“I don’t know how!” “I can’t!” “I don’t want to!” “I don’t care!” Working in public education for 20+ years has afforded me the opportunity to observe some consistently true dynamics. One such interaction is the interplay between attitude, effort, and ability among students. In recent years there has been…
Tag: school psychologist
A LETTER TO MY FAVORITE TEACHER
Dear Mrs. Davis, You were my second grade teacher at Arapaho Elementary School in Richardson, Texas. The year, 1965. I really don’t remember much about what you taught me, outside of the Planets Song, but I remember how you made me feel…Loved. You were old, plump, and wore horn-rimmed glasses. …
THE RIPPLE EFFECT: A Strategy for Analyzing Conflicts
rip·ple ef·fect (n.): The continuing and spreading results of an event or action. www.oxforddictionaries.com A simple technique I frequently use with students is the “Ripple Effect” strategy. Often, I work with students who are impulsive in their decisions, resistant to authority, quick to anger, or easily baited by peers to…
YOU SCRATCH MY BACK, I’LL SCRATCH YOURS: The Give and Take in Relationships
With the approach of Valentine’s Day, a very busy day for counselors due to broken or lonely hearts, I thought it would be worthwhile to consider the importance of practicing reciprocity, the ability to give to and receive from others. The ability to give and take in a balanced manner…
A NEW TAKE ON AN OLD SONG–A Counseling Strategy
“If you want to be happy and you know it, clap your hands!” Clap. Clap. “If you want to be happy and you know it, clap your hands!” Clap. Clap. “If you want to be happy and you know it then make sure your face will show it, If you…
COUNSELING NOTES: What Did I Do Yesterday?
Any counselor that works in an educational setting—elementary, middle, or high, private or public—and has worked for more than one day knows that a schedule should be written in pencil. There will be interruptions. There will be unexpected crises. The one constant is that the day’s scheduled events will change….
STUDENT RECORDS: Yours, Mine or Ours?
I work daily with a great team of seven guidance counselors and four school psychologists. Each is highly skilled. It is not unusual for us to discuss, or even debate, a variety of counseling issues. One that resurfaces on a fairly routine basis is the issue of student records, particularly…
Quick & Easy Functional Behavior Assessment
There’s a reason for every student’s behavior! Jack has not “lost his mind”. Jill is not “trying to drive you crazy”. He or she is trying to get something or avoid something. Now you have to be the detective and figure out what it is. Many teachers overlook this detective…
Counseling CHATS
Over the years, one thing I’ve learned is that a friendly chat, a few words of encouragement, or a five-minute “touching base with” conversation can go a LONG way with students. It is rewarding to see the appreciation in students’ faces when you take a little time to intentionally talk…
About THE THREE SQUARE PEGS
One School Nurse + One Behavior Specialist + One School Psychologist = The Untested ESSENTIALS of Learning A square peg in a round hole is an idiomatic expression which describes the unusual individualist who could not fit into a niche of his or her society.[1] ^ Wallace, Irving. (1957) The…