I am most easily reached via email at bethanyjenkins@alpinedistrict.org. However, you may also call me at the school. Because I am frequently teaching lessons and meeting with students & staff, you may have to leave a message.

Orchard Elementary: (801) 610-8102

Feel free to contact me at bethanyjenkins@alpinedistrict.org or by calling the school. We can then discuss the different options and resources I can offer. If we decide together that sessions with me are a good fit, I will walk you through the consent process and schedule appointments with your child's teacher(s).

Sessions with the school counselor are held on a short-term basis (typically one 30-minute session per week for 6-8 weeks) and are held during school hours. Depending on the specific circumstances, I may meet with students one on one, or in a small group with similarly-aged peers. During each session, we work on social skills, emotional regulation, and/or other skills as appropriate.

As a part of the school faculty, I cannot recommend specific mental health professionals outside the school system. However, for many children, therapy outside school can be incredibly beneficial, and usually lasts longer than what can be offered by the school. If you are looking for a mental health provider for your child, I recommend the following process:

1) If you have insurance, call them first. Verify which providers in your area are in-network and what kind of mental health coverage you have. You may want to ask if they can send you a list of the in-network providers in your area. If you do not have insurance, have Medicaid, or the cost of therapy is an obstacle for your family, please take a look at the first section in this document for suggestions (This document was created by UVU and they vetted the providers, not me, so please verify contact info, etc).

2) Get recommendations. Talk to trusted friends and family to see if they have any have positive experiences with a specific provider. You can also ask your pediatrician or family doctor if they recommend anyone.

3) Either:

A) Use this list to find a provider that specializes in your specific circumstances (This is a list of vetted providers created by UVU).

Or

B) Check out the Utah 211 website for a list of mental health providers, searchable by distance and other criteria. This website also has a brief description of each provider, which may give you a feel for what they specialize in.

Here are some of my favorite books, classes, websites, etc., that I recommend frequently.

Crisis Resources:

If you or your child is in immediate danger, please call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room.

National Suicide Prevention Hotline - 1-800-273-8255 - This is a free, confidential resource connecting trained crisis counselors to those at risk of dying by suicide. As of July 16th, 2022, you may also call 988 nationwide to reach the hotline. The original eleven-digit number is still available even after the launch of 988.

SafeUT - Counselors are available 24/7 via the SafeUT website, or by calling 833-372-3388. You can also download their phone app (for android and apple), to call or chat with them via the app. Students can also submit tips to their schools regarding bullying, emergencies, threats of violence in schools, etc. via the app.

My Life is Worth Living - This video series for teens discusses difficult challenges that young people can face, with the main focus of preventing suicide. The series is very well put together. It is primarily designed for teens, but I would recommend it for 5th and 6th graders watching alongside their parents/guardians. I recommend that adults watch the videos through themselves before sharing them with older elementary students due to the seriousness of the content. Check out their website here and their youtube channel here.

Utah Child Protective Services - Utah law requires any person who has reason to believe that a child has been subjected to abuse, neglect, or dependency to immediately notify the nearest office of Child and Family Services, a peace officer, or a law enforcement agency. You can report suspected abuse or neglect using the form available on their website, or if the child is in immediate danger, by calling 1-855-323-3237. 

For Parents:

Parent Guidance - This website has a huge number of free, on-demand online classes. They are geared toward parents, and address helping your child with their mental health, as well as taking care of yourself. This site also hosts free "ask a therapist" opportunities to submit your parenting questions for experts, and see already-answered questions from real parents. Take a look at their full course library here.  

Healthy Relationships Utah - Here you'll find several free classes on parenting strategies, step-parenting, healthy couple relationships, and smart dating. These classes are put together by the Utah State University extension service. Check the website to check dates and times the classes are available and to register for a class.

Utah Valley Drug Prevention Coalition - This organization has put together a list of other classes, support groups, and other resources. Many of the resources are designed for a specific concern or population. See the list here. 

Anger:

Anger Management Workbook for Kids by Samantha Snowden, MA - This book has 50 different activities that help children identify, understand, and work through anger. This book requires a certain level of independence in reading and writing, so I feel it best fits students in 3rd-6th grade. Check it out here.

Class Dojo Big Ideas Video Series - This website contains several series of videos on social-emotional topics, especially anxiety and emotion regulation. Some are put together by teams at ivy-league universities. I am always impressed by the high quality content presented by these videos and they have become a frequent part of my counseling sessions at school. For anger management, I recommend Moods and Attitudes.

Anxiety:

Ruby Finds a Worry by Tom Percival - This short and sweet picture book explains worries, and how to manage them, to younger kids. I would recommend this story for children up to 2nd grade. Check it out here.

What to do When Mistakes Make You Quake by Claire A. B. Freeland, PhD and Jacqueline B. Toner, PhD - This workbook alternates between teaching kids to understand perfectionism and helping them manage it. I would recommend this book for students in 2nd-5th grade, though parent assistance may be needed for children who are not confident independent readers yet. Check it out here.

A Perfectly Messed-up Story by Patrick McDonnell - This picture book depicts Louie, who gets increasingly frustrated as his perfect story gets more and more messed up. The humor in this story about accepting imperfection makes it accessible to students K-6 and beyond. Check it out here.

CBT Workbook for Kids by Heather Davidson Psy.D, BCN - This workbook has 40+ activities to help children work through anxiety using a CBT-based approach. I would recommend this book for students in 3rd-6th grade. Check it out here.

Anxiety Relief Workbook for Kids by Dr. Agnes Selinger, PhD - This workbook is similar to the CBT Workbook for Kids above, but for a slightly younger audience. It also incorporates mindfulness techniques. Check it out here.

