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SUICIDE ASSESSMENT TOOLS–SESSION REVIEWS FROM THE NYASP CONFERENCE
My colleague had a family emergency and I was asked to attend the NY Association of School Psychologists annual conference this past Thursday and Friday at the Turning Stone casino in Utica. The NYASP conference is a bit different than a school counselor conference. A lot of the sessions did
GUEST POST~ THE SIZE OF THE PROBLEM LESSON
My friend, Kylie, wrote a blog post for me about the Size of the Problem. This post is aimed to help middle school boys with coping skills and understanding the cause and effect relationship of behaviors and reactions, this is a really helpful lesson for ALL students. I hope you
HOW TO HELP STUDENTS TRANSITION TO HIGH SCHOOL
Middle school is a time for young adolescents to learn to navigate from child to young adult. Many boundaries are tested, and independence is acquired. 8th graders are the big guys on campus, but they are still those sweet, young, innocent, scared kids who began their middle school career just
GOAL SETTING FOR SUCCESS
During day 2 with the 8th graders, I wanted to expand on the values lesson from yesterday (click here for the values lesson). We discussed the quote, “Values are like fingerprints. Nobodies are the same, but you leave them all over everything you do.” First, we talked about goals. This
STARTING TO THINK ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL TRANSITION- DAY 1-TALKING ABOUT VALUES
Last week I had the opportunity to spend 3 class days with our 8th graders. I wanted to combine career planning, goal setting, mindsets, and values with starting to think about high school. In a few short months, I will be calling each 8th grader and his/her parents to talk
OUR HIDDEN BEAUTY
My lunch bunch groups were talking about what makes us special and unique. I recently did a lesson with them that teaches about seeing beyond our first glance and looking deeper. To begin, I had students take a piece of paper and their favorite color marker. I asked them to
5 WAYS TO USE TIMELINES IN COUNSELING
When I was in grad school a million years ago, we often used timelines when talking with clients. When I began working as a school counselor, primarily with juniors and seniors and concentrating on the college admission process, I rarely pulled out the timeline. Working at a middle school, however,
I {Mustache} You to Stop Bullying at Mix it up Day
Have you ever heard of Mix It Up Day? We joined thousands of other schools across the country to say “No” to bullying in our school and personal lives. I had my Lunch Bunch kids help pick the theme, make the bulletin board and photo booth props we used, and
Keeping Track of Counseling Notes
This year I have several students that I need to see for counseling that is on their IEP or 504 plan. Because these students have goals, I needed to be able to track the progress they make while in counseling. As a result I created these forms. This form is
Celebrating Birthdays School-Wide
When I first started at the middle school, I noticed that some students had their lockers decorated by friends for their birthdays while many others did not. Sometimes, students would come to me saying they were disappointed that their friends didn’t decorate their locker for their birthday. I wanted to
How Post-It Notes Can Change School Climate
First, let me forewarn you. I have an addiction to post-it notes. Honestly, I should take stock in the company. I can’t imagine a workday without them. They contain my daily list of things to do, people to see, parents to call, etc. Sticky notes line my desk as reminders
GETTING GRITTY WITH 8TH GRADE
Recently, the 8th grade team asked me if I wanted to come talk to the entire class of 71 students. I jumped at the chance to get into the classroom with them. I was so grateful to have the students for 77 minutes. 77 minutes is essentially 2 class periods.
