Friday, January 24, 2014
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Fresh Ideas for Building Social Skills
When I surveyed faculty at the beginning of the year, I received an overwhelming response surrounding the need for social skills development amongst their elementary students. Needless to say, in working towards implementing a data-driven school counseling program, I have several groups up and running!
There is a plethora of existing curricula and lessons for building social skills; however, I feel that a lot of it is outdated. In an effort to meet the current needs and interests of our students, I have attempted to develop our group sessions from some more modern ideas. :)
1. Pete the Cat
Who doesn't LOVE Pete the Cat? I, for one, use his books all the time! Pete's "everything is cool" attitude is a great way to begin teaching students about flexible thinking...how to cope when things don't go their way! In fact, there is a fantastic TPT resource that served as my starting point for this concept! Be sure to share with students that YOU, too, have to cope when something doesn't go your way.
2. Hedbanz
There is a plethora of existing curricula and lessons for building social skills; however, I feel that a lot of it is outdated. In an effort to meet the current needs and interests of our students, I have attempted to develop our group sessions from some more modern ideas. :)
1. Pete the Cat
Who doesn't LOVE Pete the Cat? I, for one, use his books all the time! Pete's "everything is cool" attitude is a great way to begin teaching students about flexible thinking...how to cope when things don't go their way! In fact, there is a fantastic TPT resource that served as my starting point for this concept! Be sure to share with students that YOU, too, have to cope when something doesn't go your way.
 |
| The beginnings of my Pete the Cat Bulletin Board for our Social Skills Groups. |
I have had this game for about two years and for awhile only enjoyed it with my friends and family. It wasn't until recently that I thought to use it with students. Available in a few versions such as Kids, Act Up, Disney, etc., this game is great for helping students build conversational skills, stay on topic, and remember information that has been shared.
Students put on the black headband, and then a card (which they have not viewed) is placed in the designated slot. They must then ask each other "yes or no" questions in order to determine who or what is on their card. When I play this with younger students, I write some key words and question starters (Am I, Can I, Do I, etc.) on the board for them to refer to. Incorporating skills learned in previous sessions, I also have students look at another group member, say their name, and then ask the question. Additional parameters could be set for even more skill building.
3. Mustaches
With the current mustache craze, I thought a fun group session might be centered around the theme of "I mustache (must ask) you a question". Not only do students love choosing their personal mustache and giggling at how silly each other look, but it is also a great way to process things including: appropriate times to ask questions, appropriate questions to ask different types of people, question starters (Can I, Could you), etc. Other skills, such as eye-contact and responding appropriately, can be re-addressed during this activity as well.
4. Hula Hoops
This activity addresses the concept of personal space, and therefore requires a bit more space than the table you might use for group sessions. Each student is provided with a hula hoop to hold around themselves. This is used as a visual for processing how much space should be allotted between family, friends, strangers, etc.
Time should also be spent talking about exceptions to this rule, and why these personal space rules are necessary! At the end of this session, you can quiz students by assigning them a role (parent, friend, teacher, etc.) and having them physically demonstrate the amount of personal space that is required.
5. Wrap-Up
As your group is wrapping up, be sure to do something that allows you to collect some data on whether or not your group was effective in helping students to build their social skills. Speak with teachers, parents, and administer some type of post-survey for students. My post-survey typically consists of a Jeopardy game of some sort. I also deduct points from any team who gets too competitive and does not use the skills we have worked on. ;)
I am always looking for new resources to make group sessions exciting. Currently, many of my groups take place during recess as to not remove students from core academic time. Therefore, I need to ensure that group members will work hard but have fun, too!!
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Friday, November 22, 2013
Children's Grief Awareness Day
Thursday, November 21st was Children's Grief Awareness Day. The purpose of this day is to support all children who have lost a loved one, and remind others that children experience grief, too. This could be grief for a lost parent, grandparent, sibling, cousin, pet, etc. Children's Grief Awareness Day is purposely set during the holiday season, as this is often a more difficult time for those who have lost loved ones.
Many of the school counselors in my district wanted to acknowledge this day and remind our students that we support them! To do so, we asked all students and staff to wear BLUE on Thursday in honor of a loved one they have lost or in support of a friend who has lost someone. We also provided students and staff with the opportunity to decorate butterflies (the symbol of Children's Grief Awareness) with a memory of someone they have lost. I also spent some time visiting a few classrooms to share the book Chester the Raccoon and the Acorn Full of Memories, by Audrey Penn (author of The Kissing Hand). This sweet story brings the topic onto the level of younger students by encouraging them to cherish memories of loved ones lost. Students also love the Chester books, which is a plus! The "Memory Walls" from all three of my elementary schools can be seen below:
Many of the school counselors in my district wanted to acknowledge this day and remind our students that we support them! To do so, we asked all students and staff to wear BLUE on Thursday in honor of a loved one they have lost or in support of a friend who has lost someone. We also provided students and staff with the opportunity to decorate butterflies (the symbol of Children's Grief Awareness) with a memory of someone they have lost. I also spent some time visiting a few classrooms to share the book Chester the Raccoon and the Acorn Full of Memories, by Audrey Penn (author of The Kissing Hand). This sweet story brings the topic onto the level of younger students by encouraging them to cherish memories of loved ones lost. Students also love the Chester books, which is a plus! The "Memory Walls" from all three of my elementary schools can be seen below:
(^ For my smallest school, I took time to die-cut butterflies and acorns to accompany the Chester story).
