serves as a facilitator for a variety of California Teacher Development Collaborative (CATDC) programs. In 2016, she founded a children’s literacy-based podcast called Small Tales. Her musings on Education have been featured in The Los Angeles Times.