What is it?

The curriculum is meticulously tailored to each individual, placing a strong emphasis on active personal engagement. Through a systematic and personalized approach, participants navigate a step-by-step process that equips them with the essential tools and resources. This journey empowers each person to take the helm of their own narrative, effectively navigating challenges, and ultimately crafting a future that ignites their enthusiasm and excitement. Our 12-Step evidence-based curriculum is designed to teach core values and life skills that are engaged in:

Most of the curriculum is delivered using an “outside-in” approach, where information and data are presented to the student, with the hope that it will resonate. Writing, however, is very different. It’s a part of the curriculum that comes from the “inside-out,” originating from within the student—their thoughts, feelings, opinions, passions, understanding, fears, interests, and more—and is then expressed to the outside world. This is why Chart Your Story is so effective and engaging. It connects all parts of the curriculum to the students’ own experiences and thoughts—their stories.

Our curriculum stands out for its unique approach that combines multiple methods to connect learning to the students’ own experiences. We seamlessly integrate both “outside-in” and “inside-out” models. While the “outside-in” approach involves presenting information and data to students with the goal of making it resonate, the “inside-out” approach encourages students to draw from their own thoughts, feelings, opinions, passions, understanding, fears, and interests, and express these through writing to the outside world. This dual method ensures that students not only receive valuable knowledge but also relate it to their personal experiences, making the learning process more meaningful, engaging, and transformative.

Chart Your Story is an immediate and dynamic way to discover and apply tools that empower teens to create a future they are excited about. However, it goes beyond that. It is a powerful toolkit for character education, classroom management, social skills, and much more. Chart Your Story enables students to discover, appreciate, and celebrate their own stories, as well as the stories of others.

This isn’t just a fleeting program to follow current trends. Chart Your Story uses proven strategies to create a lasting legacy.

Unparalleled Course

Our curriculum is designed to help teachers, students, and their families:

– identify their life focus

– build positive communities

– develop purpose-driven identities

– adopt a growth mindset

– and engage in daily, focused action.

EXPERIENCES FOR ALL TYPES OF LEARNING

Creativity

This realm includes artistic expression, but it also involves developing new ways to approach challenges and innovate. Creativity is at the core of each Chart Your Story unit, encouraging every student to discover, create, and share their personal story in various ways. As they chart their own story, they become active agents in their story.

Character

It's through the entire process of Chart Your Story, with every lesson and every activity that teens discover,develop, and refine their own unique character. Each student understands that their thoughts, feelings, and behavior contribute to who they are as a person and what they can contribute to the larger group - the community. It truly is the evolution and power of discovering, developing, and sharing one's own story.

Communication

Each student develops their speaking and writing skills to more effectively share their life experiences, opinions, and stories. The Chart Your Story curriculum and activities also emphasize the importance of active and empathetic listening. Throughout the program, students have numerous opportunities to enhance their communication abilities, ultimately becoming more effective and well-rounded communicators.

Collaboration

With the Chart Your Story experiences and activities, you'll discover and appreciate your own talents and strengths, as well as those of others. Whether in large or small groups, or through partnerships, you'll often work together to achieve common goals. These collaborative team-building experiences will help you see that your story is part of a larger, shared journey.

Citizenship

While your own story is powerful, no story stands alone. With the Chart Your Story curriculum, you'll quickly realize that you play a valuable and dynamic role in a larger community. Through discussions and activities, you'll discover the exciting impact of each person within a culture and community.

Critical Thinking

Critical thinking means taking information from all angles and turning it into something meaningful and clear. It’s about tackling problems and finding new solutions. You’ll be faced with various questions, tasks, and challenges, and you'll be encouraged to use your own experiences to come up with personal answers.

Message from Founder

In today’s world, we face a unique climate filled with challenges, uncertainty, and concern. During these times, we all need tools that help us build security, courage, and hope.

At My Story Matters, we believe that our resilience is forged in these moments. Even as obstacles test our resolve, we are confident that every student has the power within them to navigate life’s challenges. As the world around us becomes more overwhelming, it’s crucial for each of us to focus on what we know, what concerns us, and what we can control. By exploring our unique strengths, we can influence change and foster hope and compassion in our communities.

Our curriculum encourages students to reflect on the difficulties they’ve faced, not just to understand them, but to recognize the strengths they’ve developed because of these experiences.

The Chart Your Story curriculum equips students with the tools to analyze their past, observe their present, and make informed decisions about their future. It empowers them to be active agents in their own stories, helping them to create a future they feel optimistic about.

Built on engaging and innovative learning methods, Chart Your Story supports both students and educators. Our step-by-step approach helps students take charge of their journey, while providing teachers with resources to guide them in learning these valuable tools and putting them into action.