by schoolcounselingbyheart | Jul 1, 2012 | collegiality
Help! Great school counselor needed!
We have an opening for a full-time elementary school counselor (one-year position) at my school in Vermont. The other counselor left unexpectedly and we need an energetic, dedicated, and friendly counselor to fill the position. We have a wonderful, comprehensive program and supportive administration and teachers. Please spread the word and encourage people to apply soon – it won’t stay open for long. Apply at SchoolSpring:
http://www.schoolspring.com/job.cfm?jid=79932
And it would be silly not to look at my tips for Finding a School Counseling Job!
Come work with me! 
by schoolcounselingbyheart | Jun 20, 2012 | children's literature, classroom lessons, death and grief, feelings, individual counseling
It’s been something of a sob-fest around here recently. Last Friday, on our last day of school, the fifth grade boys in particular had a very hard time. Two of them burst into tears and could not finish reading their poems during the graduation celebration. Afterwards, the guy who ALMOST NEVER stops being silly was sobbing, as was a boy who is moving, and the boy who doesn’t like to show any feeling other than annoyance. The boy who is probably the coolest of them all threw himself into my arms before I even knew he was headed my way. Several others teared up over the course of the day and, for a few of them, crying recurred over the course of the day. It provided a great opportunity (more…)
by schoolcounselingbyheart | Jun 11, 2012 | classroom lessons, middle school
If you were moving from elementary to middle school, what would you most want to know? Probably things like: Will I get to see my friends? How will I know where my classes are? Do kids get shoved in lockers? If you were a sixth grader, what information would you think was most important to share with the fifth graders? If you guessed Here’s how the automatic urinals work, you’re right in tune with some (very serious) boys from our town’s middle school who met with our fifth graders last week. Yes, there were others who presented about homework, teachers, dances, and field trips, but the technologically impressive presentation opened with the variety of automatic functions that can be experienced in the middle school bathrooms, and included a close-up video of a urinal doing it’s thing. (more…)
by schoolcounselingbyheart | Jun 3, 2012 | depression, individual counseling
Friday morning a fifth grader burst into my office, threw himself into a chair, said, “I think I’m depressed!” and burst into tears. I think he’s right. Poor guy! He was inconsolable, really stuck in his unhappiness without knowing why. He just wanted to go home. Even though this friend has a hard time letting go of a plan once he’s made it (whether or not the adults think the plan is a good idea or if it’s even possible), I was hopeful (more…)
by schoolcounselingbyheart | May 31, 2012 | abuse, children's literature, classroom lessons, individual counseling, personal safety
. . . and I know what to do with it!
Do You Have a Secret? by Jennifer Moore-Mallinos is a great book about good and bad secrets, how to tell the difference between them, and the importance of telling secrets that make you feel uncomfortable, yucky, or unsafe. I use it — along with my Good Secrets Box and Secret Cards — in first grade class councils and with individual kids in a range of ages. It’s probably best for preschool-grade 2, but older kids sometimes like to read it too. (I love to give older kids books to “review” for younger readers. It helps teach or reinforce concepts and gives struggling (more…)
Help! Great school counselor needed!
