Social connection is essential to our physical and mental health and wellbeing. A feeling of closeness to others has been found to increase longevity and strengthen the immune system, while a lack of social connection has been found to be more harmful to our health than high blood pressure, smoking, or obesity. Social connection is also essential to learning, as a student’s sense of social connection strongly impacts the command centre of the brain, known as executive function. Executive function affects a student’s ability to plan and manage their time, to pay attention and to transfer their learning to new contexts.