thoughts about trauma

Busy week this week and subbing every day.
Was reading Psychology Today and saw this quote, which really struck a cord:

Trauma is not what happens to us, but what we hold inside us in absence of an empathetic witness.

This is from Peter Levine's book In an Unspoken Voice, which I have not read, but will be on my list for this summer.

The quote grabbed my attention because of an experience I had with a K-5 student last year.  The student had a hard time regulating his emotions and behavior in the classroom, and teachers around him had a difficult time connecting with him and implementing behavioral interventions in the classroom that would work for him.  After a couple of months of mostly unsuccessful individual work with him, he was moved into a different classroom, and I worked with the new teacher on establishing consistent routines and responses that seemed to work with him.  The student craved attention and recognition, but was also very suspicious of females and sometimes became physically violent with female authority figures.  Finally, one of his family members reached out to me because they were seeing similar behaviors at home, and shared with me that this student experienced a traumatic event over the summer.  He was not physically abused but he witnessed abuse.

The student did not receive any help at the time or consequently.  The family did not feel it was necessary.  And this quote made me realize how important it would have been for this little kid to have a kind person to listen to him and share with them his experience and feelings after the event.  Instead, he internalized it all, made sense of it in his own developmentally appropriate but unhealthy way, and it all finally started coming out while at school and at home months later.  The experience and thinking about it afterwards made me realize that my only job with that student should have been to establish a trusting relationship, without attempting to immediately alter his behavior and cognitions.  He was missing solid and genuine connections with adult figures in his life, and was pushing all other adults away as well, as the only way he knew how to cope without getting too close.
I'm looking forward to reading Peter Levine's work, and I think sometime after I get a permanent position in a school, I'll take a trauma counseling course as well, something I should have done while doing my graduate work.

Chanting to Engage

Last week, I had great fun substituting in a 1st grade classroom.  The classroom was set-up like a well oiled machine with students knowing exactly what they were supposed to be doing for each transition and activity.  It was a pleasure to work with the students in this sort of organized, respectful, and engaged environment.  And speaking of engaged.  One of the first things students do in the morning to get the day going is a chant based on the letters in the word ENGAGE.  They do it with gestures and jumping and clapping and at the top of their lungs.  It was one of the most boisterous and meaningful morning warm-up activities.  I decided to include the entire chant on the blog for my own future use and for anyone else out there who is looking for a resource for elementary teachers that will get the kids moving and introduce ideas about responsibility, achievement, and positive attitudes into their classrooms.
Chant leader or teacher asks: What do you choose to do today?
Students answer: I choose to Engage!
One student shouts out the letters and all the students participate in the chant.

E.  I make a choice to Expect Excellence.  I will set high goals and make positive changes in my quest for excellence.  I have what it takes to be great.  The greatness was built within me at birth, but education and success are the fruits of my hard work.
N.  I accept No Excuses, just results.  There are no shortcuts in the pursuit of excellence.  I accept responsibility for the choices I make.  I will learn from my setback and keep working towards my goals.
G.  I will Get in the Game!  I will be productive and give back to my community.  I am a thinker.  I am a doer.  I am a peace-builder.  I will go to and through college.  I will not rest until my good is better and my better is best.
A.  Attitude is Everything!  Life is a gift.  I will work with passion and strive to look for the positive.  I will seek out wise and uplifting people.  I will affirm cultural values that foster kinship, respect, perseverance, and hard work.  It is my responsibility to maintain honor and respect in my family and community.
G.  I will Give Help When Needed.  I will respect others at all times, and I choose to do my part as a source of positive change.  I will communicate hope and eliminate negative influences in order to build healthy relationships.
E.  Enjoy Every Challenge!  I will find a way to achieve excellence and I choose to find joy in the experiences and challenges that life brings my way.

The chant can be finished with a brief overview of the message by having individual students shout out each letter and all the rest of the class response back with the key message (bolded).

The chanting contains within character building ideas as well as very positive and self-affirming messages.  It could be modified for the needs of the teacher or the school and the types of gestures the teacher decides to use can be as creative as they would like.

