Supporting Student Success with the “Stress Stories Project” Pilot Intervention Study: An Integrated Approach to Regulating Stress and Enhancing Learning Management to Support Flourishing at School

Abstract

Elementary students can experience high levels of school-related stress, which can subsequently hinder learning and well-being. At this age and stage, students are still developing the skills to manage stress and academic demands, and benefit from additional support. Few studies have explored interventions that combine stress regulation with learning management or compared different learning consolidation methods. This study examined the effectiveness of the Stress Stories Project, an integrated intervention targeting two key stress appraisals linked to student success: (a) stress mindset and (b) coping self-efficacy. It also compared the effects of two consolidation strategies, memory reconsolidation and metacognitive reflection, on the appraisal outcomes. Grade 4 and 5 Canadian Public School students participated in the 2-week intervention and were assigned to either the memory reconsolidation or metacognitive reflection condition. Stress mindset and coping self-efficacy were measured before and after the intervention. A 2 (Time: pre, post) × 2 (Group: reflection, reconsolidation) repeated measures ANOVA assessed the impact of condition on outcomes. Results showed an overall increase in stress mindset scores, with more students adopting a “stress is enhancing” mindset. Coping self-efficacy did not change significantly. However, a significant time-by-group interaction revealed that memory reconsolidation was more effective than reflection in improving stress mindset over time. These findings suggest that addressing students’ past school stress experiences through memory reconsolidation may enhance stress mindset and offer greater psychological and motivational benefits.