An Elementary Counselor's PLN

PLN

My personal learning network had evolved over the past 3 years. I still use Blogger for my blog and follow many other counseling related blogs, especially those linked to SCOPE http://scope4scs.org/. I love Twitter and Twitter Chats. I have #escchat #scchat #sccrowd on my TweetDeck and this week #NotatASCA15. It is great to have up-to-date information on what colleagues are learning at the ASCA National Conference even though I could not go this year and to be able to participate in a Twitter Chat tonight with counselors at the conference as well as though monitoring what is happening online. My other current favorites are Livebinders (check mine out my shelf), Google+ (hangouts, and Docs), Facebook (Elementary School Counselor Exchange), ASCA Scene and of course YouTube. There is so much virtual professional development available for free! Today it is as easy to access as looking at my Twitter feed and following people and organization relevant to school counseling.

School Counseling Program DATA Report

I do not like the format of the ASCA National Model Results Reports. The column format does not work for me. I really like the DATA format pictured above.  For the counseling program I try to do 3 of these a year so I can share results in a user friendly format with stakeholders. Here is the one I did for my grade 3 study skills groups that met every week for the entire second and third quarter and was very effective https://docs.google.com/a/apsva.us/    and here is a link to the template www.schoolcounselor.org

Annual Report for Elementary School Counseling Program

If you would like to see the one page report of the direct services we provided this year just click
Annual Report 2014-15 We share this with building and district level administration and our School Counseling Program Advisory Committee.

Growth Mindset Animation

End-of-Year Staff Needs Assessment

This is our end of the year staff assessment to get feedback on services we offered this year and suggestions for next year.  I sent it to all classroom teachers that are planning to return to our school next year. I love Google Forms because the data can easily be analyzed. I created a simple assessment because our program is well established but we are always interested in staff input.  I wanted something they could respond to in 5 minutes and would not be a burden on me to interpret.

Book Categories - Organizing Children's Books

As part of packing my office for the end of the school year I was determined to finally do a book inventory and put all my books into categories so I can find what I need quickly. I also pulled out all the books I use for classroom lessons or sets for small groups. I had new shelf markers made with the following categories:

Academic Success

ADHD

Behavior

Bullying

Character Ed

College & Career Readiness

Diversity Awareness

Diversity – Special Needs

Dreams

Emotions

Emotions - Anger

Emotions Anxiety/Fear

Emotions - Bravery

Emotions - Sadness

Families

Families - Divorce

Families - Issues

Friendship Skills

Friendship - positive

Goals and Wishes

Gratitude

Grief

Kindness

Manners

Mindfulness

Perfectionism

Personal Safety

Problem Solving

Self-esteem

Self-regulation

Transitions

Wellness

I also have entered all the authors, titles, and categories into a Google Sheet. I will share that at a later date.

End-of-the-Year Counseling Program Checklist

1 Transition activities - for students moving and moving up to middle school. Lead good-bye lunch groups, participate in Awards’ Ceremonies, and Promotion.

2 Staff survey – Google forms survey to assess topics covered in classroom lessons, groups offered, etc. to serve as basis for planning.

3 Data analysis – Review behavior data (discipline & bullying reports), attendance reports, and academic records of students (report cards and standardized tests).  Write and publish the Counseling Program Annual Report on Web page.

4 Draft annual calendar – Set dates for counseling advisory committee meetings, school-wide events, based on overall calendar planning for school and PTA.

5 Inventory and order books and supplies – Prepare orders that will be placed when funds are available.

6 Declutter office – move toward a paperless environment. Remove reference books, etc no longer being used.

7 Participate in grouping meetings – give input to class placements to facilitate classes that are balanced.

8 Pick summer project and professional development – pick one group curriculum or grade level curriculum to revise.  Set a goal for professional development including online webinars, professional learning communities via Twitter, books, etc.

9 Notes and forms - Shred notes with student information and send risk assessment forms to central office according to policy.

10 Celebrate successes and say goodbye – Reflect on what went well with the program, thank all those who collaborated to make the program successful, and acknowledge colleagues who will not be returning in the fall.

Eating Disorders

Eating disorders are serious illnesses that can be life-threatening. Children as young as five or six can have an eating disorder. They are also extremely complex illnesses, arising from a variety of biological, psychological and social factors. A great resource for school counselors is nationaleatingdisorder/EducatorToolkit