Borrowed from Hmong American Peace Academy in Milwaukee, WI

No Negatives Diet

Came across this cute little post about a Complaint-Free Diet and thought the quote the author used and the concept could be easily transferrable into school counseling work.  Starting in third grade, I have seen some interpersonal conflicts among students, primarily girls, that involve put-downs, criticisms, negative and disparaging remarks and looks.  All of these things contribute to a school-culture within which teasing and bullying can thrive.  One of the ways to help improve school and classroom climate is to focus on positive behaviors and teach students how to interact with each other in positive and cooperative ways.  I could see how this simple idea could be spun into a school-wide campaign or a classroom intervention or several activities for small group work.

Here's the quote:

"We have no more right to put our discordant states of mind into the lives of those around us and rob them of their sunshine and brightness than we have to enter their houses and steal their silverware." 
– Julia Moss Seton

Considering and really thinking about this quote with students could create a wonderful discussion about how we impact others around us and what it means to them and us.

180 Days

Yesterday, I started watching the documentary 180 School Days: A Year Inside an American High School.  Currently it's available in its full length both on PBS and on the documentary's website.  The documentary made me think about the role of a school counselor in an alternative school like DC Metro, with a population of students who have been suspended out of other schools, live in dangerous and unstable home environments and statistically have almost no chance of graduating.

At the beginning of the school year, the principal tells her incoming freshman class that 1 out of 3 of them is not going to make it through high school.  That's a terrible statistic!  1 out of 3 students will not graduate! They will give up and will end up on the streets without any means of supporting themselves and their families.  But the principal speaks to them about choices and values and how it is up to them to defy the statistics.  She also states several times that all the adults in the building are on their side.  They are here, in the school, for the sole purpose of supporting and educating the students.  Reminding students of that every day is incredibly powerful.  Showing students that it is important to the teacher on  a personal level that the student succeeds gives way for a more a trusting and emotionally laden relationship.

The counselor in a school like that has the challenge of meeting the needs of all the students but it is a challenge that can either be seen as an unsurmountable obstacle or as a opportunity to grow as an educator and an individual while helping and supporting the growth of students.  Lots of thoughts came out of watching this for me--and I think it would be a perfectly appropriate video to show to students one day as well.  It can help teach the notion that once the student has the "why" for succeeding  they will find the "how" for making it happen.  And with a supportive adult at their side that they know they can count on no matter what, the odds of achieving that goal are much greater.

coding

Today, Facebook was my source of inspiration for the post.  Indirectly, of course, as it usually is.  This morning, I saw an interesting and somewhat alarming statistic posted on Facebook by Code.org.
This is the image

Well, actually, it was the middle statistic with the two pie charts that I saw on facebook, but then I went to Code.org to see the rest of their information.

This was really alarming to me, because I never thought of computer science as a field that was lacking in qualified job seekers.  When I was getting my undergraduate degree in Anthropology, a lot of people I was friends with or knew from high school or through other friends, were going to school for computer science.  It seemed like a lot of people in my circles were getting that degree then, and finding jobs with it as well.  I didn't realize that this was such a concern for the industry these days.

I think, perhaps, that as a school counselor I won't be pushing students into the field, but I think it would be appropriate to highlight for students the variety of jobs out there that are in demand.  If a student is interested in maths and sciences then why not encourage that student to look into compute science and engineering and perhaps job shadow someone in the field or do an internship with a company.

Computers are going to be a part of everything in our lives from now on, and I feel that i'd be disservice not to share that with students and not to encourage them in that direction.

Of course, encouraging them is one thing, but supplying them with opportunities for that experience is quite another.  In a lot of schools, computer science and programming classes are not counted towards math and science requirements, but are only seen as electives.  I feel that it could be beneficial to start conversations at the high school level about the availability of computer programming classes to students and starting to count them towards math graduation requirements.

