Are you a School Counselor, Psychologist, or Speech Pathologist who has a “LUNCH BUNCH” or...
Help kids manage worry with these 10 grounding techniques! Students can use these strategies any time anywhere to cope with worry.
What kid do you know who doesn't love a good old fashioned fortune teller? This paper craft game will not only have your students begging to play more, but will also help them build their self-esteem, as they reflect on and devise a plan-of-action to increase self-confidence and belief of their unconditional value and worthiness of connection, love & belonging. What's Included: *4 do-it-yourself, customizable & colorable self-esteem fortune tellers *4 ready-to-go self-esteem fortune tellers, in both color and black and white *"50 Ways to Build Self-Esteem To-Do List" containing 50 different statements (one for younger students, one for older students) that students can refer to when designing their own, unique cootie catcher. *Assembly Instructions and Directions on How to Play. *Lesson Plan for classroom and guidance lessons, Aligned with ASCA Mindsets and Behaviors *The "Take Flight And Soar" ready-made fortune teller is perfect to use in solution-focused counseling sessions or student-teacher-parent conferences for goal-oriented conversations. * Ways to Build Self-Esteem Posters (2 different styles for older and younger students) Why Teach About and Support Young People to Build Self-Esteem? Although the dictionary says that self-esteem is a noun, I prefer to think of it as a verb. Self-esteem is an ACTION. We have to PRACTICE and DO self-esteem to have self-esteem. Backed by evidence-based research, The "50 Ways to Build Self-Esteem To-Do List" that is included in this fortune teller package will help young (and older) people devise a plan-of-action to step into their power and start Self-Esteeming! Ways to Use These "Self-Esteem" Fortune Tellers Designed as a "one-size-fits-all" product, this package can be used as a lesson, activity in small groups, and as an individual counseling intervention! Use these building self-esteem fortune tellers as part of your community-building and social emotional curriculum. Not only fun for classroom lessons, these fortune tellers are also great for school counselors to use in small groups and individual counseling sessions. If you are looking for more fortune tellers that you can use for classroom lessons, small groups, or individual counseling interventions, check out: Positive Affirmation & Self-Esteem Fortune Tellers/Cootie Catchers Growth Mindset Fortune Tellers: Fun Growth Mindset Lesson & Counseling Groups THINGS I CAN CONTROL Fortune Tellers *Fun School Counseling Tool & Intervention Coping Skills in the Classroom: Self-Regulation Lesson, Game & Counseling Tool
How to make a thaumatrope. Mix art and science to teach about the persistence of vision with this old fashioned DIY toy.
Looking for a great classroom community building or empathy activity for your classroom guidance lessons? You'll love this I am Human activity!
Based on real events' manga. "When I was 3 years old, my father passed away. My mother was a person who could hear the voices of the gods, Buddha, and ancestors. She was counseling people who were in trouble. My family has always been poor, and I I am the one who discusses matters between family members. Due to “family matters,” I did not participate in either forest school or school trips. When I became 15 years old, my mother passed away, and I began to realize the full-scale. of the young care from the age of 17. My whole world was inside my house.
