Helping Kids Discover Their Passions

I can't tell you how many times I've asked a child/teen what they are interested in or what they want to do with their life, and they give the shoulder shrug and say "nothing much". This response tells me that they either haven't found their niche or they are generally apathetic and unconcerned with their future. To help overcome this "slump", I created a "Passion Sort" which contains 100 hobbies, interests, and passions that kids might have.

SORT:
I get the students to sort them into three categories: Very Interested, Somewhat Interested, and Not Interested. Next, I get them to look at only the "Very Interested" Category, and narrow it down to the top ten things. Then the top 5. Then the top 3. Then the number one. I use the worksheet on the right for them to record their answers and thoughts. I find it fascinating to see what makes it into the top ten! Sometimes I could have guessed a few of them, but others, they tell me about what matters to them that I would have never known!

ASSESS:
Then, I ask a variety of questions to assess the activity: Describe how you felt when I asked you to get rid of some of your passions? How did you decide which ones to get rid of? What do your top interests have in common? What makes this one the top passion for you? What are you doing RIGHT NOW related to this passion? If you could do ANYTHING related to this top passion, what would you like to do? As a summary, I explain that people all have different things that they are passionate about. We tend to be the happiest when we do things that we are passionate about. The thing that we are most passionate about is the thing that motivates us the most in everything that we do. How has this passion motivated you to do something? We also discuss what potential careers could tie in with their passion. 

WHY?
I use this activity for a variety of purposes. One, it helps the kids learn more about themselves and what really matters to them. Many kids never stop to think about what they personally like, but only what their family gets them involved with. Imagine a kid who could be a musical prodigy that has never so much as touched an instrument! 

Two, it help the kids think logically about future careers and what they would be happiest doing. The best career is one that they truly enjoy doing. 

Three, it can point out if they have a passion that is never expressed. This activity also helps to guide kids towards finding where they belong and where they could fit in, even if they've never tried it before. This is one reason why the group labels say "interested" instead of "enjoyed".

(Purchase the Passion Sort from my TPT Store: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/What-are-YOU-Passionate-About-1267934)

Student Mentor Program

I have recently designed a new program that I am excited about implementing! It's a Student Mentor Program, in which carefully selected older and more responsible students are trained to mentor younger students who may be struggling with social, academic, or behavioral concerns. Similar to "Peer Mediators" or "Peer Helpers", the Student Mentors will help the counselor reach even more students and create a lasting impact on  the school environment.

Who??
The program would work great with elementary or middle school, but could also easily be adapted to high school. Alternatively, if you have different level schools nearby, arrange it to have high school students mentor middle school students.

Mentors would be responsible role model students who apply (and interview!) for the position of mentor. They would meet regularly with the School Counselor for quick individual check-ins and for after school group trainings. They will be taught how to help younger students manage conflicts, handle strong emotions, and provide general encouragement and friendship.

Mentees would be students who are "frequent flyers" in the counselor's and/or pricipal's office. The may need additional support outside of what the caring adults in the school can provide. An example of the ideal mentee is one who is constantly asking to speak to the school counselor about little problems, or one who is trying to fit in with their peers. To these students, their mentor will be an older friend who they get to hang out with and talk to once a week.

What?
Student mentors will be trained in being a mentor. They will receive explicit instruction on how to encourage and lead a younger student, and how to help with many problems that they face. In a way, mentors will be "Counselor Helpers" or "Peer Helpers". When the counselor's schedule is packed (like it always is), student mentors can help younger students with some of the small problems that they face, while becoming expert problem solvers themselves!

When and where?
I see this being a year-long program. Mentors should meet with their mentee once per week for 20-30 minutes, during non-instructional time. Training would take place at least once per month after school, when all mentors are able to attend. Mentors would also check in periodically with the counselor (5-10 minutes, before or after school) so that the counselor can monitor their progress and answer any questions they have.

Why?
Let's face it- School Counselors are BUSY!! This mentor program is a way that you as a school counselor can impact even more students. You teach mentors how to help, and start the snowball effect of students helping students. Soon enough, your entire school will feel the impact! There have been many studies done about the effects of mentoring on student achievement, but unfortunately there is a lack of willing {adult} mentors in our community. But who says mentors can't be children too?

