As the 2017-18 school year began across the U.S., school administrators, counselors and teachers welcomed returning and new smiling faces into their school buildings. Some of these faces are of our nation’s pint-sized heroes: military kids. There are nearly 2 million military-connected children in the United States; 1.2 million are school-aged. Of these, only about 80,000 attend Department of Defense schools on a military installation, meaning that the vast majority of these students attend schools in the communities in which they live.

Administrators, school counselors and teachers have the responsibility of welcoming military-connected students in their schools, understanding the unique social/emotional and academic challenges they face, mitigating those challenges, and celebrating their experiences as a military-connected youth. Here are some best practices for districts and schools.