Jul 17 2012

Meet the School Counselor Ideas

Posted on July 17, 2012 by Vanessa

I recently received an email from a reader about finding ideas school counselors can use when visiting students at the beginning of the year. Today, I am sharing three ideas I’ve used in my program. I can’t show you the actual pictures in this post since the items are packed away at school, but I will do my very best to explain how each activity is done.

Use A Circle Map

A Circle Map is one of eight Thinking Maps and is used for defining in context. To use one, put a word inside the inner circle and write words or phrases to define or tell about that word in the outer circle. You can also use pictures to help define the word.

Create a Circle Map to introduce yourself. Draw your circle map on a large poster board. In the middle, glue a picture of yourself and write your name. Around the picture in the outer circle, write words and find pictures of things that tell about you. Some examples could include:

a picture of your child(ren) to show you are a mother or father
a picture of the mascot of your favorite team to show you are a fan
a character word that defines you such as caring, kind, compassionate
a picture showing your favorite hobby
a picture of your pet(s) to show you are a pet lover
a picture of musical notes if you are a singer
the words listener, helper, and friend to define your role as school counselor

Think about who you are and find words or pictures that define you and what you do as school counselor.

This can be an opener for your main lesson, or you can extend it by having the students create circle maps about themselves to share with you. Your circle map can be used with all grade levels.

“A Counselor Is” Cards

You may have heard of the book Who is Your School Counselor by Lisa Miller and Connie Brown. It includes a story called “Who the School Counselor is NOT” and a BINGO game. I used the bingo game one time. The game didn’t stick for me, however the calling cards were perfect for helping my Kindergarten friends learn about what a school counselor does. I have used them every year for the past six years.

There are five cards:

Question Mark- This card stands for “problem solver.” A school counselor helps you solve problems by assisting you with deciding what the problem is and what you can do about. Then you decide what to do. I use this time to tell students that I will help them think of solutions to their problems, but which one they choose is up to them.
Hand Cupped Ear- This card stands for “listener.” A school counselor listens to your problems. I use this time to tell students where my office is and that they can come see me to talk if they are feeling sad or upset about anything.
Touching Hands- This card stands for “friend.” A school counselor is your friend. I use this time to tell students that I am their adult friend at school. They will never be in trouble when they come to see me. I am their friend and want to help them make things right.
Alphabet/Math Problems/Pencil- This card stands for “helper.” A school counselor helps you do your best in school. I use this time to tell students how sad or angry boys and girls sometimes have difficulty in school. I am there to help them work through their problems so they are ready to do their best work in class.
Lips With Finger- This cards stands for “secret keeper.” A school counselor keeps your secrets unless the secret will hurt you or someone else. I use this time to give examples of which secrets I can keep and which secrets I have to tell.

I share these cards one at a time and explain what each one means. This is another activity I use before the main lesson. I always bring the cards back for the next lesson to review. I was unable to find this product on the MAR*CO site, and Amazon is currently not selling it. This leads me to believe it is no longer being sold. However, it wouldn’t be difficult at all to make your own set of cards with similar pictures to use this idea. You can also use these cards with first or second graders.

Meet the Counselor Game

Create “Meet the Counselor” game cards to use with upper grade students. This game is good to remind students about how to make appointments, what secrets you can and can’t keep, and any other facts you want to review with them. For this game, use 4 x 6 index cards. You can hand write the cards, or type everything, affix each question to the cards, and laminate them. Put “Meet the Counselor” on one side of each of the cards. On the other side, put questions about the school counselor’s role as well as specific questions for your school. They can be true/false, open ended, multiple choice, or a combination. You’ll want to make sure to have enough questions for each student to have a turn. Some example questions are:

If I tell the counselor I got into a big argument with my brother before school, he or she will: a) tell my parents b) keep it confidential c) let my teacher know
I am in big trouble if I have to go see the school counselor! (true or false)
How do I make an appointment with the school counselor?
If my uncle hit me and left a bruise on my arm and I show my school counselor, he or she won’t tell anyone. (true or false)

Divide the class into two teams. You can decide how you want the teams to earn points. I enjoy bringing a Nerf basketball and hoop set for points to make it extra fun. First, I ask the student the question. If he or she is unsure of the answer, he or she can ask the team for help. (This guarantees the team will get one point.) Next, the student gets to shoot the ball for a bonus point for the team. My little future NBA and WNBA stars love it! We discuss at the beginning how to respond to a missed shot appropriately. I don’t usually have tangible prizes for this game. One team just ends up with the most points.

If you don’t wish to use the cards as a class game, they can be used for a whole class discussion as well. Either way, use the questions to jump start discussions about important information your students need to know about the school counselor.

Stick around! You can follow Savvy School Counselor with free email updates. As always, I’d love to hear from you! How do you plan to introduce yourself and the role of the school counselor to your students?

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Jul 14 2012

3 Important Tips for New School Counselors

Posted on July 14, 2012 by Vanessa

I remember the excitement and the butterflies I felt as a new school counselor eight years ago. I had just come out of the classroom after thirteen years and was fortunate enough to get hired as the school counselor at a brand new school. I applied for my job as a graduate student and was able to have a paid internship. Although it was a challenge, I learned a lot and had loads of support in the end.

