School Counselor Blog

A reader asked what time during the day I facilitate groups. Q: I really enjoy  your blog. I would like to know what time of day do you schedule your groups?  I can only have them at the lunch hour, so it restricts things a bit. A: Making time for groups can be challenging, but it is possible! At my current school I work with late elementary and middle school school aged students (grades 5-8).  Our school runs on a six day learning cycle instead of using days of the week. However, I facilitate groups and programing using days of the week. Below I discuss the times I facilitate groups and the advantages and disadvantages of the times. Advisory Period, Homeroom, and Study Hall In a middle school or high school setting, advisory period, homeroom, or study hall may give you enough time to facilitate a group.  Advisory periods and homerooms are usually the same time for all grade levels. Study halls usually occur at certain time of the day, so it may be possibl...

I am currently running three groups using the Girls in Real Life Situations curriculum. The curriculum is great! I especially like the Girls in Real Life Situations curriculum because it allows for flexibility. One of the activities in Girls in Real Life Situations is an activity, where girls stand on a line when they can relate to statements read by the facilitator. An example of a statement includes, "stand on the line if you like the color red." The purpose of the activity is to show similarities and how the girls are connected in different ways. The line activity in the Girls in Real Life Situations curriculum reminded me of "The Line Game" from The Freedom Writers Diary by Erin Gruewll. In Freedom Writers , the movie version of the Freedom Writers Diary , Erin Gruwell (played by Hillary Swank) facilitated "The Line Game" with her students. She instructed students to "stand on the line" if the experience she stated related to them....

It's crazy to think Thanksgiving is next week! It feels like just yesterday it was August! I wanted to share about groups I have been running so far this year and groups I plan to start in the near future. G.I.R.L.S. Groups I am running two sixth grade girls groups, and one seventh grade girls group using  Girls in Real Life Situations (G.I.R.L.S.) curriculum by Julia V. Taylor. The groups are going great! The Girls in Real Life Situations curriculum is working out really well. Girls in Real Life Situations covers a myriad of topics including self esteem, friendships, and stress. I love that the curriculum is flexible and enables the facilitator to pick and choose which activities to facilitate for each topic! I have used some of the activities in the Girls in Real Life Situations with other groups I am running too! I will be writing a review about the Girls in Real Life Situations curriculum in a future post. Grief and Loss Groups I am currently running two grief and loss...

I received an email from a reader the other day about graduate school for school counseling. After answering her initial questions, I came to the last line of the email, which asked, "What is your most important advice for an aspiring school counselor?" Wow, I thought, I really need to think about that one. I thought about it last night and now this morning sitting down to write,  I realized I knew the answer all along. I thought about one of the best pieces of advice I ever received and how it has helped me as a professional school counselor and as a blogger. The advice was from my dad, and he continues to give this advice to me often. "It's just who knows who. Then over here you have favoritism." One of my favorite movies of all time is Raising Arizona , a Joel and Ethan Coen movie. My family watches it every year when we go on vacation.  My mom, dad, and I quote the movie all the time.  The quote from the movie that has the most meaning for me,...

A reader asked me about what to look for in a graduate school program for school counseling. Q: I just encountered your School Counselor blog - it's so informative!  My dream job is to become a school counselor.  My passion in life is to help high school students achieve their career goals, including going to college.  I currently work at a community college in Iowa as an admissions representative.  I love my job, but I am so excited to become a school counselor.  Right now, I am searching for graduate programs in School Counseling.  Do you have any suggestions on things I should look for in programs?  Any pointers on actually filling out the applications?  Also, what is your most important advice for an aspiring school counselor?   A: I am so glad you are enjoying my blog and finding it useful! Read below for some answers to your great questions! Begin Navigating  I wrote blog entries about graduate school that you may find help...

After hearing so many good things about "bucket filling" books I had to try them out for myself.  I recently got "Have You Filled a Bucket Today?" and "Fill a Bucket: A Guide to Daily Happiness for the Young Child" .  About "Have You Filled a Bucket Today?" The concept of "bucket filling" in "Have You Filled a Bucket Today?" is quite simple.  Everyone has an invisible bucket with them at all times. When our bucket is full we feel happy, when our bucket is empty we feel pretty bad. "Have You Filled a Bucket Today?" explains many specific ways to fill a bucket and many specific ways a bucket can be emptied. Our invisible bucket can be filled by kindness and caring or emptied by negativity and meanness. One of the ways a bucket can be emptied is by "bucket dippers." "Bucket dippers" are bullies who try to empty other people's buckets in an attempt to fill their own. What "bucket dipp...

End of the season sales are a great time to stock up on items to use in your school counseling office! I love getting a good deal. I especially enjoy end of the season sales! At end of season sales you can find products at deeply discounted prices. Stores want to sell products fast so they have room to merchandise for the next season. I have found some great deals on items for use in my school counseling office at end of season sales. The end of the Halloween season is an especially good time to stock up on items! This week I will be highlighting a few seasonal Halloween items to utilize in your school counseling office! Seasonal Find: Animal Crackers Animal Crackers are available in stores year round in large animal cracker containers , 1 ounce animal cracker bags , and 2 ounce animal cracker bags . During the Halloween season, grocery stores and department stores such as Target, Wal-Mart, and K-Mart sell "Trick or Treat" packs of animal crackers in 0.6 ounce bags and...