What to Do When You Worry too Much: A Kid's Guide to Overcoming Anxiety by Dawn Huebner - This book works best for younger students (through 4th grade or so). It talks about how to deal with anxiety instead of making it grow, using a tomato plant analogy. I love that this book has work pages interspersed with the text, and practical activities to practice skills. Check it out here.

Outsmarting Worry: An Older Kid's Guide to Managing Anxiety by Dawn Huebner - It covers a lot of the same information as the book above, but in a chapter book format for older students (5th grade and up). This book teaches students how anxiety can work as a cycle, and how to break that cycle. Check it out here.

Class Dojo Big Ideas Video Series - This website contains several series of videos on social-emotional topics, especially anxiety and emotion regulation. Some are put together by teams at ivy-league universities. I am always impressed by the high quality content presented by these videos and they have become a frequent part of my counseling sessions at school. For anxiety management, I recommend Big Challenges, Positive Thinking, and Mindfulness.

Friendships/Social Skills:

Enemy Pie by Derek Munson - In this book a dad teaches his son a creative way to get rid of enemies (by turning them into friends). This is a darling story I recommend for kids up to 4th grade. Check it out here.

My Mouth is a Volcano by Julia Cook- In this book, a young boy learns what to do when he has trouble keeping interrupting words in check. I recommend this book for children up to 3rd grade. Check it out here.

Personal Space Camp by Julia Cook- A young boy who struggles to respect other people's personal space learns some strategies to get along with his classmates. I recommend this book for children up to 3rd grade. Check it out here.

Class Dojo Big Ideas Video Series - This website contains several series of videos on social-emotional topics, especially anxiety and emotion regulation. Some are put together by teams at ivy-league universities. I am always impressed by the high quality content presented by these videos and they have become a frequent part of my counseling sessions at school. For friendships/social skills, I recommend Respect and Empathy.

Divorce:

Dinosaurs Divorce: by Marc Brown and Laurie Krasny Brown - This guide by the creator of Arthur explains divorce and associated topics like custody, stepfamilies, and visitation in ways that even young children can connect with. I recommend this book for children up to 3rd grade. However, it could also be used as a discussion starter for families whose children fall outside this range. Check it out here.

Grief/Loss:

The Heart and the Bottle by Oliver Jeffers - This creatively illustrated book tells the story of a young girl whose grandfather passes away. She hides her heart away to protect it, and then needs help remembering how to be vulnerable again. I would recommend this book for any age, including adults. Check it out here.

When Dinosaurs Die: A Guide to Understanding Death by Laurie Krasny Brown and Marc Brown - This guide, written in the same style and by the same authors as Dinosaurs Divorce explains clearly and simply what a child might experience when someone they care about (a person or a pet) dies. Topics covered include feelings while grieving, funerals, and what dying means. I would recommend this book for children up to 3rd grade. However, it could also be used as a discussion starter for families whose children fall outside this range. Check it out here.

The Memory Box: A Book About Grief by Joanna Rowland - This book explores grief from the perspective of a child, and suggests a way that children might remember lost loved ones. I would recommend it for any age. Check it out here.

Attention/Executive Functioning:

Clark the Shark by Bruce Hale - This picture book shows how Clark the Shark, the biggest and strongest fish in his undersea elementary school, learned to stay in control of his actions. I recommend it for students in K-2. Check it out here or watch this read-aloud by Chris Pine.

Mindfulness:

Catching Thoughts by Bonnie Clark - This picture book uses a balloon metaphor to explain how to acknowledge sad, anxious, or otherwise uncomfortable thoughts, then let them go and replace them with more welcome thoughts. I recommend this book for students in Kindergarten through 3rd grade. Check it out here.

Breathe, Think, Do with Sesame - This app, available on iOS or Android, was created by Sesame Street to teach young children to pause when they have strong emotions, take deep breaths, and think through their choices before they act. A variety of emotions are covered. I recommend this resource for preschoolers and kindergarteners. Check it out here for iOS and here for Android.

Be the Pond by Cosmic Kids Yoga - Although Cosmic Kids Yoga has many mindfulness and yoga videos available on their youtube channel, this one is my favorite. It teaches the mindfulness principle of being a curious observer of emotions, rather than letting the emotions take control. Check it out here.

Monterey Bay Aquarium on Youtube - The Monterey Bay Aquarium has wonderful educational content on their YouTube channel. What I like best as a counselor are their guided meditations set to real ocean life footage, chill music to work and relax with,  jellyfish livestreams, and hours-long relaxation content to set up in the background of whatever you're doing.

LGBTQ+:

Family Acceptance Project - The Family Acceptance Project's goal is to decrease risk of suicide and mental health problems among LGBTQ+ community members. They have a booklet for families who would like to learn how to reduce mental health risks for their LGBTQ+ child(ren). The booklet is available here in English, Spanish, and Chinese. There is also a version of the booklet specifically written for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Check out their homepage here.

About once a month, I give a social-emotional lesson in each classroom. The topics of the lessons for 1st-6th grades are determined in collaboration with school administration and supported by district-level resources. However, the topic may differ from this schedule if there is a specific concern that needs to be addressed. The topics for lessons in the Kindergarten classrooms will be more focused on the fundamentals of recognizing and appropriately expressing emotions, and will be tailored to the needs of the classes and teacher requests.

The anticipated lesson topics for 1st-6th grades for the 2023-2024 school year are:

August/September: Meet the Counselor, Connection between People, Unity in our School

October: Getting Comfortable With Being Uncomfortable: Doing Things That are Hard

November/December: How to Handle Frustration & Intrusive Negative Thoughts

January: Does the Size of my Reaction Match the Size of My Problem?

February: Boundaries, Assertiveness, & Asking for Help

March: Positive Self-Talk and Self-Compassion

April/May: Resilience Wrap-Up