Managing classroom behavior is often a topic of concern for School Counselors. Our training is geared more for the one-on-one interactions found in individual counseling, parent conferences, and teacher consultations. The managing of small groups is okay, but the classroom for many is daunting. Whether you are comfortable with classroom management or still looking for just the right tool, perhaps you will find the use of Positive Behavior Cones a helpful idea. Shortly before school started, I found these cute little cones with positive sayings on them at my local Dollar Tree. I had no idea what I would do with them when I bought one of every color, but I was certain they were a "must have" and I would figure it out later. Pre-planning began and I set up my classroom putting one on each table. During pre-planning week ideas begin to form in my head and by the time school started I knew how I would use them. Now, after 4 weeks, I am happy to share how I am using Positive Behavior Cones to assist with classroom management. A Little Background We are a PBIS school and our behavioral expectations spell "PAWS" (our mascot is a Bulldog). All of our students know Perform Personal Best, Act Responsibly, Work and Play Safely, and Show Respect. Last year, we created a school-wide behavior incentive program which involved classes earning a bone for good behavior. Each faculty and staff member was given 10 bone stickers each month to give away around campus to students or classes exhibiting PAWS behavior (but never to their own class). Every classroom was given a paper dog bowl and were working towards earning bones. A menu was created listing rewards in 25 bone increments. When a class reached 25 bones they were able to exchange them for a class reward, which was provided by our administration. Once they turned in their dog bowl with bones, they would get a new one and start the collection again. Cones and Bones While unpacking my new room I found a lot of left over bone stickers. Obviously, I had not been giving away my fair share of bones each month! I decided the best way for me to participate in this school-wide incentive was to offer my classes the opportunity to earn bones during their lessons with me. So as I did my introductory "Meet the Counselor" lessons with each class, I talked about what PAWS looked like and sounded like during my classroom counseling lessons. I explained to the students as long as everyone was following PAWS their cones would remain on their tables. At the end of class, if I had not removed the cones at anytime from any table they would earn a bone. However, as I am teaching a lesson, if a member of their table is not following PAWS, I will give them a reminder one time then will remove their cone. In order to promote continued compliance with PAWS, good will, and a "we can do it" attitude, I provided a way to earn their cone back. I told the students in a very dramatic way they could pout and get mad because they lost their cone or they could decide to correct their behavior, follow PAWS, and I would return their cone for making a good choice. As long as every table still had their cone at the end of class, even though they may have lost it at one point, I would award them a star. When a class had earned 3 stars they would receive a bone. There is a list of classes posted on my door where I record their bones and stars. So far, the students are loving it and I have given away 4 bones and numerous stars. The first 2 weeks of school as I introduced the Positive Behavior Cones, I did not take cones off the tables, but told them, "If I had started the program today, you would have lost your cone for that." I wanted them to get use to the idea of the cones and see and hear what I would remove cones for. I always talk about PAWS when removing a cone. "That's not showing respect to talk when a classmate is sharing. So I will have to take your cone." In the past 2 weeks, I've had 30 classes (I am in the Special Area rotation) and only 2 have left with no star or bone. I am very pleased and so are my students! So, how can this work for your classroom management? Well, you may be thinking, that's just fine but we don't have a school-wide incentive program to use as a reward. No matter, you can still make this work for you. Classes that keep their cones for following whatever rules or procedures (yours, classroom teacher's, school's) you choose to follow could earn a sticker. Three stickers (or whatever number you decide) could equal a popcorn party, or extra recess, or lunch in the classroom with a movie (inexpensive things you could provide). Or if the classroom teacher has an incentive program with marbles in a jar or letters to spell a word like recess, playground, or whatever, classes could earn a couple of marbles or letters for keeping all their cones. If classes lost a cone, but earned them back maybe they earned half a sticker or just one marble or letter instead of 2. Talk it over with the classroom teacher to see if they are willing to have you incorporate the use of Positive Behavior Cones in with their classroom incentive program. Even if you didn't have a chance to get these Positive Behavior Cones at Dollar Tree, you could use any object to represent the cone. Maybe make and laminate table tents with positive sayings on them, or use those 3 sided clear acrylic photo holders. The choices are up to you and limited only by your imagination. I'd love to hear your ideas for managing classroom behavior or a unique way you have used the Positive Behavior Cones! Please be sure to share below. Do you use an incentive program when teaching classroom lessons? What works for you and your school?
