About Us
Curating innovative educational tools
Square One is a Chicago-based health education 501(c)(3) run by Northwestern undergrads and medical students interested in physical health education accessibility. Our mission is to promote children’s health and wellness through an equitable and accessible health curriculum, based on principles of problem-based learning.
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It is our contention that no idea is too convoluted to understand. We aim to make ideas more accessible and understandable for students + inquisitive individuals alike.
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Our flagship resource is Stepping Stones: A Kid's Guide to Health, which is a graphic health and wellness workbook intended for children in grades 2nd-4th. The resource covers important children's health topics including Hygiene, Nutrition, Sleep, and the Social Self. The overall goal of this resource is to increase accessibility of and active engagement with health and wellness education in youth.
The accompanying teacher’s resource also has suggested interactive questions and engagement ideas to help students further connect with the material. In previous research studies, graphic medicine has proven to be effective at increasing recall and long-term retention of material. Preliminary studies on our own materials show similar results, which is why we believe our resource is unique and valuable.
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Our COVID-19 resource educates elementary school children on COVID-19 and common public health safety measures in an engaging and entertaining format.
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Our Model
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To bridge accessibility barriers to essential education, we offer schools and community partners virtual and physical copies available of resources entirely free of charge. This is paired with the teacher’s resource to guide students through their exploration of the material. Additionally, we also have developed activities that educators can use to actively engage students in the four main health areas Stepping Stones covers.
Alongside this distribution, we are also happy to provide introductory training and continued support to educators as they engage with our resources. From prior experience, we have found that the optimal way for us to serve our partners is to provide them easy access to our resources and support opportunities but not interfere with the way teachers utilize these resources in their respective classrooms. If you think your school or organization would benefit from Square One's resources, please do not hesitate to reach out.
Our Story
Square One was founded by brothers Abhinav and Ankoor Talwar. After beginning undergraduate studies at Northwestern University, Abhi recruited a team of passionate students to continue bringing the organization's vision of making health education more accessible to fruition.
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We have iterated our health resource multiple times to ensure it covers appropriate topics in a considerate and careful way, while also feeling inclusive and welcoming to all. Over the past two and a half years, we have distributed 1,500 copies of our health and wellness resources to partner schools in the Chicagoland area.
