There is no doubt that our students love playing games. Some of my favorite sessions are spent playing games with students and intertwining counseling skills, of course! Playing games is a great way to make connections with students. Not only is it fun, but you are building social skills,
Affirmations are words we say to ourselves to affirm our self-worth. What we tell ourselves reinforces our self-esteem and can be either positive or negative. It’s important to help our students build a positive mindset. Our mindsets becomes our belief systems about ourselves and if we work at telling ourselves positive affirmations,
Most students I see, whether it’s for a social skills group, drama problems, academic troubles, family groups, or friendship issues, all seem to have one thing in common. Their self-confidence has taken a hit somewhere along the line. If we can help them to feel better about themselves, then
Kids love playing games. Cards games are always a hit, and playing cards with students when in a counseling session can be really helpful. First it gives kids a focus other than you looking at them. They are concentrating instead on the cards and the game, and not where your
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 again at a middle school,
This year I have several students that I need to see for counseling that is on their IEP of 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
For children, divorce can be stressful, sad, and confusing. At any age, kids may feel uncertain or angry at the prospect of mom and dad splitting up. For the past several weeks, I have been talking to kids in grades 5-8 about divorce. Sometimes, getting them to open up is
Everyone has bad days. But some cookies, a few paper planes, and a little counseling can make a big difference in turning that bad day around.It started with 2 students who came to me stressed, upset, and really down. Everything seemed to be going wrong. I’m sure you can relate.
Sometimes, I find that I really don’t need to talk to kids; sometimes they are already talked out. They have shared their story a hundred times already, and while they may need a place to collect and put themselves back together, they really just need a quiet spot. Sometimes this
Even though I am currently working as a middle school counselor, I did spend 15 years as a high school counselor. I still help a lot of students (and parents) with the college search and application process. Over my 15 years, I created this book to help as a first
I have a few kids that are having a hard time pulling themselves togther when things get tough. Sometimes they cry, bang their fists, crumple paper, yell, push books off their desks, etc. It can be scary for them, their teachers, and their peers. It is important to help students
Our mental health team is working hard to put together a crisis response program. As part of this, we have decided to all get trained to administer the COLUMBIA-SUICIDE SEVERITY RATING SCALE (C-SSRS). I was amazed at how much I learned in one 30 minute web-training. The nice part is that it’s
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