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Monthly Classroom Guidance Lessons

This year Mrs. Bishop is working with all of the classes during the week they have Media as their resource. Mrs. Bishop will work with students on various topics such as character education, friendship skills, feelings, etc. Check back each month to see what we focus on and how you can help reinforce these things at home.

August-September-Lesson 1

Our first lesson with all of the classes at Picolata will be an Introduction to the School Counselor. Students will learn what school counselors do. We will talk about what school counselors can help them with, such as problems they have at school or home, helping with feelings or friendships, etc. We discussed how school counselors can work with them one-on-one with issues they may be having. Students learned about other things school counselors do such as working with students in a small group and coming into the classroom for a guidance lesson.

Kindergarten:

  • Book: “The Rabbit Listened” by Cori Doerrfeld
  • The Rabbit Listened Lesson by Laura at https://musiccitycounselor.com/

First Grade:

  • Pin the Role on the Counselor Lesson by Counselor Keri

Second Grade:

  • Meet the Counselor Game Show

Third Grade:

  • Meet the Counselor Escape Rooms by Bright Futures Counseling

Fourth Grade:

  • Meet the Counselor Escape Rooms by Bright Futures Counseling

Fifth Grade:

  • Meet the Counselor Game Show

October-November-Lesson 2

Kindergarten:

  • Book: Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns to Listen
  • Lesson: Listening-from Overcoming Obstacles
  • Listening is such an important skill. We talked about why it is important to listen and how we can become better listeners. We talked about how we don’t just use our ears to listen, we listen with our whole bodies-our brains are thinking, our eyes are watching, our mouths are quiet, our ears are listening and our body is calm. We got to practice our listening skills by playing Simon Says and Red Light, Green Light.

First Grade:

  • Introduction to Bug Feelings and Bubble Breathing-Lesson from Puzzle Pieces
  • Book: The Color Monster by Anna Llenas
  • Our first grade students were introduced to Bug Feelings. Bug feelings are those feelings that we don’t like to have and want to get rid of (anger, sad, lonely, confused, embarrassed, etc.)  Children often display undesirable behaviors (fighting, tantrums, disrespect, etc.) simply because they do not have the feelings vocabulary to properly express what they are feeling. We will be focusing all year on how to get rid of bug feelings (or de-bug). During this lesson, we talked about the rules for letting out our bug feelings. 1. I may not hurt myself. 2. I may not hurt property. 3. I may not hurt others. One of the main ways that people hurt themselves is by holding in their feelings. These feelings then come out in physical ways such as queasy stomachs, headaches, etc. Many people think that it is OK to slam a door or throw something that breaks. While this may make you feel better momentarily, there are always consequences for our actions. Not only are you still mad or sad, but you have broken property. Finally, we discussed the two ways we hurt others: with our bodies as well as with our words. Neither are OK ways to deal with bug feelings. Students also learned the first strategy for “de-bugging”-bubble breathing (or deep breathing). Students learned how to slowly breathe in through their nose and then blow out, like they are blowing a bubble, through their mouth. This is something that can help us calm down, no matter our age!

Second Grade:

  • Friendship-Attractor/Repellor-Lesson from Puzzle Pieces
  • Book: Making Friends is an Art by Julia Cook
  • This month our second graders compared the properties of a magnet to our personal behavior. A magnet can either attract other magnets to it, or it can repel other magnets to it. People are the same way. The things that we do either attract others to want to be around us, or they can push people away and make them not want to be around us. Therefore, it is very important to think about a behavior or action before doing it. In class, we made a list of attractor behaviors and repellor behaviors and then played Attractor and Repellor Tic-Tac-Toe.

Third Grade:

  • Conflict Types-Lesson from The Responsive Counselor
  • Our third graders learned about the different types of conflict. We talked about the differences between a disagreement, a rude moment, a mean moment and bullying. These are all often confused and all mistaken for bullying, so it is important to learn the difference between each type. We learned that a disagreement is when people have different ideas about something and usually no one’s feelings are hurt. A rude moment is hurting someone’s body or feelings on accident. A mean moment is hurting someone’s body or feelings on purpose and it happens just one time or every once in awhile. Bullying is hurting someone’s body or feelings on purpose, more than once and the person doing it has more power (older or bigger, more than one person or someone you are afraid of). Students worked in groups to examine situations and decide which type of conflict each was.

Fourth Grade:

  • Teamwork-Lesson from Overcoming Obstacles
  • Book: A Little Spot of Teamwork
  • Throughout our lives, we have to work with others, so learning how to work as a team is an important skill. Our fourth graders talked about situations now where they have to work as a team and also what jobs they might have that require teamwork. Then we talked about what skills are important to remember when working as team. Then students were tasked to put these skills to the test and complete a cup stacking challenge as a team.

