The Creative Counselor

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Engage and Excite New Students: A School Tour for Welcoming New Students

Hey there, get ready for an awesome adventure like no other! It's that time of year when we warmly welcome new students to our incredible school. And to make their introduction to our vibrant campus extra special, we've got something super cool planned—an Amazing New Student School Tour Adventure!

Meeting the new fish in our school:

So here's the deal: instead of a typical tour where we simply walk around the school, I turned it into an epic quest that will ignite the imagination of my students! But before we dive into the adventure, we kick things off with a fun "get to know you" activity. We all gather together in my office, excited to meet our new friends. After our activity, I explain to the kids that I have a special treat for them—delicious Goldfish Crackers! But guess what? Our special surprise has mysteriously gone missing! Don't worry, though, because our playful friend, who loves a good mystery, has left us a clue to begin our exciting adventure...

I pull out my iPad and we scan the QR code on the fish to find the following clue:

The kids get so excited and I ask, "Hmm, where is a place in our school with a lot of books?" We follow the clue, eager to find our treat, and it leads us to our first destination—a hidden spot within the school filled with wonder and excitement. As we step into this extraordinary place, prepare to be amazed by what you see and experience. It's like stepping into a whole new world within our school walls, where magic and discovery await at every turn – the Library! This gives me the opportunity to explain that the library is now called "The Learning Commons".

As we continue our journey through the school's hallways, guided by the clues left by our playful friend, we encounter fascinating sights and uncover hidden secrets along the way. Each clue brings us closer to our ultimate goal, revealing where our treat has gone!

Throughout the tour, we learn about important people and places that make our school truly special. From our related arts teachers to our front office staff, these are all members of the faculty who are important to know! We end up visiting all of these places:

Library/Media Center
Main Office
Health Room
Art Room
Gym
Music Room
Lunch Room
Playground/Recess Area
School Counselor's Office

A Splashy Ending to an Unforgettable Adventure:

Finally, our thrilling tour ends with a fantastic surprise waiting for us back in my office! It’s that special treat carefully prepared to celebrate our successful adventure and warmly welcome our new friends to the school community. We take a few moments to reflect on the incredible journey we've shared and to savor the excitement and sense of belonging that comes with being part of our school family.

Each treat has this poem on it...

A New Circle of Friends

We've joined together

as the new year begins...

A year full of learning

while we become friends.

We'll share and be kind

as we work and play.

And our friendship will grow

with each passing day.

Bubbling Benefits:

Meeting with new students and taking them on a school tour has so many benefits:

Welcoming Atmosphere: The tour creates a warm and inclusive environment, ensuring new students feel valued and part of the school community from the start.

Familiarization: The tour familiarizes new students with the school layout, helping them navigate with confidence and reducing any initial confusion or anxiety.

Introduction to Important People: New students meet teachers, staff, and fellow students during the tour, establishing early connections and fostering a sense of belonging.

Engaging and Exciting: The interactive nature of the tour, with clues and surprises, keeps new students engaged and excited, setting a positive tone for their school experience.

Fun Learning Experience: The tour presents information about the school's history, traditions, and unique features in an enjoyable and memorable way, enhancing students' understanding of the school's culture.

Teamwork and Collaboration: Through group activities during the tour, new students collaborate, fostering teamwork and forming friendships.

Sense of Pride: The tour instills a sense of pride and ownership in the new students, as they learn about the school's achievements, values, and contributions to the community.

Memorable Experience: The tour creates lasting memories, making new students' early days at the school special and providing shared experiences for bonding.

Overall, as School Counselors, we want to provide a smooth transition, ensuring new students feel excited, supported, and familiar with their new school. By meeting with them in their first few days, it sets the stage for positive relationships, academic success, and a rewarding journey throughout their time at the school.

Ready to Use Resource:

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Looking for more activities to do with your new students? Check this fun activity out!

Friday, March 16, 2012

Friendship Small Group Lesson: Strategies to Solve Conflicts with Friendship Fortune Tellers!

Conflicts are an inevitable part of daily life, even for children. However, it is crucial to help children understand that conflicts can be resolved with ease. In my Friendship Small Group, I focus on equipping children with the necessary tools to solve friendship problems effectively.

Sharing Personal Experiences:

To begin our Friendship Small Group sessions, I encourage children to share their own experiences of having conflicts with friends and SUCCESSFULLY resolving them. By doing so, children reflect on their problem-solving abilities and develop self-awareness that this can be done! This sharing session creates a safe environment where children can also learn from one another.

Exploring Strategies:

In our lessons, I introduce a variety of conflict-resolution strategies to the group. Utilizing a Smart Board, I display these strategies, ensuring the students are familiar with them. While some strategies may be known to the students already, we focus on explaining the "Chance" strategy. This approach emphasizes fairness, ensuring that each person involved has an equal opportunity. To bring this concept to life, I allow the students to play a game of Rock, Paper, Scissors or Bubble Gum, Bubble Gum in a Dish, allowing them to experience firsthand how these Chance solutions can be applied to resolve disagreements in various situations. We then engage in a discussion about the specific scenarios where these strategies can be effectively utilized.

Applying Strategies:

After familiarizing the children with different strategies, I encourage them to apply these approaches to real-life situations. In a group setting, students take turns presenting social scenarios and selecting a problem-solving strategy to address the issue at hand. I emphasize that there is no one "right" way to solve a problem. I also use this opportunity to introduce using "I" messages, which promote assertive and respectful communication.

Creating Problem Solvers:

To make the learning experience more engaging and hands-on, I allow the students to create their own Friendship Problem Solvers. These problem solvers are reminiscent of the ones many adults may remember from their own childhood. I like to pre-cut the Friendship Problem Solvers to save time and ensure clean edges. The children then personalize and decorate their problem solvers, which in turn, fosters a sense of ownership and pride in their creations.

Teaching kids about friendship and conflict resolution is beneficial to all. By equipping them with problem-solving strategies, we empower them to handle their conflicts, build lasting friendships, and a harmonious school community.

Ready to Use Resource:

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Thursday, March 15, 2012

Mr. Potato Head Dresses for Success

It is Career month at my school. We typically focus on Careers through Classroom Guidance and conclude the focus with a Career Week where we have a Dress-up Day, Vehicle Day for the younger students, and Career Speaker Day for the older students. This year I made an interactive bulletin board to get the kids thinking about career exploration.

I'm not sure how many Potato Heads I have around my house, but I got to thinking...I love how Mr. Potato Head has increased his wardrobe over the years. I think of the many different hair pieces and accessories we have such as Pirate Potato Head or Spider Spud. We just may have more Potato outfits than Barbie outfits!

As I pondered about playing with Mr. Potato Head, I came up with an interactive, dress Mr. Potato Head in a Career Outfit Bulletin Board!

I started by cutting out a basic Mr. Potato Head figure out of brown construction paper. I just drew these free hand. Then I cut out the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, mustache and hands and attached them all to the Potato body. Next I cut out three different pairs of boots - brown, black, and white; as well as, one pair of flippers. I decided to dress Mr. Potato Head with different career hats. Each career also has one tool that they use. For instance you could dress Mr. Potato Head as a Magician by giving him a top hat and a magic wand.

I made three suitcases and labeled them: Work Hats, Work Tools, and Work Boots. After having all the pieces laminated, I attached velcro dots to the back of the individual pieces and stored them in their appropriate suitcase. Now Mr. Potato Head has interchangeable career outfits! I came up with the following Career Hats and Career Tools/Hand-held objects: