Category Archives: Individual Counseling

Apr 12 2013

8 Great Anger Management Strategies

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Anger Strategies Foldable- savvyschoolcounselor.comIn my school counseling program, I am always looking for activities to use with my students to assist them with managing their anger.  I took my latest idea from…me. :)  One of my first blog posts was 8 Tips New Test Takers Should Know.  It’s funny to me today because there are actually ten tips included in the activity, but I never caught it.  This activity, however, actually DOES have eight tips.

Using the same format (minus a couple of flaps), I created this anger management foldable to make with my students.  Inside is an area for students to identify the things that trigger their anger.  There are five possible triggers listed along with a blank line for students to add an additional trigger that may not be on the list.  Next, there is an area for students to circle descriptions of how their body feels when they are angry.

Identifying triggers and your bodies reactions are key in managing anger.  Once students are able to identify these areas, they are more likely to implement as many of the strategies as necessary.  This activity does include eight. Students illustrate the strategy on the outside of the flap and write the strategy on the inside.  The eight strategies I used on my foldable are:

  •  Take three deep breaths.
  • Count backward from 10 to 1.  (Students can decide to begin counting backward from any number they would like.)
  • Exercise/Burn some energy.
  • Talk about it with a friend.
  • Spend some time alone.
  • Use I-Messages to express your feelings.
  • Tell yourself calming words like “Calm down” or  ”It will be okay.”
  • Walk away from the situation.

AngerFoldable

I have created a new product in my TpT store which includes a template for this activity.  There is an Anger Management contract included to copy on the backside of the foldable.  After identifying triggers and body reactions inside, students list them on the back along with the strategies they intend to use from the flaps in order to calm down.  Additionally, there is a two-page activity for students to practice creating I-messages along with eight posters to use which illustrate each of the strategies.  This 12 page Anger Management Pack sells for $3.00 Your feedback is always greatly appreciated.

You may also like this end-of year  School Memories Paper Folding Activity.

Stick around!  You can follow Savvy School Counselor with free email updates.  You can also follow my TpT Store to keep up with my latest products and freebies.  As always, I’d love to hear from you!

Sep 30 2012

Student Self-Referral Form

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Many times throughout the school year, students will need and want to visit the school counselor to discuss their problems.  I mentioned a form I use in a previous post which uses “rocks” to help describe the urgency of the referral.

My original form included pictures which I couldn’t post for distribution because of the copyright, so I chose a picture of a rock from a free clip art site, www.clker.com, for the purposes of sharing the form here.  Click HERE to print the form.

Students can select one of the following options:

A Small Rock  (See me soon!)

A Medium Rock  (See me this week!)

A Large Rock  (Urgent!  See me as soon as possible!)

As I receive forms from students, I will write an appointment in my calendar and then write it on the form.  Once I see the student, I will check or initial that the appointment has occurred for documentation purposes.  I then store these forms by grade level in a plastic file organizer.

I also created a small 8.5 x 11 poster explaining and listing  some examples.  This helps so students don’t check “Large Rock” when they need to work on making friends or disagree with a teacher.  This can be printed with a border or you can back it with a nice patterned paper. Click the picture below to print.

Stick around!  You can follow Savvy School Counselor with free email updates.  As always, I’d love to hear from you.  Do you tend to have a large number of student self-referrals at your school?

Jun 14 2012

12 Ways to Manage Anger

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A common issue I deal with in my school counseling program is assisting students with anger management difficulties.  I discuss this issue with all students, Kindergarten through fifth grade.  I know you have all heard different anger management tips and have shared them with your students.  As I prepare for my anger management groups for next year, I wanted to also think about an activity I can do with individuals who are referred to me out of the blue.

I made a puzzle using our schools VariQuest cutout maker which can cut just about any shape you can imagine.  As I was looking through some of the cutout options one afternoon, I came across a puzzle template and cut it out. Since there were twelve puzzle pieces, I decided to put an anger management strategy on each piece.  I didn’t want the puzzle to be difficult, so it is not hard to figure out by any means.  I only want it to be a tool to share with individuals or small groups to spark discussion.

 

 After we discuss the strategies on each puzzle piece while putting the puzzle together, I will have the student(s) make this anger management flip book foldable.  Once completed, the student(s) will have strategies to refer to that work for them.  The flip book only requires five strategies.  Every tip doesn’t work for everybody, so the students will be able to choose the five strategies they feel will work best for them.

To make this flip book, I took two sheets of 8 1/2 x 11 paper and cut them in half.  I used three of the four halves.  I layered the three sheets.  I picked the sheets up and folded the top half over until I had six flaps. This foldable can be stapled at the top once or twice to keep it together.

 

 

 

 

I will have the students write a strategy at the bottom of each flap (except for the top flap where they will write the title).  Above each strategy (but under the flap) they will describe and/or illustrate the strategy.  This will depend on what the strategy is.  The “I-Message” strategy would need to have a sample I-message written, while walking away can be illustrated.

I used the book How to Take the Grrrr Out of Anger to assist me with most of the tips. However, many of these tips are universal from one anger management book to another.

