Counseling Services

1. Individual Counseling: I will work with students individually regarding any type of family problem or school issue. I will see students based on their self-referral, parent referrals or staff referrals. During individual counseling sessions:

I will spend time listening to students on how they are feeling.
I spend time thoughtfully reflecting with them on their experience.
Validate and reassure students that how they are feeling is ok.
Help them problem solve for issues where appropriate.
Have students look at previous things that have worked for them and develop goals that may help them deal with issues that they are currently facing.
Provide on going support as needed to students, family and teachers.

2. Group Counseling: I will be conducting various small group counseling sessions throughout the year. Students will meet with other students that have something in common and we will work together to discuss, share, provide support and friendship to each member of the group. Group sessions will run from 4-6 weeks, meeting once a week during lunch/recess time. Students will meet in our new “Group Room.” This group room is set up as a warm and inviting area with couches, chairs, rug and end tables. This room is a wonderful addition to our guidance program and will provide a safe and comfortable setting for our groups to meet. Some examples of the groups we run are listed below:

Divorce “Changing Families” Group: This is for students who have had a divorce in their family and are still struggling with the effects of how their family has changed.
Friendship Group: This group is for students who would like to work on being a better friend, turn taking, sharing, understanding how to make and keep friends and including others in their group. Or if students just want to make new friends.
Positive Images: Girls Group: (Currently this is being offered to 6th grade girls only.) This group is based on a need identified by a national study commissioned by Dove Self-Esteem Fund in June of 2008. It reports “7 out of 10 girls believe they are not good enough or do not measure up in some way, including their looks, performance in school and relationships with friends or family members.” It also reports that “A girl’s self-esteem is more strongly related to how she views her own body shape and body weight than how much she actually weighs. Also 62% of all girls feel insecure or not sure of themselves.” This group serves as an opportunity to confront these issues and promote more positive personal images in your daughters life. This group is discussion based and will cover topics such as; keeping a positive focus in life, managing stress, making new connections with our peers, building self-esteem and confidence, advocating for themselves, managing friendships/relationships, discussing the influence of media images on our self-image, and some fun things on fashion and make-up. The goal in discussions of media influence will be to educate girls on how much technology (Photoshop and air brushing) goes into finished photo images. We will also explore music’s role in our lives and how valuable listening to positive messages in music can be inspirational and motivational. We will also discuss building positive social and family supports in their lives. I am also hoping to prompt discussion amongst the girls to think about how they treat each other and inspire them to build each other up instead of being critical and hurtful to each other. We will be using materials from the Dove Self-Esteem Workshops, Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty and the Girl Scout’s “Uniquely ME!” programs. You can view more information on the Dove soap main webpage or at http://www.dove.us/#/cfrb/gallery

3. Large Group Guidance: I will be visiting classrooms on an as needed basis to provide guidance and support for various topics such as bullying, time management, preparation for junior high and career information. During 6th grade I will be completing a 2 day Career Education Unit in all the Social Studies classes.