Breathing Your Way to Calm

boy meditating

Breathing Techniques to De-Stress Kids Back when I was in school counseling, using breathing techniques to help kids gain control over emotions, especially anxiety and stress wasn’t as common as it is today. Today mindfulness which can involve centering our attention on our senses and using breathing practices to regulate emotion is not only easy…

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5 Ways to Teach Kids to Get Along Better

angry girls

How to Disagree… Like We Need Help With That! Kid President is no longer making videos… after all he couldn’t stay a “kid forever”, but how I wish he could. This video was made in 2016, but seems to me we need it more today in 2022 than ever. Listen as he identifies 5 ways…

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3 Ways to Cope with Compassion Fatigue

exhausted woman

 Overcome Compassion Fatigue Exhausted. Stressed-out. Overwhelmed. Worn-out. Done. These are words that can describe a school counselor mid-year in the best of times. The last two years have certainly taken their toll on everyone in the field of mental health. Everyone has heard that you can’t give from an empty cup. However, no matter how…

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Three Types of Empathy and Why They Matter Today

Twin sisters on Wooden pier

It’s not all about ME! Why Empathy Matters What do you envision as the foundation of your school culture? your family culture? Is it all about me and what I want? Making the best grades. Having the most friends. Winning, Scoring, Getting to the head of the line… I doubt that is what you envisioned,…

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The Secret to Successful Parent Conferences

parent with child

How to engage parents through crucial conversations Recently I presented a training on parent engagement and crucial conversations for the staff at a local school.  You might wonder why a school would be interested.  It was a school that already delivers a great academic program with lots of dedicated teachers.  The involvement of parents is…

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