Needing to spice up your social group games? Or looking for one that your group members haven't tried before? This social skill game is interactive, keeps your group members engaged, and gives a twist to that old game we call Uno. In this social skill game, Hello, you can join in on the fun with your students or send them off in their social groups to play this engaging game that keeps them on their toes! This activity is a great pairing for special education students learning social skills and have a social skills IEP goal. This reusable activity was made for special education students with disabilities (autism, intellectual disabilities, learning disabilities, and more), and can be used for students in elementary, middle, or high school. Including ELL students and students with EBD. How It Works These HELLO cards are made to be shuffled & played in your UNO card decks. Each color represents a different category. These cards are played as a person puts the card down. Some cards have options for the player as they put it down. Can be used for structured & unstructured groups, to build and continue social connections, warm-ups, breaks, get-to-know each other activities, fun interactive conversation starters What's Inside: Prep Instructions Gameplay Directions 50 Hello cards across 5 categories of cards Each card represents an interactive category: Share your opinion Take an action Creative Connections with others Wild
This post contains affiliate links. Many moons ago (4 years and 3 months to be exact), I wrote a blog post about teaching empathy with the book Stand in My Shoes and a bunch of old shoe boxes. I used it a couple more times in the classroom and then a few more times in small […]
"How Do I Stand in Your Shoes?" The purpose of this lesson is to teach children the importance of taking the perspective of others and showing empathy. I always love to have fun when teaching my little ones and I thought I would try a new method of presenting my lesson through Prezi, which is a cool and updated version of a slide show. You can insert videos, pictures, etc. just like a slideshow you would present through PowerPoint; however, Prezi offers a little more pizzazz! My Prezi Slide Show on Empathy I hope you enjoy using the Prezi slide show I created in your classroom! To start the lesson, we looked at several pictures that could be looked at in different ways. Here are just a few… Old or Young Woman? Do you see a landscape or a baby? Which one is right? The kids had a blast discussing these pictures! It was also a lot of fun to hear their different perspectives and thoughts about each picture. WHAT IS EMPATHY!?!? This video is a fun way to discuss the word "empathy". Although it's a Sesame Street video, my 4th grade students even got a kick out of it. SHOWING EMPATHY ACTIVITY: If you have not seen the "Wilting Rose" by YouthLight, Inc., go to this link. I would highly recommend purchasing it for your counseling program. It can be used in many different ways. I used it in this lesson to practice our "empathy" techniques. To start the activity, I began bullying the rose and telling it, "You stink!", "You're an ugly color!", "Nobody wants you!", etc. Each time I said something negative, I would make the flower wilt. (It's a "magic" rose, so the kids are totally amazed when it droops!) We talked about how the rose feels just by looking at its body structure. This is a great opportunity to discuss body language and watching other people's reactions to know how to respond to their feelings. We discussed ways we could show it empathy and how using our positive words would make it feel better. Therefore, the kids started giving examples of how to make the rose feel better. They would say things like, "You're beautiful!", "You smell nice!", "I like your color.", etc. Every time the kids would say something nice, the flower would perk up. The kids LOVED this activity! After our empathy activity, I read the book "How Do I Stand in Your Shoes?" by Susan DeBell. This is a great book to read with the younger students; however, for my older students, I read, "Stand in My Shoes" by Bob Sornson. CLOSING ACTIVITY: We created a circle and put our feet in the middle. We talked about our shoes and how they are all unique and different, just like each one of us. We also talked about how each person has a special story. It's called their "Life Story". We discuss the importance of their "Life Stories" and how equally important it is to show empathy to each other's life story because we never know what someone is going through. I brought in different shoes from home and gave each one a character. For example, I would hold up one of the shoes and say something like, "This one belongs to the janitor of a school and each day the kids at his school would show disrespect by throwing paper on the floor and not picking up after themselves. Were those kids showing 'empathy' to their janitor? What are some ways the kids could show their janitor 'empathy'?" This gave students the opportunity to see things from another person's perspective. It also gave them another avenue to practice their empathy skills.
Over 50 fun science ideas and experiments that are perfect for 7-9 year olds to do at home.
Lisa Parkes recommends 10 creative activities that build emotional and social resilience in children age 8-11 years old. Resources for teachers, parents and school counselors.
This post is a best of pinterest on anger management for children. It has some great games and activities to use in counseling.
Picture Book $12.95 • ISBN-10 1589796667ISBN-13: 978-1-58979-666-9Board Book $7.95 • ISBN 978-1-58979-747-5In You Be You, the companion book to Only One You, inquisitive Adri has been out exploring our colorful world on his own. Join him as he notices that there are so many fish in the deep blue sea and that each fish has something special to share. The pages are filled with brand new fish that bring the message of opposites, diversity and acceptance to life. We will know that beauty is all around us if we only stop, observe and truly listen. You Be You inspires readers to always be themselves.
