Visiting the Counselor

Should I be alarmed if my child says, “I saw the school counselor today”?

Not at all! There is no need to worry.  I spend a significant amount of time delivering counselor lessons to students and stopping in to classrooms to check on students and collaborate with teachers. Sometimes kids like to see the counselor for little things.  If a student has a problem they need help solving, they’ve had a conflict with another student or they want to share a special accomplishment they might ask to see me.  However, I always encourage students to go home and share with parents that we spoke and explain why we met.  If there is an ongoing issue or major concern, I always call or e-mail you for your input. 

Who refers students to the school counselor?

Parents often ask “Who refers a child to the school counselor?”  Sometimes kids refer themselves by asking their teacher, filling out a referral slip or asking their parent to call or e-mail me.  Sometimes parents call me or a child's teachers let them know if there is a concern and a student needs to talk.

Here are some reasons a student might talk to the School Counselor:

• "I'm getting picked on at the bus stop and I don't know what to do about it."

• "My best friend isn't talking to me and it's making me really sad."

• "I want to show you what I just made in art. I'm very proud of it."

• "I'm new to this school, and I'm really scared!"

• "I just want to talk to someone who won't laugh at me."

• "I did a lot better on my last math test, and I'm so excited to tell someone!"

• "Tim, Samantha and I had a problem at recess. Can you help us work it out?"

Here are some reasons parents might talk to the School Counselor:

• "Sarah doesn't want to go to school in the mornings."

• "I'm concerned because Alex keeps telling me that he doesn't have any friends."

• "We recently had a death in the family, and I'm not sure how to tell my child."

• "We’re going through a divorce and we think our kids could really benefit from talking about it with you, or with other kids who are going through the same thing.”

• "Jason seems to get really frustrated doing his homework and nothing seems to help."

• "I just wanted to thank you for inviting my daughter to participate in a New Student Group. She really enjoyed meeting some other kids were new to Mason."

Here are some reasons teachers or administrators might talk to the Counselor:

• "I need some ideas to help my students develop more positive relationships."

• "John just can't sit still in the classroom."

• "Sue is absent a lot."

• "Patrick is new to this school and needs some special attention."

• "I've noticed that Amanda seems distracted and anxious a lot lately."

• "There seems to be a lot of negative activity on social media outside of school. Do you think you could do a lesson with my grade level to help them navigate some of the things that occur in the digital world and the feelings they have about it?"