In addition to my thoughts, here's an interesting article from New York Times about Microsoft's answer to the foreseen shortage of technical talent in their industry.
Fostering Tech Talent in Schools

Reading ASCA

Yes, so I've slipped, and have not blogged the last couple of days. My excuses? I have been a bit down about not getting a position I interviewed for last week, and also have been working on new resumes and cover letters, which sucks up a lot of brain power and energy from other endeavors. Today, after finishing a new version of a cover letter for a position I really want, I decided to pick up the newest copy of the ASCA School Counselor magazine. This issue presents five outstanding school counselors from across the country who have been honored this year at being named the best in their profession. Reading their stories has been very inspiring and motivated me to get back on my blog wagon and keep doing what I am doing. The post will still be short, but I wanted to share a quote from one of the articles in the magazine, "Meant for Mentors."
                 "A school counselor who decides to stay isolated
                  will be rehashing the same lessons, struggling with the same concerns
                  and possibly making the same mistakes.  But to the school counselor who 
                  decides to seek out a positive, nourishing relationship, so much good is possible."
                               Anthony Pearson (a school counseling mentor)

I think it's so very important in our profession to seek out others' ideas and inspiration to keep ourselves motivated, to create better and more challenging and effective lessons, and to continue to inspire, lead, and advocate for all our students.

Source:
Pfleger, N. (2013, April). Meant for mentors. School Counselor, 50(4), 27-30.

Teaching channel

Quick posts today and tomorrow.
This morning, I thought I'd go visit the Teaching Channel.Org, which has been a wonderful source of inspiration to me so far.  One of the first videos I watching this morning was from a 7th grade English classroom.  The teacher in this classroom decided to engage her students in the idea of understanding how their classroom learning and activities are connected to the common core standards.  She gave each student a copy of the standards and before starting on a new unit or concept, she connects back to the standards and goes through the language of the standards to show the students that their learning is purposeful and thoughtful.  I think it's a wonderful idea, and I also see as being transferrable into the school counseling curriculum and lessons.  Even though the common core standards have not yet come out for school counseling, there are definitely standards that could be connected to the overall teaching goals of the guidance lessons.  If an English teacher is using common core standards to connect the students to their learning, it could be a wonderful opportunity for a school counselor to build on that as well and show the students that what they're learning in one classroom has connections to other learning in the school.  So here's the short clip that got me thinking about all this.

friday's on saturday short post

Making up for not posting on friday, but doing a quick post now.
Subbed on Friday for a middle school match teacher.  Students were wonderful and it was a nice day.  During free time picked up, "The Phantom Tollbooth," a book I've never read but recently heard about on "Wait Wait Don't Tell Me" interview with the author.  I only read through the first couple of chapters, but was immediately hooked, and found this great quote, that I think would be nice to use in counseling.
"Well...since you got there by not thinking, it seems reasonable to expect that in order to get out, you must start thinking."
I could see using that quote as a header for a paper a student might have to fill out if they got into a little bit of trouble, and I wanted them to write about their actions, decisions, and how they've affected others by their behavior.

Also, came across this very useful post on another school counseling blog.  Good information to have as I'm starting to gear up for the next round of applications and hopefully interviews.

School Counseling Job Market Linky Party

what they know

Got an e-mail today from the school counselor at the elementary school for whom I subbed a couple of months ago.  She wanted to share a cute story with me about a K-5 student I worked with while she was away.  This student came into her (my) room a few times as a part of a friendship group, but since she's been back to the school he hasn't been back.  Today she went to get him to chat with him one-on-one and when they got to the room he said, "this looks just like Ms. K's room!" 

so the whole bit about her leaving, me subbing, her coming back didn't at all register with him or maybe it did, but it didn't get attached to the understanding that the room he saw me in is the same room that she works in because that was her room to begin with.  It's a good reminder, I think, for myself and other elementary school counselors about what the little ones in our schools do and can focus on their attention.  At 5 years old, they are still very self-centered, and it's important to keep that in mind when working with them.  We might assume they'll remember something we said, or an activity we did, or a room they visited, but unless it's truly connected to their immediate "world," they're not gonna pay much attention to it, just like this little boy did not pay much attention to her leaving, me coming, me going, and her coming back.  :) Good stuff.

what to say and to whom

I was perusing through the May/June 2012 issue of the ASCA School Counselor magazine that I receive as part of my membership.  This issue focused specifically on ethical and legal questions that many counselors come across during the course of their time in the profession.  The first half of the issue was written as a Q and A with questions grouped into themes, such as: reporting suspected abuse/neglect, confidentiality/need to know, case notes and subpoenas, etc.  While I am never fully satisfied with the answers that are given in the ASCA magazines--they always seem to me to just hover on the surface and never get to the meat of the question or offer specific courses of action, I did still find the Q/A section on Confidentiality/Need to Know very relevant for me.

