Counseling

As your student’s School Counselors, we will be providing many classroom guidance lessons to your student throughout the school year. The state does require that we provide classroom guidance to all students in regards to Bullying and Personal Safety.

School Counselors also provide temporary/short-term support to help students overcome acute issues having an impact on their school performance. Some topics that school counselors often work with students on include:

•  Academic support (identifying barriers to success and creating interventions, such as organization and study skills)
• Anger management
• Anxiety/stress
• Behavior problems at school
• Career awareness, exploration and planning
• Communication, problem-solving and conflict resolution
• Goal setting and decision-making
• Peer relationships and effective social skills
• Transitioning to Tradition from a new school

The role of a school-based counselor is not to diagnose or provide therapy. Licensed mental health counselors are the appropriate resource to provide ongoing therapy sometimes needed by families and children. If there are concerns that need more consistent and comprehensive services beyond one or two meetings, I would be happy to provide resources for nearby therapists and agencies in our community that specialize in helping school-aged children.

Small group counseling will be offered as determined by need. Typically, they begin in the Fall and last four to six weeks at a time. Students join a group with a similar grade level and meet once a week for about 25 minutes during the school day. Students are given the opportunity to discuss the emotions that may occur, develop coping strategies and self-awareness, improve confidence, and hear from peers that they are not alone. During our time together, we often use games, art, music, modeling, role play, and books along with discussion to practice these skills.

Small group topics include:

• Friendship Groups: Social skills training
• Building self-esteem and resiliency
• Identifying Strengths
• Emotional Intelligence/Regulation (helping students understand and use coping strategies to manage strong emotions that impact their day at school)
• Helping students understand their anger  
• Learning coping skills for stress/anxiety

• Call 2-1-1 for family support services
• Crisis/Suicide Hotline: 1-800-273-8255