Our efforts for Children's Grief Awareness Day even made the local newspaper! I hope that students realize that not only their school counselors, but also their teachers and peers, support them during times of grief. I have already begun brainstorming ideas for next year! How do you support grieving students?
Monday, November 11, 2013
Save Money, Live Better: $50 of Counseling Resources
Recently, one of my elementary schools was the recipient of gift cards from WalMart's Teacher Rewards Program. I was fortunate to receive a $50 gift card to use towards resources for my school counseling office. A little bit goes a long way!The Haul:
1. Small Adirondack Chair-Not only are these chairs super cute, but their slightly reclined position can be great for students who come to take a break! Dipping into theory, they could also be great for some Empty Chair or Small Chair therapy exercises. ($4.97)
2. Post-It Notes-Can't ever have enough of these things around! Whether you use them in sessions with students, or simply to remind yourself of the 1,678 things on your to-do list, post-it notes are always handy! (1.97/ 4 pack)
3. Pin-Wheel-Great for working on deep-breathing! (.50)
4. Small Tubes of Toothpaste- I use the toothpaste analogy (once words are out, it's impossible to put them back in) all. the. time!! For younger students, it can be more concrete when a visual is used! (.97) 5. Games-Currently, I am hauling my staple games, Candy Land & Chutes and Ladders, between my three schools. Not to mention that all of my students remind me how out-dated my versions of the games are! Today's board games come in a more compact box and were fairly inexpensive ($4.88) at WalMart! Board games help to build rapport, encourage conversation, and can be played using questions on various topics (social skills, friendship, etc!)
6. Markers/Crayons/Glue Sticks-Frequently-used resources with my students!
(.97/ 3-count gluesticks) ($2.47/ 10-count Crayola Markers) (1.00/ 4-pack Twistable Crayons)
7. Book- If you've read my previous posts, you know I love incorporating bibliotherapy into my school counseling program! Found this super-cute, easy-reader book for just ($3.77).
8. Play-Doh- Another must-have resource! I find the smaller-portioned containers to be more cost-effective. This size also allows the students I see frequently to have their own container!
(3.96/ Bag of 10)
9. Pencil Boxes-I pick these up pretty frequently when I see them for under $1.00! These were (.97) at WalMart! They can be used for hygiene kits, calm-down kits, general storage, etc!
10. White-Boards-Can be used for doodling, writing, etc! Found a pack of three lined, lap-size boards for ($2.00) in the dollar section in the front of the store.
11. Pinpression-So excited about this find! Remember these things? I think they can be particularly therapeutic for students with sensory needs, and just generally fun! ($5.00)
12. Activity Tablet-Great to have on hand for students who pop-in unexpectedly! This is another item that I found in the dollar section in the front of the store for ($2.00).
13. Notepads, Stress Balls, Stickers-The dollar section strikes again! Picked up a handful of go-to items for just ($1.00)!!
With tax, I got a total of 26 different items for just $51.39. Cannot wait to incorporate them into my office and begin using them with students!! What other school counseling items have you picked up for little cost?
Thursday, October 10, 2013
Quality Data Collection with Qualtrics
I mentioned Qualtrics in my first blog post as the resource I used to to create an online Needs Assessment for school faculty & staff. Since then, I have been meaning to write a post on how to incorporate Qualtrics into your School Counseling Tool Box. So here we go!
The Qualtrics website defines itself as "a web-based tool for building surveys". I was first introduced to Qualtrics during my time as a Graduate Research Assistant. The university had a license to use the program, so all students and faculty had the opportunity to utilize the resource. Making use of the "Qualtrics University" tutorials and support, it wasn't long before I was ready to build my first survey! (Although I'm about to give you a mini-lesson, I suggest you also take some time to complete "Qualtrics University").
Step One: Creating Your Qualtrics Account
As I previously mentioned, many colleges and universities have licenses with Qualtrics (see a brief list here), which allows their students and faculty to, literally, have the resource at their fingertips. If this student/faculty profile applies to you, be sure to look into this (likely found on your library's resource page) before creating a "free account". Now, if this does not apply to you, and you would just like to explore the benefits of Qualtrics, I would suggest creating a "free account", or logging in with Google. Although a free account does not give you access to all of the bells and whistles, it does allow you to have one active (ready to collect data) survey at a time, with up to 350 responses.
Step Two: Creating Your First Survey
Upon logging-in, you should be taken to a new screen, located on the tab titled My Surveys. Below the tab, select Create Survey. Next, you may explore the Survey Library to start from one of many existing templates, select Create From Copy to start from a survey you previously created, or select Quick Survey Builder to create a survey from scratch. For purposes of this post, we are going to use Quick Survey Builder. Note: If you choose to use a Qualtrics template, you must select Global Library after clicking on the Survey Library.