Here's a great idea I spotted on Pinterest.... I tried this lesson with my middle school students and they had so much fun with it! I originally used a copy machine to enlarge students' fingerprints. It was cumbersome and time-consuming. But then I figured out a faster, easier, and better way! For detailed instructions with photos, tips, writing prompts, a student gallery, and fascinating fingerprint facts, check out my fun resource on TPT! My pdf also comes with 3 ready-to-use fingerprint enlargements in case you don't have time to take students' actual fingerprints. This can also be helpful for students who arrive late or miss the first day when you work on these. Optional... use colored pencils to lightly add some designs in the background before tracing over your writing with Sharpie. This will personalize your self-portrait even more!
A classroom full of four and five year olds can sure create some major chaos! Even if you have some stellar classroom management skills, there can still be those days where they feel out of control. However, how can you avoid those days? Or maybe you're a homeschool mom and need help with your child's
Mixing Jenga® and calming strategies is the perfect way to teach your students the skills they need in a low-pressure way
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This is an old blog post from January 31, 2016 on the benefits of movement and various sensory exercises to improve focus and attention. We’ve updated this article as of January 22, 2024 to include more resources and strategies to support attention. Exercises for focus and attention depend on the individual’s unique needs, but there ... Read more
Liar, Liar Pants on Fire is a CBT counseling game to address lying behavior in children. It focuses on motivation for dishonesty. Through play therapy, children learn to change thoughts and behaviors. Can be used for individual, group, or family counseling.
Why is it important to follow the counsel given by priesthood leaders? Recently I gave this lesson to our cute youth Sunday School kids. ...
You know how technology just keeps moving forward and all these electronic devices just keep getting better and better? Well, things are ...
How do you teach kids to make transitions away from high-interest activities? Read these 5 tips for helping kids make smooth transitions!
Back a million years ago when I taught 3rd grade before, I used to make a t-chart to show what Active Listening was and what Active Listenin...
What could be better than having students leave their school day feeling loved and appreciated by their teacher and classmates, and feeling the love for their own great people and things in their life? Not
This post contains affiliate links. Many moons ago (4 years and 3 months to be exact), I wrote a blog post about teaching empathy with the book Stand in My Shoes and a bunch of old shoe boxes. I used it a couple more times in the classroom and then a few more times in small […]
If you are looking for printable worksheets for 7-year-old child, check out the following printable activities that we have collected on this page.
Are you a School Counselor, Psychologist, or Speech Pathologist who has a “LUNCH BUNCH” or...
As if the Habit of Mind Animations weren’t already exciting and fun enough for our elementary school students, we can now increase the fun-to-learn factor by adding this enrichment activity. Because there is direct correlation between children’s fine motor skills, their ability t
Have you ever had a student that comes to school upset pretty much every day. They arrive at your door and this is what you see... Here comes this kiddo who is having a tough time and there are many reasons why this could be happening. It could be due to sensory issues, a rough morning at home, not enough sleep, hunger, being yelled at, communication delays, and the list of possibilities goes on and on. The truth is, we don't always know WHY they are behaving the way they are, but there are certainly some things we can do to help them prepare their bodies for learning. I'm dating myself now, but waaaaaay back in the mid 90's when I first started teaching, I was intrigued by a workshop I attended about sensory integration. I was so interested in the results they were getting with children by addressing their sensory needs. I tried some of the techniques in my classroom and immediately saw a difference. Honestly, the biggest difference I saw was a shift in my perspective on behavior. These sensory integration techniques gave me new tools to help my students. I began to see that excessive movement or aggression could potentially be caused by unmet sensory needs. This past school year, I had a little girl in my three-year-old class who would come to me in an upset state frequently. I found myself expecting her to come into the classroom and be ready to connect with me and follow the arrival routine without first addressing her internal state. At a conference last spring I heard Dr. Becky Bailey say, "If a child comes to you in an upset state, why would you let them in the door?" Well, we certainly aren't going to keep children in the hallway until the "get happy", so we have to come up with some other ideas. Since state dictates behavior I knew I needed to be more intentional about changing her internal state. In our school, we use a program called Minds-in-Motion. This program uses a series of movement activities