How it all started | Teacher Stories Blog Post 1 | Beginning of MindChild

By Mikaela Ostrander

Hey there, and welcome to Stories by a Teacher. This is where I’ll be sharing real-life moments from the classroom — the challenges, the breakthroughs, and everything in between. But first, I want to give you a little background on how I got into this work and started implementing the strategies I now teach.

Let’s be clear — many of these strategies aren’t brand new. You’ve probably heard versions of them before. The difference is in how they’re used, how they're explained, and how accessible they become — especially the tools that don’t come naturally to most people. My goal has always been to make these tools practical, repeatable, and realistic for the everyday classroom.

The Unexpected Beginning

My journey really took off when a series of life events brought me to a small town in Washington — Longview. I ended up at a school that had been unable to hire a special education teacher. Sadly, this isn’t uncommon. The burnout rate is high, and honestly, so is the chaos. The reality? We’re often expected to perform miracles with a student population that’s either living in survival mode due to trauma or so entitled that they are unaccustomed to boundaries, that their behavior mimics the same intensity — just for different reasons.

Whatever the root cause, the behaviors are real, serious enough to disrupt classrooms daily and raise safety concerns.

When I stepped into the role, I inherited a caseload filled with students who eloped frequently (leaving class or even campus), destroyed classrooms, threw objects, harmed staff and peers, refused work, and more. And somehow, it was my job to transform them into successful learners in a system that was very clearly not designed for them.

Finding the Breakthrough

It was during this time that I was introduced to the 16 personality types, based on Carl Jung’s foundational psychology work. I had this moment of clarity — this is it. This is how I could connect with my students, understand them, and support them fast. And we were desperate for something that worked.

This idea became the foundation of what is now called MindChild.

With the help of the team, we created four key questions to begin identifying a student’s personality type — no guarantees it would work, but at that point, we were willing to try anything.

And here’s the thing… it worked. Especially for elementary-age kids. Once we had a good sense of their type, I worked with the team to build personalized scripts and strategies that teachers could follow to respond in consistent, effective ways.

We aligned the interventions, the language we used, and how I facilitated social-emotional learning sessions — all through the lens of their personality type.- that one shift changed everything. Fast.

Where We Are Now

We launched this approach in September 2023. We just wrapped the 2024–2025 school year. And let me tell you: my students are thriving.

Their test scores are climbing.Their confidence is soaring.Students are even starting to exit special education services — not because they no longer need support, but because they’ve overcome the behaviors that qualified them in the first place. They’re showing up to learn, and they’re no longer displaying academic deficits.

I recognize that some students will still require additional resources and intensive support — and that’s okay. But if we can reach even 80% of the students currently labeled as “behavior problems” or “difficult” and help shift how they’re seen and supported, that’s a powerful impact. It’s not just progress — it’s a meaningful and realistic goal to work toward.

Want to Learn More?

I’ll be sharing specific student stories, breakthrough moments, and step-by-step examples throughout this blog series.

If you’re curious to see how it all works — or want to start implementing it yourself — begin with the Teacher Training. That’s where it all starts. Because every child deserves an education that sees who they are — not just what they do.

Let’s reimagine education together.

Mikaela