 

(Get this poster FREE here)

Suggested steps to implement program:

1. .    Inform teachers of the mentoring program at a staff meeting. Explain the potential benefits for mentors and for mentees, and how it will impact the school as a whole.
2. .    Class introduction lesson. Meet with classes of older students to discuss the mentoring program. Emphasize the amount of responsibility and dedication that being a mentor will require. Leave information and copies of the Mentor Application with teacher. Teacher will give applications to students who are interested, as well as the parent information sheet. (Another possible route is to open the applications up to your student council or other student leadership groups, or simply ask teacher for recommendations and ask those specific students if they are interested)
3. .    Once students turn in complete applications, meet with those students individually or in a small group (lunch bunch). Discuss overall objective of the program, specific requirements, and answer any questions they may have.
4. .    Meet with possible mentees, explaining what their mentor will be doing with them. Give mentees pre-assessment. Mentees should be students in younger grades who need additional support, but do not typically have big problems or concerns. Check with parents of mentees before initiating mentoring.
5. .    Schedule after-school training session to go over additional details of the program. (See list below of suggested training items) Give out pre-assessments to all mentors.
6. .    Pair up mentors with mentees.
7. .    Meet regularly with mentors to discuss progress (before school check-ins or during lunch) 

Suggested Trainings: At each training, include a handout for students to keep in their notebook for reference. I would suggest doing an interactive notes style handout to further engage the students.

•       What specifically is expected of mentors (What is a mentor? How can I help?)
•       How to conduct a peer mediation session
•       Promoting empathy and kindness in others
•       Strategies for handling anger, sadness, stress
•       Strategies for solving "small problems"
•       What is effective communication?
•       What to do if… (reporting "big" problems, what if you're not sure what to say?, etc)

Other fun mentor program ideas

•       Have a "Mentor Night" or "Mentor Fair" at the end of the school year where student mentors present information on their impact with younger students. Have students create trifold poster with what they have learned from the program, how they helped their mentees, and the overall impact of the mentoring program on the school. For maximum participation, hold the event during a PTA night or in conjunction with other big school events (talent show, science fair, etc)
•       Create matching T-shirts or bags for mentees (Vistaprint!)
•       Give out certificates for participation in the Mentor program at Honor Roll ceremony.

If you are interested in starting a Student Mentoring Program at your school, check out my Student Mentor Program Pack on Teachers Pay Teachers! It includes information sheets, application, Mentor Notebook pages, assessments, and four training lessons. 

Finally, if you have started a Student Mentoring Program at your school, I'd love to hear how it is going and any suggestions that you have for the program!

Never Ending Cards

Every so often, I see things or hear of things that get my wheels turning in my head. I read about a "Never Ending Card" on Dawn's Stamping Thoughts blog and just had to try to make one! It took me about a hundred attempts to get the folding and cutting right, but it was definitely worth the effort because now I'm in love with these cards!  There is a great tutorial on her website- I'm not even going to try to explain how it's done!

Meet the Counselor Cards

After mastering the art of folding never ending cards, I started thinking about how a school counselor could use something like this. One thought was doing a "meet the counselor" card. I wanted to include some information about what the counselor is there for, and important information kids need to know. I'll need to go back and work on the wording and put a bit more effort into the graphics, but it's a start.



Free Template!!
I created a template on Microsoft Publisher and put in some pictures and text about school counselors. I'm not going to lie- it took some time to get everything right in the template! Feel free to use this template to create your own never ending cards! Just follow the folding directions from the blog I mentioned earlier.



Other Possibilities

• Calm-Down skills
• Problem solving
• Affirmations
• Information for teachers
• Mini books/ social stories

What else would you use the Never Ending Cards for??

End of the Year Closure Lessons

This week was very bitter sweet for me, though more sweet than bitter! I have now finished my school counseling internship and will be graduating in just two weeks! This week consisted of tying up some loose ends with individual students and saying my good-byes to groups and classes. Below are some of the closing/termination activities that I did with my students, and some that I didn't do but wanted to share anyways. I hope you enjoy!

Individual

• Paper Finger Puppets- Found on the blog Seven Thirty Three, I taught some of my younger students how to make these very simple puppets. A lot of my individual work with the younger students has involved puppets. As a final individual session, we both made a paper finger puppet and used it to say goodbye. The students absolutely LOVED it! And it gave them something to take with them to remind them of our time together. 
• Writing notes- Before I left for the year, I wrote several of the students personalized notes emphasizing their growth over the school year, and included some empowering words to encourage them to continue to work towards their goals. 
• Bridge- Have the student draw a bridge in the middle of a sheet of paper. One one side is where the student used to be, and on the other is where he is now. Under the bridge- what obstacles did you have to overcome? This can also be done with two bridges, with the last one being where you would like to be, and what obstacles you might have to overcome to get there. This activity can be used at the beginning of counseling as well to give direction to the sessions. 
• Letters to the past/future you-Have the student write a letter to him/herself in the past or the future. If you could time travel to the past/future what would you tell yourself?
• Lines of Feelings. Ask the student to draw a line that represents their feelings over the past (year, month, week, etc). All of the lines will vary, but usually the jagged or rough lines in red or orange are used to signify anger or discontent, and the smooth, flowing lines in blues and greens are usually used to show calmness and contentment. After the lines are drawn, the student can expand on them by writing about what the lines represent, how it feels to draw them, or to whom or what they are directed.  