Fifth Grade:

  • Conflict Resolution Game Show-Lesson from Whole Hearted Counseling
  • This month we reviewed different conflict resolution strategies, which is so important at this age. We talked about what conflict is and how it is normal to have conflict, we just have to learn how to deal with conflict in appropriate ways. The class then worked in teams and played a conflict resolution game show, similar to Jeopardy.

December-January-Lesson 3

Kindergarten:

  • Lesson: Small and Big Problems and I-Message from Music City Counselor
  • During this lesson students will learn the difference between small problems and big problems, and how to solve small problems themselves with an I-Message! Small problems can be solved themselves and big problems they can ask a grown up for help. An I-Message is when students say “I felt ____ when you ____. Can you please ____?”

First Grade:

  • Bug Feelings-Strategy #2- Change the Channel!
  • In first grade, we added a new strategy to our list of ways we can “de-bug”. This month we focused on changing the channel in our brains. We talked about how we are the boss of our brain and when we have bug feelings, we can choose to change the channel in our brain to something else. We discussed 3 different channels-the memory channel (thinking of a fun time, a happy memory from the past, etc), the imagination channel (imagining yourself doing something that would make us happy or imagining ourselves doing something we have never done before like swimming with dolphins or meeting someone famous, etc), and the thankful channel (thinking of things we are thankful for).

Second Grade:

  • Resolving Conflicts-Lesson from Overcoming Obstacles
  • Book: Matthew and Tilly by Rebecca C. Jones
  • This month our second graders learned what conflicts are and learned ways to resolve conflicts. Students learned 5 conflict resolution steps: 1) Take a deep breath and calm down. 2) Listen carefully. 3) Think about the situation. 4) Use “I statements instead of “You” statements. 5) Be willing to compromise. Students then worked in groups to practice solving conflicts all by themselves.

Third Grade:

  • Responding to Teasing and Put-Downs
  • Book: Simon’s Hook by Karen Burnette
  • Our third grade students learned how to deal with teases and put downs. We read the book Simon’s Hook. In the book, getting hooked meant you responded to the hook (or tease) or let it get to you. Simon learned 5 strategies that helped him not get hooked and be a free fish. We talked about the five strategies presented in the book: 1. Do little or nothing (don’t react). 2. Agree with the hook. 3. Laugh or make a joke about the hook. 4. Distract or change the subject. 5. Stay away. Students got to fish for teases and practice using the five strategies.

Fourth Grade:

  • Conflict Resolution from Counselor Keri
  • This lesson helps students better understand how to positively resolve conflicts with peers! Students will brainstorm to contrast positive conflict resolution and negative conflict resolution and then learn steps to positively resolve conflicts with friends. We will discuss 8 steps to solve conflicts peacefully. 1) Ask the person to talk privately. 2) Share how you feel in a calm tone. 3) Listen without interrupting. 4) Check for understanding and acknowledge feelings. 5) Active listening. 6) Brainstorm solutions. 7) Choose a solution that works for everyone (win-win). 8) Agree-forgive and move on.  After completing this lesson, students will know how to approach a conflict with a peer in a way that will promote positive conflict resolution.

Fifth Grade:

  • Respect from Overcoming Obstacles
  • Book: A Little Respectful Spot by Diane Alber
  • During this lesson, we discussed what respect means and brainstormed ways to show respect at school, at home and in the community. Students then worked in groups to look at different scenarios to determine if the character in the scenario was being respectful and if not, what the character should do to be respectful.

February/March-Lesson 4

Kindergarten:

  • Lesson: Ice Cream Apology
  • Book: I’m Sorry by Michael Ian Black
  • This month our kindergarten students will learn how to appropriately apologize to others.  Students will learn an appropriate apology by using what I call an “Ice Cream Cone Apology”. Starting with the bottom of the ice cream cone, students will learn to first say “I’m sorry…”. Then we add the scoop of ice cream to our cone, which is when we say…”for” (and say what we did that we are apologizing for. Finally, the most important part of the ice cream come apology is the sprinkles, which is when we say “Will you forgive me?”. Students will have a chance to role play different scenarios get to practice using the ice cream cone apology. They will also be receiving a coloring sheet to take home that reinforces the Ice Cream Cone Apology.