Now having completed eight years as well as having had a school counseling intern, I know exactly what I would say to the new school counselor. If you are about to embark upon your very first year of school counseling, I’m sure you are spending lots of time looking for resources, ideas, and thinking about how to plan your year. I wanted to take this time to tell you what I believe to be three important things you should remember as you begin the new school year..

Know Your Support Staff

Get to know your school social worker, school psychologist, school nurse, and data manager. In my school district, the data manager is the only one of the four who works at the school everyday. The others come on select days throughout the school week. The five of us form our school’s attendance committee and meet monthly to discuss any attendance issues at our school. We work together to establish incentives for student attendance and divide tasks among the group in order to get things done. I always collaborate with our school social worker when I’m dealing with a sensitive student issue whether she is at our school that day or not. (I have her on speed dial!) The school psychologist is a great resource when dealing with behavior concerns and for developing a behavior intervention plan when needed. The school nurse is especially helpful when determining calls I may need to make to Child Protective Services as she can help assess a marking or bruise on a child. The data manager keeps all of the attendance records and gives me the data I need throughout the school year. Because I am the only counselor at my school, it is wonderful to know I have these support personnel to work with, bounce my thoughts off of, and to assist me when I need a second opinion. Be sure to get to know your support staff well!

Communicate Effectively With Administration

Always make sure you are keeping your Principal and Assistant Principal(s) in the loop regarding very sensitive student issues. If you have to make a call to Child Protective Services, let your Principal know what is going on. If an angry parent shows up a week later, your principal will not be in the dark. If an administrator asks you to see a child for a particular reason, always follow up either in person or by email letting the administrator know you’ve seen the student and what you’ve done or plan to do to assist him or her. If you frequently send emails to teachers to keep them informed about a school-wide program or a school counseling program, “Cc” your administrators in the email. This will keep them informed and aware of the wonderful programs you are implementing at your school.

Create a General Plan for the Year

As you are learning about your new position during the school year, you will become more knowledgeable about the specific needs of your school. Communication with teachers, parents, and students will assist you with program planning. Designing your program around the needs of your school is important. If you are not at a new school, ask about any data that could be of use to your program such as previous office referrals or low attendance data. Knowing the areas of concern for your school can help you take a proactive stance in your program. Our school is a Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports school, and we use a data system called SWIS (School-Wide Information System). Before leaving for the summer, I got a copy of all the SWIS data regarding this past school year’s discipline referrals to assist me with planning for the coming year. Make a general year-at-a-glance schedule listing what you plan to do knowing it could change as you discover the specific needs of your school.

Don’t stress! You’ll do just fine. You can’t go wrong with your ASCA National Model plan in place. While you’ve got time this summer, read up on what the plan includes, and do some preparation now. This can include developing your mission and vision statements as well as looking through some sample action plans in order to come up with some ideas for your own plan. (ETA on 7/28: I’ve recently learned the content page which included sample actions plans has been removed. I can only guess the reason is due to the release of the third edition which includes some changes. You can read about the changes here. I still advise being proactive in regards to thinking about your plan for the coming school year. I know my school district does a wonderful job of sharing samples from our district in order to assist us. Be sure to ask your counseling and student services department about this.)

Stick around! You can follow Savvy School Counselor with free email updates. As always, I’d love to hear from you. What questions do you have as a new school counselor?

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Jul 9 2012

Teaching Children About Self-Expression

Posted on July 9, 2012 by Vanessa

I recently found an adorable book about self-expression called Unique Monique written by Maria Rousaki. I’m sure you have an idea of why Monique is unique just by looking at the cover. However, her large, red glasses are not her only way of expressing herself!

Monique attends a school where everyone wears a uniform. Everyday she must wear her blue top and brown skirt. She wants to be different, so each day she looks for a way to express her uniqueness from painting her nails to carrying a big fancy bag. Sadly, all of her ideas are prohibited by the school principal.

Interestingly enough, every idea Monique comes up with is quickly embraced by her school mates. They always return to school the next day repeating the same actions as Monique had done the day before.

It finally ends with Monique displaying her uniqueness in a way her principal could do nothing about! You’ll have to read the story to find out how!

This book can be used to lead into a discussion about how we are all special and have unique qualities. Shy or withdrawn students can benefit from a discussion like this as they work to develop positive attitudes toward themselves as unique and worthy people. Monique expressed herself in a variety of ways. Like Monique, we all have gifts inside to share with others.

I looked in one of my favorite resources, Turn the Page for Play Therapy Activities, for an activity to tie into this discussion. In order to assist shy or withdrawn students with “coming out of their shells,” it is important to help them realize the strengths that lie within them. This great resource, by Dr. Michele Neace Page and Dr. Joy Wilson, has an activity called “What’s the Prize Inside?” This would be a great small group activity. Each student is given 5-6 plastic eggs, drawing paper, and a small basket. You can make paper baskets out of paper bags or find some at the dollar tree.