Groups

• Flower Petals- The flower represents the group growing over time. A flower starts as a bud, and you can not see the petals yet. But over time, with water and sun, the petals begin to unfold, creating a beautiful flower. Place a circle in the center of the group, and tell them that this represents the bud, before group began. There were many things that you know now that you didnt know before. Give each student a paper flower petal, and say one thing that they have learned from the group. Have the student symbolically tape the flower petal to the circle. Continue until everyone has done this. 
• String tying- From Diane Senn's book Creative Approaches to Counseling Individual Children. I used this at the end of my fourth grade girls friendship group to help remind the girls that it is okay to ask for help when they have problems, and that your friends are often a great source of help. Start by giving each girl a string that is at least one foot long. Tell them to tie a knot in a string. This is pretty simple for them to do. Some problems are easy to handle yourself. Then, instruct them to hold both ends of the string without letting go and tie a knot. Tell them that it is okay to ask for help. After letting them try for a few minutes, ask them if they would like some help. Ask one student to cross her arms, then hand her the ends of the string in each of her hands. Have her unfold her arms without letting go of the string, and a knot will be tied in the string. Allow the girls to help one another with this. Tell the girls that sometimes we have problems that we are not sure how to fix, and it is okay to ask someone else for help, and sometimes it takes a creative solution to solve their problems. Friends help us get through some of the tough problems we have, but when friends cant help, your school counselor is still there for you. 
• Choose a Picture- Print out a variety of different pictures, such as animals, scenery, symbolic pictures, people, etc that represent a variety of emotions and different points of view- both positive and negative. Lay the pictures out on the floor and ask students to choose the picture that shows how they feel, what they will take away from the experience/group. Process what the picture chosen means to each individual. This site does a great job of explaining this method of closure. 
• Group Puzzle/Mandala- Give each student a piece of the puzzle or a piece of the mandala and let each student decorate it. At the end, let each student symbolically place their puzzle piece or mandala piece back into the puzzle, saying one thing that they have enjoyed or have learned during the group. Allow students to keep the finished product in their class to remember the good times together.

Classroom

• The Giving Tree- I wanted to incorporate a finger-print tree into the lesson somehow, and my supervisor suggested I use the The Giving Tree with it. That got my wheels turning! I used the book with first grade and up, adjusting the lesson slightly to accommodate for developmental differences. Before reading the book, I asked the students to be thinking about who they can relate to more- the tree or the boy. I then read the book to the class without stopping for inserting my own interpretation of what was going on. After I read the book, I asked them again who thinks they are more like the tree or more like the boy. In most classes it was about half and half. I let a few students explain why they thought they were more like one or the other. Then I told them that sometimes I feel like both. I feel like the tree because as a counselor, I will gladly give my students anything and everything that I have to help them when they need it. But at times, I have felt like the boy, and the students were the tree. In the same way that the boy got what he needed every time he asked for it, I got what I needed to become a school counselor from the students. I told them that they have taught me so much more than I have taught them this year, and thanked them for helping me learn how to be a school counselor. At the end of the lesson, I let each student come up and put a finger print on the tree, using a washable marker. (In later classes I decided to just have them write their names on the branches in different colors). I then wrote a note to the class and gave it back to them to keep in their classroom to remember our time together, and to remember that it's okay to be like the tree AND like the boy. 
• Toss 'n Talk ball- For some classes, the students had many questions for me about why I am leaving and what I would be doing after I'm gone. After answering a few questions, I got out a inflatable ball and asked students what their favorite memory with me was this year, in 2-3 words. I used the ball as a talking tool- only the person who has the ball can talk. I gave each student a turn to catch the ball and say a favorite memory. 
• Class Rap- I did not do this one, but it was my back up. The students are finishing up a poetry unit, so to incorporate this, I was going to have the students write a haiku about what they will take away from our time together this year. After they wrote the poems, we would all sit in a circle. Depending on the age and ability, I would divide the class into 2-4 groups, and give each group a rhythm to clap to a given beat, and maybe even having a student being our "beatboxer" to be our percussion. Then one at a time, students would read their poems in rhythm with the class's beat. 
• Empowering Words- Adapted from Kellybear.com-  Close the year out with some positive and encouraging words! Have students think about some thoughts that help them feel better when they are feeling sad.This is called positive self-talk. Brainstorm thoughts that can help on the board. After the class is brainstormed out, have them choose one statement that is meaningful to them and draw a picture about it. Allow time to share. Remind kids that even though they may feel sad about things (such as a teacher/counselor intern leaving them, or something else sad), they have the power to control their thoughts and can think about these things to make them feel better. Leave with encouraging words challenging them to be their best! (These positive self-statements could make a nice end-of-year bulletin board!)
• Paper Quilt- have each student draw their favorite memory from the year on a square sheet of paper. Tape the pictures together, or put into a gallon-bag quilt format to display, like the one here. 