After selecting Quick Survey Builder, you will be prompted to name your survey. Now it's time to get begin creating your questions! On the new screen, click the green box that says Create New Item. This will create a box for Q1. On the right side of the screen, another green box will allow you to Change Item Type. Here, you can select from a variety of question types including multiple choice, text entry, rank order, and many more. Also on the right side of the screen, you can edit the amount of answer choices, and determine how many responses are allowed per question. Once you've made these changes, you can type your question and answer choices into the question box. Using the green plus signs that appear when your mouse hovers over the question, you can continue to add further questions above or below the one you just created. You may also select the red minus sign to delete the question. Be sure to explore all the question possibilities-you can even import an image into the question box!
Step Three: Launching Your Survey
Once you have added all of the questions that you would like to include in your survey, you are almost ready to make it active for public response! Remaining within the Edit Survey tab, you also have the ability to edit many other details (font, color, level of access, and even the message that people will see after they complete your survey).
When your survey is edited to your liking, you are ready to select the globe-shaped icon labeled Launch Survey. Next, you want to click Activate Your Survey to Collect Responses. You will then be given an anonymous link to your survey, which you can share via email, social media, etc. For example, here is the link to the Needs Assessment that I created this summer.
Step Four: Retrieving Data
Once you have activated your survey and your audience has begun to submit responses, you may want to begin viewing the data. For this you will need to return to the My Surveys tab and select Results next to the correct survey. Note: If you are ready to close your survey/prevent more data from coming in, un-check the green box that denotes that your survey is Active.
On the next screen, you will want to click Initial Report. This will transport you to the page which displays all of your data. Here, you can view statistical data, create subgroups and filters, and even download/export your data into another software program for further use.
Although I haven't even begun to scratch the surface of the survey possibilities available through Qualtrics, I hope that I have gotten your wheels turning in regards to this valuable resource! If you have specific questions, please don't hesitate to comment below, e-mail, or tweet me! I would love to help and/or hear what you think and discover! :)
Step One: Creating Your Qualtrics Account
As I previously mentioned, many colleges and universities have licenses with Qualtrics (see a brief list here), which allows their students and faculty to, literally, have the resource at their fingertips. If this student/faculty profile applies to you, be sure to look into this (likely found on your library's resource page) before creating a "free account". Now, if this does not apply to you, and you would just like to explore the benefits of Qualtrics, I would suggest creating a "free account", or logging in with Google. Although a free account does not give you access to all of the bells and whistles, it does allow you to have one active (ready to collect data) survey at a time, with up to 350 responses.
Step Two: Creating Your First Survey
Upon logging-in, you should be taken to a new screen, located on the tab titled My Surveys. Below the tab, select Create Survey. Next, you may explore the Survey Library to start from one of many existing templates, select Create From Copy to start from a survey you previously created, or select Quick Survey Builder to create a survey from scratch. For purposes of this post, we are going to use Quick Survey Builder. Note: If you choose to use a Qualtrics template, you must select Global Library after clicking on the Survey Library.
After selecting Quick Survey Builder, you will be prompted to name your survey. Now it's time to get begin creating your questions! On the new screen, click the green box that says Create New Item. This will create a box for Q1. On the right side of the screen, another green box will allow you to Change Item Type. Here, you can select from a variety of question types including multiple choice, text entry, rank order, and many more. Also on the right side of the screen, you can edit the amount of answer choices, and determine how many responses are allowed per question. Once you've made these changes, you can type your question and answer choices into the question box. Using the green plus signs that appear when your mouse hovers over the question, you can continue to add further questions above or below the one you just created. You may also select the red minus sign to delete the question. Be sure to explore all the question possibilities-you can even import an image into the question box!
Step Three: Launching Your Survey
Once you have added all of the questions that you would like to include in your survey, you are almost ready to make it active for public response! Remaining within the Edit Survey tab, you also have the ability to edit many other details (font, color, level of access, and even the message that people will see after they complete your survey).
When your survey is edited to your liking, you are ready to select the globe-shaped icon labeled Launch Survey. Next, you want to click Activate Your Survey to Collect Responses. You will then be given an anonymous link to your survey, which you can share via email, social media, etc. For example, here is the link to the Needs Assessment that I created this summer.
Step Four: Retrieving Data
Once you have activated your survey and your audience has begun to submit responses, you may want to begin viewing the data. For this you will need to return to the My Surveys tab and select Results next to the correct survey. Note: If you are ready to close your survey/prevent more data from coming in, un-check the green box that denotes that your survey is Active.
Although I haven't even begun to scratch the surface of the survey possibilities available through Qualtrics, I hope that I have gotten your wheels turning in regards to this valuable resource! If you have specific questions, please don't hesitate to comment below, e-mail, or tweet me! I would love to help and/or hear what you think and discover! :)
Thursday, October 3, 2013
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