Top 3 Mistakes School Counselors Make

Surprised frustrated young woman

And how to correct them No matter whether you are in small school or a large one, a public school or a private one, school counselors often make the same mistakes. How do I know? I was a school counselor for 20 years and I’ve made them all myself.  The problem is that these mistakes…

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Connection with Kids

Two fathers play educational games with their children,

Connection with Kids In her book, The Good News about Bad Behavior, the author, Kathryn Lewis, identifies three steps that are taught in the Parent Encouragement Program. It will come as no surprise to counselors of all types that the first step is connection. Establishing rapport with a student is always the first necessary step…

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Picking the Topics for Elementary Small Groups

happy teacher

Small groups are a great way develop relationships with students and teach meaningful lessons, all while maximizing your time by serving several students at once. What’s the downside? For me it was developing an effective system that I could repeat over and over rather than re-creating the wheel every year. The first question to tackle…

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What to Do About a Student with Angry Outbursts

Angry upset boy, little man

Angry Outbursts: Prevention and Coping Skills On a School Counselor Facebook page, a school counselor asks for help with a 5th grader who regularly has angry outbursts over such things as forgetting his work at home or his Chromebook is missing from the class. During sessions focused on helping him calm down, he’s still very…

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Why you can’t motivate kids…

girl exploring nature i

Why you can’t motivate kids… Do your school work! Where is  your homework! Clean up your desk! Follow directions without reminders. How many of your referrals are for kids who are too stubborn, won’t cooperate and don’t do their work? How much of your time as a counselor is spent trying to motivate students? What…

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How do you change a child’s behavior?

kids in the school, classroom

Changing a Child’s Behavior Educators wonder how to get children to apply themselves and care about learning the prescribed curriculum. School counselors wonder how to get children to change negative behaviors into positive ones that serve the both the child and their peers. Parents wonder how to do all of the above while managing to…

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