set up in a maze that students go through in about 15 minutes daily. This program is designed to stimulate a child’s VISUAL processing, AUDITORY processing, as well as their MOTOR skills. The outcome is a better integrated and balanced child who will perform better in school and at home. We decide to begin going to the maze every morning as soon as the children arrived. We didn't even take off our coats and backpacks. We gathered the children at drop off and headed straight for the maze. Now my whole class {including the teachers} had the opportunity to disengage their stress and regulate their upset through organized movement. What started out as a plan to help one child get ready to learn, ended up benefiting everyone! You know me, I can't leave well enough alone. I have to add a Conscious Discipline twist to learning as often as I can. ;) So, instead of sticking strictly to the maze plan, I modified it to make sure it included connecting activities and met the developmental needs of my students with special needs. Here are some pictures of us doing the maze. We start by doing Wall Push-ups. We push with our hands, backs, heads, and feet. I tell students we are going to try to see if we can move the wall. We also count forward and backward as we push. A great opportunity to create a pattern and squeeze in some academic skills. We call this exercise the Electric Slide. It's basically a side step, but instead of stepping, you slide your foot. Older children are able to do it independently, but most of our three-year-olds needs some help organizing their bodies. By holding hands we are also boosting this opportunity to connect with children through the sense of touch. The Log Roll is usually a huge favorite! For this exercise we play the Hotdog Game from Dr. Bailey's book, I Love You Rituals. The child lays down on the mat and pretends to be the hotdog or burrito. Then the teacher or another student pretends to add toppings to the hotdog. We make lots of funny noises and movements and enjoy this playful time before the hotdog rolls away across the mat! Climb Every Mountain can be a very challenging movement for preschoolers. The challenge is to lift one leg all the way over the obstacle while balancing on the other leg. We really encourage children to complete this movement as independently as possible as it is designed to really strengthen their balance and core strength. The Puppy Dog Crawl helps children cross the midline. We like doing it on a line to give children a visual to help them cross their hands over properly. In this exercise, children crawl in various directions while making x's on the floor with their hands. It is a joy to watch the children push themselves and increase their skills over the course of the school year. The Balance Board has taught us many lessons in communication, connection, and focus. We sometimes hold a hand or two to help children feel safe. This is also an opportunity to practice calming techniques as this can be a bit scary for little guys. You don't have to do a maze to help children regulate their state and disengage the stress from their morning. I have also found great success in using Calming Cream to address sensory needs. I buy a cheap bottle of lotion and a pump from the Dollar Tree. Put a small amount of lotion on your hands and rub it on the child's hands while singing a song or making a game out of it. Here is an example of a song you can sing: Bye, Bye Crankies Bye, Bye, Crankies Bye, Bye Crankies It's time for you to go. We also have an adapted bike that we could use to take children on a bike ride around the school. One of our classroom jobs is the milk helper. This child would push a small cart that was filled with blocks down to the cafeteria to collect the milk for the day. This gives the milk helper an opportunity to get in some heavy work, organize their bodies, and be helpful! It is very important that you include organized movement patterns as well as opportunities for free movement {think recess or dancing}. Who knows what an Underdog is? When I was a kid we loved getting underdogs on the swing because it was such fun. I have had several students who respond very well to swinging to address their sensory needs. For an underdog I get behind them and push them forward as I go under the swing. They love that dropping feeling as they swing back and forth with a little extra boost. Once I get started giving Underdogs it's hard to stop, but I'll tell you what, I will have those children "eating out of the palm of my hand" when we're finished. ;) It's worth a little extra physical exertion on my part! I'll leave you with this... My bloggy friend, Amy, over at One Artsy Mama shared this photo from her son's new school. When she questioned the administrator about why they have a slide in the school, the administrator said, "Because, school should be joyful." They really have the right idea! We have been called to design learning opportunities for children that bring them pure joy! Why would we want anything short of that? The next time a child arrives at your door in an upset state, consider how you might address their need for organized movement to help them change their state and get them ready to learn.
Do you need a hands-on, sensory lesson to teach about kind words? You will love this! Perfect for preschool, kindergarten, and even older kids! Also part of the Virtual Book Club for Kids!