First Grade:

  • Lesson: Bug Feelings-Strategy #3
  • Our first graders will get an opportunity to go to our “Coping Skills Café” and sample five different coping skills and rate how many stars they give each one. They will have a chance to try building, coloring/doodling, creative play, stress balls/fidget and sculpting/playdough. These are all things they can do to calm down when they have a bug feeling. We have now learned 5 coping skills they can use when they have a bug feeling.

Second Grade:

  • Lesson: Social Filter by The Responsive Counselor
  • Book: I Can’t Believe You Said That! by Julia Cook
  • Our second graders will continue to focus on friendship. Students will learn what a social filter is and how it is important to think before we let words come out of our mouths. We will discuss how an air filter catches all the bad things, like dirt and dust. Similarly, our social filter is the same in that it catches all of our bad thoughts and words before they come out of our mouths. Some things should stay in our thinking bubble and not come into our talking bubble, and we need to filter our thoughts before we say them out loud.

Third Grade:

  • Lesson: Be an Upstander! by The Responsive Counselor
  • Book: Say Something by Peggy Moss
  • In third grade we will talk about the importance of being an upstander. Students will learn the terms “bystander” (someone who stands by and watches bullying happen) and “upstander” (someone who stands up for someone who is being bullied). We will read the book Say Something by Peggy Moss and watch the video called “Be an Upstander” by The Ned Show. We will discuss 4 ways they can be an upstander-be a buddy, interrupt, speak out and tell someone. We will then watch a second video called “The Importance of Upstander Power”. This is a powerful video that shows how one person standing up can make a difference in the lives of others.

Fourth and Fifth Grade:

  • Lesson: What is Worry? by The Responsive Counselor
  • Our fourth and fifth graders will be talking about worries. We will discuss what worry is, how our bodies feel when we are worried. We also learn that everyone feels worried sometimes and that there are things that we can do to help when we have a lot of anxiety. We will discuss many different strategies that may be helpful when we feel worried. Students will be given a handout with ways to calm their worries to keep so they can reference the strategies we discuss.

April/May-Lesson 5:

Kindergarten:

  • Lesson: Self-Control
  • Our kindergarten students will learn about self-control. This is a fun lesson! Students are given a marshmallow and are told they can go ahead and eat it or they can wait until we are finished watching a video and if they wait, then they can have a second marshmallow. We then watch a video about Cookie Monster learning about self-control and the word “resist”. It’s fun to see the students practice using self-control as they try to wait to eat the marshmallow! Next, we talk about the steps to show self-control-first, stopping ourselves; then, thinking about our choices and finally making a good choice. We conclude by talking about how we can show self-control at school and at home.

First Grade:

  • Lesson: Positive Self-Talk
  • In first grade, we will learn about positive self-talk. We will start by reading the book I Am Me by Peter Reynolds. Then we will talk about what positive self-talk is and students will practice recognizing the difference between positive self-talk and negative self-talk. We will watch a fun video called “The Affirmation Song” by Doggyland. Students will then get to come up with some positive self-talk statements and create an “I-Am” flower to take home.

Second Grade:

  • Lesson: Affirmations
  • In second grade, we will focus on affirmations. We will read the book Words I Tell Myself by Susan Verde. Students will learn that the words they tell themselves are very important-if they are using negative self-talk, they can start to believe those things about themselves. But if we use positive self-talk, we can strengthen our beliefs in ourselves and appreciate who we are. Students will learn exactly what an affirmation is and how when we say affirmations to ourselves over and over, we then start to believe them. We will watch a fun video called “The Affirmation Song” by Doggyland. Students will then get to write down their own affirmations to take home with them and are encouraged to practice reading these aloud daily.

Third Grade:

  • Lesson: Empathy
  • Our third grade students will learn about what I believe is one of the most important topics I will ever teach them-empathy. We will read the book Stand In My Shoes. Students will learn that empathy means you are able to understand how someone else is feeling and put yourself in their situation. We will role playing how they can show empathy in different situations by literally “standing in someone else’s shoes”.

Fourth Grade:

  • Lesson: Rumors/Gossip
  • In fourth grade we will discuss gossip and rumors.  We will start by reading the book Mr. Peabody’s Apples by Madonna. Students will learn what to do if they are the victim of rumors and gossip and also what to do if they hear gossip or rumors.

Fifth Grade:

  • Lesson: Peer Pressure
  • Our fifth graders’ final lesson before they go off to middle school will be about peer pressure. We will talk about what peer pressure is and learn different ways they can resist peer pressure. We read the book Peer Pressure Gauge by Julia Cook. We will also role play some different situations where they will get to practice thinking about how they would handle peer pressure. I hope our students can recall this lesson and the things we discuss when they are in a situation where someone is pressuring them to do something that they shouldn’t do.