St. Clair High School (Missouri) - All Kinds of Kinds - 2014

I love this video that a small school near my hometown created!  I especially like the wall at the 5:31 mark.  :)  Wouldn't this be a great introduction for incoming students?  LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this!

Toolkit & Resources for The Dove® Movement for Self-Esteem

Toolkit & Resources for The Dove® Movement for Self-Esteem



Dove is on a mission to improve self-esteem and allow women to see their own self beauty.  They have some inovative videos and ideas for lessons, both valuable for parents and school counselors.  Check out the website!  :)  (I LOVE free!)

Dealing with mean kids

I hate the word bully!  I feel it is overused.  I just found a very relevant article basically saying rather than fighting bullying, we need to teach victims how to stand up for themselves.  I couldn't agree more!  That is actually how I work with students who are dealing with mean kids.  (Yes, I think most of the time they are dealing with mean kids, not bullies).

Check out this article and let me know what you think!

Education World: Ending Bullying By Teaching Kids Not To Be Victims

National School Counseling Week Link Party!

Next week (February 3-7) is National School Counseling Week!  What are you doing to promote your program?

We are heavy into enrollment right now, presenting classroom lessons to our 6th and 7th graders on Monday and Tuesday.  Tuesday night we are presenting that information to parents.  With all the concentration on enrollment, I honestly have not thought much about National School Counseling Week.  I want to do something educational, yet inexpensive.  As busy as I am, a time consuming, cute project will not work.

Here is what I am thinking to do:  School Counseling questions in the daily student announcements with prizes (cookie at lunch) given to a winning student from each grade level during lunch Tuesday through Friday.

I would also like to do something for the adults in our building.  I'd like to keep it simple.  Since it is so cold, I am thinking of thanking them for their support with hot cider and/or hot tea.  (Pour the cider in a crock pot and add a cinnamon stick to the mixture, bring a hot pot and assorted tea bags--will smell good and keep them warm).

I feel like my ideas are simple enough to accomplish at this busy time.  I would LOVE to do way more, but since it is my first year I feel I need to start small.

What are your thoughts?  Any suggestions?

Sesame Street: Bruno Mars: Don't Give Up

I found this video on youtube.  This would be a great motivational song for elementary school.  Might be a bit juvenile for middle school, but I really like it!  :)  What are your thoughts?

Trying something new!

Ok, so I have got to share what we did at Lange Middle School yesterday! It was a shorter day, with the kids getting out at 12:05. We also had an assembly in there. So, our PBIS (Positive Behavior Intervention & Support) Team decided that we needed to stress the positives in our school by doing fun activities. One thing they came up with was a "Switch Day". 

Students were given a punch card that listed their 4 core classes and 2 electives. Yesterday, students could go to their classes in any order. They had to attend core classes on their team, but they could choose when to go. As for electives, they were able to choose any elective class to try for the day. 

When students came to class, the teacher punched their cards and closed the door when class was full (28 students) and hung up a red sign. 

What a creative idea!!! I really applaud our PBIS team for the courage to try something so out of the box! 

When I asked the kids their opinion on the day, here were some of the comments I received:
"BEST day ever!"
"Awesome!"
"Just another day of school."
"It was like the Hunger Games trying to get to the elective class I wanted."
"It was like Black Friday."
"Chaos."
"Kids were running to get to class."

The crazy thing is, the hallways were EMPTY in between classes. Kids were excited to be with their friends and try something new. Let me say this again, "Kids were running to get to class!" When does this happen?!

Awesome job Lange Middle School!!!! 

Almost Free Samples - The Career Game by Rick Trow Productions

Almost Free Samples - The Career Game by Rick Trow Productions



If you are looking for mateirals for middle school career exploration, check out the link above!  Several samples.  All you pay for is the shipping!



Who's going to try this with me?