Teaching Elementary Students About Identity, Diversity, and Social Justice
A couple of years ago, during a lesson, one of my students said, “not to be racist, but she was white.” It wasn’t the first time a student had mistakenly thought that naming race was being racist, but it was still one of the bigger wake ups I had about the need to talk more […]
Continue readingThe School Counselor’s Role in Restorative Practices
Restorative practices are sweeping the education world and for very good reason. This approach to discipline focuses on repairing/restoring the hurt that has happened – instead of on punishing the wrong doing. I’m lucky to have worked in a school district that was an early adopter of some of these ideas. That doesn’t mean that […]
Continue readingTeaching Conflict Resolution: Strategies for School Counselors
No matter what your school looks like, chances are you’re helping students to effectively and peacefully manage conflict. We are all human and conflict is a part of our lives! Teaching students conflict resolution is one of my absolute favorite parts of being a school counselor; it’s fun and it has a huge impact. Your […]
Continue reading7 Tips For School Counseling With ELL Students
While the ELL population is growing by leaps and bounds within US public schools, most school counselors don’t receive any sort of specialized training in how to work with these students or their families. School counseling with ELL students isn’t hugely different or difficult but there are certainly some tips, tricks, and best practices that […]
Continue readingCooperative Learning Activities in School Counseling Lessons
I’m always excited about new fun school counseling activities that don’t involve worksheets and this post is all about my favorites! When I’m planning for my school counseling lessons, there are five things I keep in mind: Name the objective, Skip the worksheet, Chunk it into segments, Include partner or group work, Incorporate movement. This sounds like a lot, […]
Continue readingPillboxes: Creative Ideas for School Counseling
Target’s Bullseye’s Playground (did you know that’s the real name for what we all call the “dollar spot”??) is great, but I’ve also been loving some finds at the dollar store. On one of my recent trips, my eye was drawn to the pillboxes. I had no plan in mind but just knew I could think of […]
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