TOPSS - Psychology Awareness Initiative (PAI) Activities

The Psychology Awareness Initiative was designed to give each teacher maximum flexibility in helping promote awareness of psychology in their schools and in their communities. Below is a list of suggestions put together by the TOPSS Board that may be used as a guide for implementing your own Psychology Awareness programs. If you have any questions about any of these suggestions, please contact a board member for more information. Also, if you have a suggested activity that has worked for you, let us know so that we can include it on this list.
    Find funding resources for conducting teaching workshops and conferences

• Psychology Awareness on your Campus
•   Use the school TV channel to promote psychology awareness or focus on specific psychology related issues.
•   Make up t-shirts highlighting psychological information or people
•   Take out special advertisements or write an article for your school paper on psychology related issues
•   Perform a parody of a psychologist at school talent shows
•   Promote or create a school Psychology Club
•   Put psychological information on your class or school website
•   Have poster campaigns illustrating psychological issues
•   Sponsor psychological trivia contests and award prizes through school announcements or website
•   Invite professional speakers to your class and invite other classes to listen in
•   Hold a Psychology Fair
•   Showcase student work in psychology in a public area at school
•   Team teach with another teacher on coordinated lessons

• Psychology Awareness in the Community
•   Put on a display at the community/public library/local museum
•   Put on a display or have an informational booth at a school Open House or PTSA meeting
•   Create a reach out program with middle and elementary school aged students
•   Promote Mental Health Awareness in your community--help identify supportive resources
•   Create psychology trunks that illustrate different psychological principles and take them to community outlets
•   Create a service learning program at your school for psychology students


•   Create a video highlighting the school's psychology program or the field of psychology in general
•   Create a public website that includes information on psychology
•   Design or offer Continuing Education programs in Psychology for the community
•   Invite College or Health Professionals to speak on psychological topics to the public
•   Create a Psychology Newsletter providing information to the community on psychological issues
•   Create bookmarks highlighting psychology information and make them available in your public library

• For the School Population:
•   Create posters indicating how psychological research affects and improves our daily lives
•   Highlight student research projects in the school paper or poster displays in the library
•   Recognize past winners of psychology contests and fairs at your school and in the community newspaper
•   Use classrooms to gather data on relevant issues that can be shared with the school population
•   Communicate about the efficacies of different psychological treatments

• For Parents
•   Create a lesson or an activity that students can take back home to share with their parents or family

• For other Teachers
  •   Research important issues relevant to education, teaching methodology, discipline or other teacher relevant topics and share this information