Sharing with teachers and administration information a counselor is privy to through the course of their work with individual students is always a sticky subject.  How much to share?  At what point is the information "need to know" and when is it more important to maintain strict confidentiality to which we are ethically bound?  A couple of suggestions and guidelines seemed relevant to me, as I consider starting out in a counseling office, perhaps as the only school counselor in the building.  There is a concern that administration and teachers will expect the counselor to break confidentiality even when the counselor thinks the information does not comply with the "need to know" guideline.  Refusing to give the information would be considered insubordination, but breaking confidentiality when it is neither in the students' academic interests or their well-being would be to lessen the value of the relationship that the counselor establishes with the student.  The writers suggest to "early on establish a trusting relationship with your teachers and administrators by letting them know you will immediately involve them in information affecting students' safety and well-being," (Stone, Hermann & Williams, 2012) in effect setting up an expectation that you will share about students' matters only under those circumstances.  They also suggested deflecting the teachers' request for information by asking the teacher to fill you in on the student's behavior that they are observing, and supporting their concerns without giving away information about the student that you do not deem "need to know."

So, I think for me, it is important to keep the "need to know" rule in mind, which basically "requires school counselors reveal sensitive information only when the recipients of the information have a need to know and is in a position to benefit the student if they have the shared information" (Stone, Hermann & Williams, 2012).  I think that last bit is crucial, "is in a position to benefit the student," meaning that if a student shared about a matter that  an administrator or a teacher will not be helpful with, then there is no reason to share that information with those personnel until their involvement becomes essential in ensuring student's safety, educational reasons, or well-being.

Source:
Stone, C., Hermann, M. A. & Williams, R. (2012, 06/07). Asked & Answered. School Counselor,   
49(5), 6-13.

Interviewing tomorrow.  Wish me luck! (I tell myself, as I am the only reader of this blog :) )

Resources: surveys and research

Got an e-mail today from Counselor's Room.  Not sure how I got on their mailing list, but then it's one of those things--I could have filled out something two years ago and only now do I get a random e-mail from them or their related companies.  Anyways, the e-mail was actually about one of their products, Plan Smart, which is a product a school counseling department can purchase for their building or district.  The product offers 33 surveys (and they claim more is on the way) that are written exclusively for school counselors to evaluate various aspects of school counseling program and its delivery.

The surveys can assess the needs of students and teachers, as well as get feedback from them about the current aspects of the school counseling program.  With the giant push towards data driven programming and accountability, it's no wonder there are products out there that will make it easier for counselors to evaluate the effectiveness of their current practices and will also help with development of new curricula and interventions.

Speaking of accountability--research based school counseling programs are the goal of current counselors and administrators.  While exploring Plan Smart materials, I came across University of Massachusetts' Center for School Counseling Outcomes Research and Evaluation and of course, they have a wonderful resource page for school counselors filled with research papers, evaluations, data-driven practices, and accountability measures.  Lots to look at and think about.  Sites like these, I feel are useful to have when one has a specific goal and objective in mind already, otherwise the amount of material available can be more disorienting than not, at least to me.  So it'll be linked to my resources tab, and I feel I will be accessing it in the near future for research-based inspiration and ideas.

Parent Resource: "Taking Back Childhood"

I heard about this book on NPR, can't remember which program it was on, but it caught my attention.  Taking Back Childhood: Helping Your Kids Thrive in a Fast-Paced, Media-Saturated, Violence-Filled World by Nancy Carlsson-Paige seemed exactly the type of resource I should have on my book shelf once I am a counselor, so I got a copy from the library and have been perusing through it these last couple of weeks.  So far, I have found several interesting ideas that would be helpful to me as a school counselor and teacher.  Nancy writes that all children need several key factors for healthy development: creative play, security, and positive relationships.  Of course, parents and guardians are the first and best providers of these elements in children's upbringing, but the school is a place where children spend a lot of their time, interacting with peers and adults, and providing access to these three essential factors in their development can also be done there.