The 12 anger management strategies are:

  • Count backwards from 10.
  • Take 3 deep breaths.
  • Exercise or play to let off some steam/energy.
  • Find a quiet place.
  • Vent!  Talk to someone!
  • Tell yourself calming statements. (It’s okay.  Keep calm.  Relax.)
  • Lie down and relax.
  • Tense your body- then relax it. (Repeat)
  • Use an I-Message. (I feel angry when you ___.  I want you to ___.)
  • Think peaceful thoughts. (relaxing by the pool, holding your pet, hugging a parent)
  • Walk away.
  • Avoid anger triggers.

What activities do you have on stand-by for that student who comes to you before having time to calm down?

Be sure to check out my Teachers pay Teachers store for an Anger Management Activity Pack which includes a foldable, 8 anger management strategy posters, and an I-Messages Activity- all for only $3.00.

AngerFoldable

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May 26 2012

Great iPad App for School Counselors

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Our school recently received a grant which gave us 180 iPads!  So, I have been on the lookout for iPad apps to use for my school counseling program. I came across an iPad app today that can be used for classroom guidance, small groups, or individual counseling sessions. It’s called “Feel Electric” and is an Electric Company app created by Sesame Street.  I really like the fact that this app is all about feelings.  There are four areas of play:  My Life, My Games, My Stuff, and What’s the Word.

To start, users are able to choose three feeling words for the “Today I feel…” section.  There are several feeling words to choose from.  If you don’t know what the word means, you can tap the word and the definition is read aloud for you.  The definition is accompanied by a picture of Danny or Jessica showing the feeling face.  You can choose three words to describe how you are feeling today.

 

 

 

 

My Life

The My Life section features “Mood Dude” whose arms, eyebrows, eyes, and mouth can be changed to illustrate your mood.  It’s a very cute feature.

Also featured are Mood Tales.  Here, you select various words to complete a mood story.  If you’ve ever done a Mad Libs story, this is very similar.  After choosing all of the words, the story is read aloud for you using the words you chose.

 

 

 

 

 

Clicking “Moodosphere” will show your mood on the map.  After choosing feelings associated with anger, my mood map showed lightening bolts.  Clicking edit allows you to choose new feeling words.  The “weather outlook” changes on my map after choosing the feelings cheerful, brave, and proud.

 

 

 

 

 

My Games

There are three games included:  Pets vs. Monsters, Prankster Madness, and Hey You Guys…Catch!  Each one involves matching a feeling word to the feeling face by either hitting it with a bat, catching it while riding a skateboard, or launching it across a field to hit the matching target.

 My Stuff

My stuff includes pictures, music, and videos.  Students can take pictures and add them to the device.  They can decorate the picture with stickers that say how the picture makes them feel.  There are several pictures of different Electric Company scenes to use.  Mood dude pictures also show up in the My Stuff section as well.

The music and video sections includes a few Electric Company songs and videos.  You can also add you own songs and videos to the device.

 

 

 

 

What’s the Word?

On the bottom right side of the screen is “What’s the Word?”  If you tap it, all of the feeling words and faces will come up.  You can tap the feeling word you want to hear the definition of.

To encourage users to keep learning new words, the app gives points for just about every action you do while playing.  This includes five points every time you listen to the definition of a word in the “What’s the Word?” section.

There you have it!  I look forward to using this app with students at my school.  Students are able to look (visual), listen (auditory), and do something (kinesthetic) thus meeting the needs of the three learning styles.  As of today, this app is FREE!

How do you use iPads in your school counseling program?

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May 17 2012

Creating A Plan for Student Success

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icon
iconOrganization plays a vital role in having good study skills .  I incorporate study skills through various ways in my school counseling program.  I was glad when I came across the book Annie’s Plan.  This book helps students take charge of their schoolwork and homework by giving strategies to use at school and home.  Annie is a smart girl, but she sometimes is distracted by all the things going on around her at school.  I love the examples the author, Jeanne Kraus, uses to show different ways Annie gets off task.  I’m sure we’ve all seen students drawing when they should be listening or completing an assignment.  How about the student who can’t focus on his or her own work because they are too busy watching what someone else is doing?  Of course when Annie gets home, she can’t remember what the homework assignment is.  Both her teacher and parents know she is smart enough to do so much better.  Therefore, Annie’s plan was born!

Her teacher created a ten step schoolwork plan and a ten step homework plan.  The school plan included cleaning her desk, the use of a daily planner and setting daily goals. During my lessons, I discussed with students why each of the items on the lists were important.  The students were open to sharing items in which they could improve upon as well.  The homework plan included having a scheduled homework time, taking homework breaks when necessary, and preparing for tomorrow.  Many students affirmed that they learned at least one new strategy and that they would begin to implement those strategies in order to take charge of their schoolwork and homework.

Complete Schoolwork Plan

 

Complete Homework Plan

I gave each student a handout titled “What’s Your System?” from the book Spectacular Guidance Activities for Kids by Diane Senn.  This activity tied right in with three of the strategies from the book.  The students wrote about their plan for their desk, book bag, and home study area.  On the back, they could also write any other strategies from the book they would like to improve upon.

This is a great book!  I have used it during a fourth grade lunch bunch as well as classroom guidance with my third grade friends. It can be used for individualized counseling as well for students who, like Annie, are capable but just need a plan in place to keep them on track.

Stick around!  You can follow Savvy School Counselor with free email updates.  As always, I’d love to hear from you.  Connect with me!