Individual Counseling Progress Chart

One of my goals for my second semester of my internship was to track student growth in individual sessions. To do this, I created two forms to use with the older students at school. I print out the assessment on half sheets of paper and measure the lines to exactly 10 cm.

How To Use Progress Charts:
1. Student circles current feeling
2. Student marks each line depending on how they are feeling about each area (scale between terrible and great)
3. Measure the length of the line at the point where the student marked (using a centimeter ruler).
4. On Progress Chart, write today's date on the first line at the bottom.
5.Make a dot above the line with today's date on the Progress Chart, using the appropriate color as marked at the bottom of the chart. (There should be four different colored dots for each session)
6. In future sessions, connect dots of the same color to track growth in each of the four areas.

Benefits:
The student could easily complete this so that they could see their own progress in the different areas. This also ties in some math skills during counseling! The scales can be changed to reflect the specific goals that the student is working towards. (ex. How well do you think you did with staying at your seat this week? How have your strategies worked this week?)

Since starting to use these progress charts, I have noticed another added benefit. It has become a catalyst for students who are reluctant to explain why they are having trouble. Many times students dont want to just walk in the office and tell me that they are having a problem at home. However, if they are able to show me on the scale, it opens the door for conversation right away without having to beat around the bush. I have found it helpful to simply ask "tell me about what you wrote" without giving my interpretation of how they answered the questions.

(Click on the pictures to be taken to my TPT store!)

Play Therapy in Schools

I've recently had the privilege of speaking to a Counseling Children class at my university about the practical uses of play therapy in schools.Play therapy is often viewed as something that only clinical counselors can do. It's seen as being too time consuming and a poor use of a school counselor's time. These statements, however, could not be further from the truth!

Imagine that someone in an authority role came up to you and started asking you to do something in a language that you could not understand or comprehend. You most likely would not know what to say in response, and would be at a loss of what you were expected to do. Using talk therapy with children can sometimes come across this way too.

Play is a child's first language. Using play therapy allows the child to express themselves in an alternative, more comfortable way. Children learn about their world through play, and are able to manipulate their world on a smaller scale to work through their own issues. We have been taught to meet the children where they are. If they are most comfortable in speaking "play", why should we not meet them where they are?

As stated by Blanco and Ray in their article, Play Therapy in Elementary Schools: A Best Practice for Improving Academic Achievement,  “Play therapy allows child to overcome emotional limitations that were hindering expression of intelligence and released the child to demonstrate full potential (2009).” Play therapy helps kids succeed academically by helping to remove emotional barriers. 

So, how can you use play therapy as a school counselor, and still keep your sanity?? Below are some ideas!

Puppets

• Interview puppets about child
• Make up stories with puppets 
• “impulsive puppy”- Classroom puppet who teaches students how use whole body listening
• "Which puppet are you? Why?" 
• Create your own puppets
• Finger puppets - cut tips off cheap gloves, attach googly eyes, yarn hair, construction paper  (or felt) clothes
• paper bag puppets- decorate with markers, lightweight materials
• Puppet shows
• Shy students can hide behind puppet theater
• Have student puppeteers present to classes on important issues
• Introduce new topics to class using puppet shows
• Shoe box for finger puppets, trifold board or turned over table to bigger puppets

Play Dough

• Create a feeling using dough - what does sad look like to you?
• Make yourself from dough - what do you like about yourself? What, if anything, do you wish you could change?
• Take out aggression- punch, squeeze, hammer, etc
• Energy outlet while talking- gives hands something to do while mouth does the talking

Sand Tray

• Create your world - who is in your world? what are they doing?
• Make a story - tell me a story about a time when you ___.
• Who do they introduce? Do they leave out anyone seemingly important? Where are objects placed in relation to one another?
• Ask questions - why did you choose a __ for yourself? How does that make (sand tray character) feel?
• Suggest changes (what would happen if…)