I haven't read through the whole book as of yet, but I have found several key points that will be important for me to keep in mind as I work with students, especially in the elementary school setting.  One of those is power and being ever conscious of its role in our relationships with children.  We learn, as counselors, that the relationships we build with our students are the most important factors in how successful our work with them will be.  In order for students to feel comfortable and safe with us, they need to be able to trust that we will be fair and non-judgmental and that we will not hold our "power" as adults over them, but will work with them as equals, allowing them to be the experts of their concerns and problems.  Remembering to do that can be difficult sometimes when we have to work under time constraints of the class room or an individual session, or we have a hard time with a child who is being willful and disobedient.

Nancy writes that, "Often when kids 'act out' or 'misbehave,' they're hoping we will interfere to restore for them the sense of security they need us to provide."  This does not mean that we will step in to punish or judge the child immediately.  What Nancy is promoting is a sharing of power with the child--this means in this case, giving the child an opportunity to face their actions and misbehavior and to see the impact of what they did.  She writes also that this type of parenting/education allows the child to develop appropriate social skills, such as cooperation, control of impulses, ability to work things out with peers and adults.  Insisting on obedience alone through use of punishment and cajoling will not lead to children (our students) being able to self-regulate themselves appropriately.  Obviously, as educators, we cannot control the type of environment and parenting that our students grow up with, but we can control our interactions with them, and keeping in mind some of the ideas from Nancy Carlsson-Paige's book would be a good start.

Source:
Carlsson-Paige, N. (2008). Taking back childhood: Helping your kids thrive in a fast-paced, media-saturated, violence-filled world. (1st ed.). New York, NY: Hudson Street Press.

Teaching Tolerance

I received a renewal notice from the Teaching Tolerance magazine, which I had subscribed for last year.  I learned about this magazine from a professor in a school counseling course, and it took me a year to remember to subscribe to it, but I'm glad I finally did.   This is a wonderful FREE resource available to educators at every level of the school system.
The magazines publishes 4-5 feature articles on relevant and interesting topics such as, "Found in Translation: Ensure school environments are welcoming to English language learners (ELLs) and their families" and "The School to prison pipeline: Policies and practices that favor incarceration over education do us all a grave injustice."
There are also a few opinion pieces and short pieces that briefly but thoroughly address current decisions that counselors, administrator and teachers have to make in their buildings, such as whether or not to establish a school uniform in the school.
The magazines also has several activities for all the grade levels that are centered around ideas of inclusion, friendship, prejudice, multiculturalism, etc.. So for a counselor, this magazine can be a great resource of ways to teach these sometimes difficult topics in a way that encourages open and non-judgement filled discussions.
Anyways, I will be renewing my subscription to this magazine, starting with the digital copy, which promises to have more multi-media ways to explore the magazine's topics and ideas.
Happy Friday!  One week of posts! Whoohoo!!

Careers Trivia

Sometimes when I'm at school or just driving somewhere, an activity idea will pop into my head, but I won't write it down right away and of course, even though, I think it'll still be there, it never is. Doing this blog is a good way for me to be self-motivated about writing things like that down, so that I could post them on here daily and keep a record of things I would actually do in the classroom.

Today I was thinking about the Pre-College workshops I have been involved in over the last year. I have been teaching middle and high school students about careers, learning styles, study skills, etc. I haven't done one since January, however, but am thinking of doing one in April or May and it'll most likely be about career exploration. I thought about the structure of the career workshops I did last year, and how not all the kids were engaged. Even though most of them enjoyed exploring careers on websites like, O-net and figuring out where their interests lie by taking the Interest Profiler, there were a few here and there that weren't as motivated. Not sure if the idea I have will work for all, but I like starting with a fun activity that connects to prior knowledge and also peeks kids' interest levels by introducing some neat concepts and ideas. So i'm thinking of putting together a trivia-like game to start the workshop with, or it could also be a good intro for a counseling unit on career exploration.

It could be done simply as a Jeopardy game or I was actually wanting to adapt the Quizmaster Trivia format, which has six categories with 5 questions in each and also uses a visual component by including photos, fuzzy pictures, maps and the like to provide a variety to the clues. There are so many professions out there that the students have never heard of (and that i have never heard of), and I think it would be fun to make it into a trivia game/guessing game by using clues that kids will be confident about, such as, "What level of education is required to become a medical doctor?" and things they might have to pick the best educated answer for from a multiple choice listing, such as "What does a Millwright do?" So I could start a workshop with a quick trivia to get students thinking about professions, education levels, skills, types of interests and strengths one has to have to engage in them, and all other related information that is available on sites like O-net. Could be fun!
For instance, do you know what an Aquacultural Manager does, or that it is one of the "bright outlook" professions students could benefit from knowing about when thinking about their futures?