The students will place “prizes” in each of their eggs. The “prizes” are examples of their own special qualities. They can cut pictures from magazines or draw their own pictures to illustrate their special qualities. Each picture will go inside of an egg. The students can then decide which “prize” they want to share with the group.

I love that this great resource is aligned with the ASCA standards. Each activity lists the specific standards that are addressed. It also comes with a CD which includes all of the reproducible pages from the book.

Of course if you don’t have any plastic eggs on hand, you can always have your students make foldables! (I love a foldable!)

I made this foldable with four flaps. Since the “prizes inside” are like their special gifts to others, your students can decorate the outside of each flap to look like a gift. Inside each flap, they can glue pictures from magazines or draw the pictures of each gift. You can create a school counselor sample to share with students. Behind one flap, glue a picture of an ear because one of your gifts to your students is to be a good listener. Another flap can have a bandage because your job is to help children heal.

No matter how you choose to use Unique Monique, it will be a hit with your students. This book also lends itself to a discussion about being who you are- even within a group. You don’t have to do what everyone else is doing just to fit in. Be yourself!

Stick around! You can follow Savvy School Counselor with free email updates. As always, I’d love to hear from you! Tell me about books you use to teach self-expression.

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Jul 7 2012

National Boards: 5 “Must Do’s” for Entry 4

Posted on July 7, 2012 by Vanessa

This post focuses on five important things to remember for Entry 4- Documented Accomplishments: Contributions to Student Learning. If you haven’t already read my previous National Boards posts, you can find them all linked on my page- National Boards.

Entry 4 Must Do’s:

DO incorporate the four standards associated with this entry into your writing. It’s similar to when we tell students who are answering questions about a passage they’ve read to prove their answers. I can write a wonderful two-page summary about an accomplishment. However, if it doesn’t address the four standards, that wonderful writing won’t garner the points I need for my final score. For example: If my accomplishment is about a great family event I coordinate at my school, I would really need to focus on Standard VII: Collaboration with Family and Community. As I read this standard, I learn that accomplished school counselors “work to educate parents on key issues that affect student learning.” Therefore, I need to write about how my event did just that. Let me be clear. Each accomplishment does not have to address ALL four standards, but at some point each of the four standards associated with this entry should be addressed.
DO choose accomplishments that are of significance to your school counseling program. I mentioned in a previous post that you may think of several accomplishments you could use, but not every accomplishment will lend itself to helping you show how what you do truly impacts your students or improves your school counseling program. Be sure to use the categories chart pictured here. If you have a difficult time completing the chart regarding one of your accomplishments, that accomplishment may be one you should reconsider using.
DO submit enough accomplishments to thoroughly demonstrate your work as a leader and/or collaborator, a learner, and as a partner with students’ families and their community. I’ve been asked questions about the number of accomplishments to submit. It is important to show your work in each of these areas. Yes, you may have an accomplishment that covers two of these areas. However, if you do, be sure you are supplying enough evidence in your writing and with your artifacts. Also remember, you can only submit ten typed pages of writing for this entry whether you choose to submit three accomplishments or the eight which are allowed. My opinion- More isn’t always better in this case.
DO describe your accomplishments in detail. Write as if you are telling someone who has no clue as to what you are talking about. For example: If one of your accomplishments involves PBIS, begin discussing it by saying Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports followed by (PBIS). From that point forward, you may type PBIS. Also, be sure to explain just what it is. Remember: Write as though this person knows nothing about it!
DO read the “Format Specifications” and “Assembling Your Entry” sections for this entry very carefully. Each entry has it’s own set of directions. Never assume what you had to do in Entry 1 will apply to Entry 3. Read, highlight, and follow the directions as written.

I also want to include a chart I created from a portion of a form that was given to me during an informational session. I don’t know who created it, and I take no credit for it. It helps NBPTS candidates think about their description and analysis. The original is on a triangle. I will explain why.

Nature

The top of the triangle included the key words for describing the nature of the accomplishment. It should not be a very large portion of your writing, but should be very concise. Remember to describe the accomplishment as if the assessor knows NOTHING, but don’t take one half to a whole page doing it.

Significance

The second tier is a little meatier. You really want to get your point across when it comes to describing the significance of your accomplishment. Not as much as you will tell about the impact of it, but a lot more than you told about the nature of it.

Impact

The third tier is the largest. The most important point you want to drive home is how your accomplishment impacts student learning. This is where you need to cite specific examples where appropriate. Paint a picture for your assessor. The assessor needs to truly understand how your accomplishment really made a difference.

The form also included “buzz words” for each section. These words helped me think about what to say for each area. If these are something you feel would benefit you, don’t hesitate to email me through my contact page and request them.

If there are any additional Entry 4 questions you would like for me to address, please leave a comment below. I will use any questions from you to create my next NBPTS post. However, if there aren’t many questions and I can simply reply with an answer under this post, I will do that. If there are few or no questions, I will be moving on to other areas of the NBPTS process.

Stick around! You can follow Savvy School Counselor with free email updates. Also, be sure to enter the “Simon’s Hook Giveaway” before tomorrow, July 8th, at 11:59 P.M. E.S.T.

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