Games

• Social skills - taking turns, patience, being a good sport, following the rules
• Get-to know you games 
• connect 4- for each token you drop, say one thing that you like
• Jinga - put talking prompts on each wooden block, answer prompt as the block is chosen
• Uno- assign color cards to prompts

Expressive Arts

• Drawing- 
• Draw your family doing something 
• Family accolades- who is the happiest? is anyone sad?
• Draw a time when you felt… 
• Color your life- feelings assigned to color
• ex. pizza- cheese= yellow= happiness. Pepperoni= red= Anger.
• Zentangle- relaxation, concentration (http://www.zentangle.com/)
• Music- give or create instruments 
• What does sad sound like? 
• How angry did that make you?

Other Play Techniques

• Play house - who is there? who is not? what happens in each room, etc
• Toss ‘n Talk ball individual or group prompts
• toss ball while talking (great with boys)
• Mask collage
• outside- what you show the world
• inside- what are you hiding from the world
• Shared Drawing- if drawing with a child, ask what and how you should draw.  
• Narrative (create story of life) 
• large sheet of paper, draw big events of life, walk through and talk about each event
• Basketball hoop in office- talk while shooting hoops! Or answer prompts to shoot the ball x number of times.

Counseling Boys

I attended a counselor training that provided a lot of great ideas for working with boys. The speaker was Michael Gurian, Founder of the Gurian Institute (http://gurianinstitute.com/). He discussed how a male's brain is very different from a female's brain. For example, when a female's brain is in a resting/bored state, about half of her brain is still active (I cant remember the exact stats...). For a male's brain in a resting/bored state, nearly his entire brain shuts down (minus what he HAS to have to survive). Obviously, it would be difficult to talk to a male student when his brain has shut down, so here are some tips to remember when working with boys:

• Talk shoulder to shoulder instead of face to face. Allow the boy to not make eye contact with you.
• Toss a ball while talking. Do any kind of work while moving an object through space. "Tossing a ball opens the windows of the boy's soul" -M.Gurian
• Walk and talk
• Talk about things in your environment. Find similarities between an object in the environment and the situation. 
• Do not discuss a behavior incident immediately after it occurs. Try to wait several hours if possible. If you must talk to him right away, give him a few minutes of physical activity/service to do to allow him time to privately process the events. If he does not have this period of time to process the events, he may not be able to completely recall what has happened or how he felt (because of how the male brain works).
• Have male teachers from school lead a boy's group for struggling boys. They can discuss things that a female counselor could never completely understand. The counselor could come up with a suggested group agenda if needed.(male mentors at school)
• Use expressive arts
• Less verbal praise for general behavior, more praise for achievements or accomplishments
• Hang boy-friendly pictures up in the office (sports, insects, etc)
• Have an object for the boy to squeeze while talking to you (nerf ball, playdough)
• Give the boy responsibilities (at school and at home)
• If completing a writing assignment, allow them to draw a picture of the topic first. This provides the much needed visual aid to help them process the written assignment.
• This one was emphasized over and over: USE VISUALS! Group discussions should have a picture to reference. Use charts and diagrams. Give handouts. Watch video clips. Use Powerpoint presentations.
• Set goals and objectives.
• Ask what their father figure would say in any given situation
• Use humor.
• Dont try to talk to a boy while he is crying. Give him processing time

Confessions of a Former Bully Lessons

I just got the book, "Confessions of a Former Bully" by Trudy Ludwig, and I have already used it several times!

Here's the book description:

"After Katie gets caught teasing a schoolmate, she's told to meet with Mrs. Petrowski, the school counselor, so she can make right her wrong and learn to be a better friend. Bothered at first, it doesn't take long before Katie realizes that bullying has hurt not only the people around her, but her, too. Told from the unusual point of view of the bullier rather than the bullied, Confessions of a Former Bully provides kids with real life tools they can use to identify and stop relational aggression."

So far, the 3rd and 4th grade girls that I have used this with really seemed to grasp the concepts. This opened the door to talk about the motives behind one girl's bullying behaviors, helped another girl understand ways that she could help when she is a bystander, helped a girl begin to see what the good and bad qualities of a friend are, and gave some useful strategies for another girl who is often the target of teasing. While this book could easily be read from cover to cover, I have been using it more as a reference book depending on the specific situation. I could see this book being the topic of a girls small group, discussing a few pages at a time.

Once concept in the book talks about using "empower" tools as a way of dealing with bullying/teasing. I created these cards as a takeaway for kids, using the same wording from the book and clipart of the tools that correspond with the book.