Millwrights

You were late..now what?

I have a feeling most of my posts will be starting with the line: "While subbing the other day, I picked up..." or maybe not, but this one definitely will start with that.
I picked up this "tardy" slip in a middle school classroom last week.  I liked it because it is one of those procedural things that could be taught to kids at the beginning of the school year and that would establish clear parameters and expectations of the teacher for the classroom and for the students' behavior.  In this classroom, these slips are kept in a manila envelop that is hanging near the door.  So as a student walks into the classroom late, he/she will know to immediately grab one of these slips and fill it out.  I am assuming the teacher would expect the student to the turn it in by the end of the day, if not by the end of the hour.  This simple expectation of being responsible for one's own reflection saves the teacher and the classroom precious time at the start of the hour, so instead of having to ask the student why they are tardy or berate them for the tardiness as they walk in, the teacher can simply expect the student to write out the reflection and then speak with the student about it at a more convenient and conducive time.  I also like that it is structured as a reflection, which allows the student to consider how their behavior impacts the learning of others and themselves.  I could see using this as a counselor or offering it as a classroom management tool for teachers who are seeking for new ways to respond to student tardiness.

Tardy slip

The note asks to fill in:

I was late because:

Being late is disrespectful to myself because:

Being late is disrespectful to my fellow scholars because:

Being late is disrespectful to my teacher because:








In other notes, heard an interesting interview with a professor of linguistics, Anita Pandey, who spoke today on WUWM's Lake Effect program.  She talked about how educators can capitalize on students' ability to speak different dialects of English when teaching instead of disregarding their already existing linguistic abilities in their drive to teach students standard English.  Her book, Building Blocks: Essential Linguistics for Early Childhood Educators, sounds like a good resource for learning about how students' language impacts their education and achievement in the classroom.

Kohlberg for 4th graders

Yesterday, while subbing in a fourth grade classroom, I came across this wonderful poster.

Kohlberg's levels of morality in the classroom

This is a great way to simplify Kohlberg's levels of morality development in a way that is relatable to students.  Of course, I do not know how the teacher presented these levels of morality to her students, but I think the fact that they are in the classroom and visible to the students every day must serve as an important reminder of a lesson on behavior and how we make decisions.

I could see myself using this type of rewriting of Kohlberg's theory to teach students about how we think when we make decisions.  This type of meta-cognition is an important skill to develop as students mature and are forced to make more decisions on their own, without parental or teacher guidance.

Intro and what it's all about

The title of this blog has two meanings. I will be writing a blog once a week until I am hired as a full time counselor, and every single one of these posts will contain my ideas for activities, resources, and inspirations that could be used "every day" by a school counselor. Currently I am working as a substitute teacher in a variety of schools, districts, grade levels, and this job allows me access to numerous classrooms with wonderful educators who are full of innovative and exciting ideas for reaching their students. The resources and activities I will be posting on my blog will come from things I come across in these classrooms. I will also be using books, magazines, journals, and other venues to come up with every day inspirations for my posts. I hope to create a "bag" of resources for myself to access later as I start working in a school setting, but also as a place for other current and aspiring school counselors to tap into for ideas.

 My education background includes a Bachelors in Anthropology, a Secondary Teaching certification in English and History, and most recently a Masters in Educational Psychology. I graduated with the latter in May of 2012 and have been looking for a position as a school counselor ever since. I did, however, have the good fortune to find a long-term substitute counseling position at a wonderful suburban elementary school that lasted three months at the end of 2012 and proved to be an amazing opportunity to learn and grow as a newly fledged school counselor. I have worked as a substitute teacher for over three years in a variety of school settings, and teaching all grade levels and nearly every subject. I also taught in Japan for three years in a rural village on the main island of Okinawa as part of the JET Programme from 2005 to 2008. The blog from that experience can be found by clicking on the link to the left.
Well, enough about me, and onto the useful posts. :)

Please feel free to comment, critique, applaud, and share as I hope this turns into a collaborative space.