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Classroom guidance is an integral part of the School Counseling program at Slaughter Elementary. Guidance lessons teach positive character traits such as kindness, responsibility, respect, empathy, determination, trustworthiness, citizenship, and fairness. The school counselor will meet with each class once a month to introduce the character traits in a fun and interactive way!
Our Guidance lesson for the month of March was all about Growth Mindset! We discussed the Power of Yet! We read the story Giraffes Can't Dance and discussed how Gerald couldn't dance but with hard work and practice he learned how to dance. In K-2 we went around the room and with a puppet we shared the things that we couldn't do YET! After each child shared what they couldn't do, the class would yell YET!
In 3-5 we created an anchor chart with the things that the students can't do and allowed the students to share with their classmates. We then completed an activity where the students filled in the sentence stem, "I can't do.... but I can....."
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Our Character Trait lesson for the month of February was RESPECT!
We read the story Have you Filled a Bucket Today? We talked about what it means to be a bucket filler and bucket dipper. A bucket filler is someone who says kind things, shows respect, is a helper, and does nice things. A bucket dipper is someone who is mean and says hurtful things.
We took the challenge to always fill up our friends buckets and to never dip into another persons bucket! We also challenged ourselves to stand up to those who are being a bucket dipper and remind them of what it looks like to be kind to others!
After reading the story, K-2 completed a sorting activity where they decided if the pictures showed an example of a bucket filler or bucket dipper!
3rd-5th grade responded to the sentence stem "I filled someone's bucket when I...." that we then turned into a bulletin board in the main hallway for all to see!
Always remember to ask yourself....Have you filled someone's bucket today?
Our Character Trait lesson for the month of January was HONESTY and TRUSTWORTHINESS!
Trust is being able to believe in someone, knowing that someone is telling the truth, and knowing that you can count on someone. During our guidance lesson we completed the following activities:
- We discussed the definition of trust and honesty
- In K-2 we watched a fun song about honesty and we read the story Ruthie and the Not So Teeny Tiny Lie. We had a conversation about why it was important to tell the truth
- In 3rd-5th we shared times when it was difficult to be honest, expressed how it felt when others were dishonest to us, and gave examples of how to lose other people's trust
- In K-2 we played the "Truth or Lie Game" where we had to decide if the scenario was true or a lie
- In 3rd-5th grade we played the "Honest/Dishonest Game" where the students were given scenarios and they had to decide the situation was an example of being honest or dishonest
- The students completed an activity where they filled in the information they had learned about trust and honesty
Our Character Trait lesson for the month of December was EMPATHY! Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. Kindergarten, First, and Second Grade completed the following activities to learn about empathy:
- We watched a short video of two little girls learning what it means to show empathy to a friend who was sad when he lost his soccer game that his grandfather came to.
- We then looked at a powerpoint of different faces that showed different expressions. We discussed how you can read someone's body language to discover how they are feeling.
- We then read scenarios where the students had to listen for key words to decide if the people were happy or sad.
- We finished off our empathy lesson by coloring on an activity sheet as we reviewed what it means to show empathy to a friend.
Our empathy lesson for Third, Fourth, and Fifth Graders was lots of fun and the kids really enjoyed learning about what empathy means.
- We started our lesson by reading Stand in My Shoes. We discussed what it means to "walk in someone else's shoes" and how that is a great display of what empathy means.
- We then looked at a powerpiont of different facial expressions and discussed how it is important to read other people's body language to discover how they are feeling.
- We finished our lesson by writing sentences on a picture of a shoe that described examples of when the students have shown empathy.
All of the Empathy Shoes are up on display for the school to enjoy! :-)
In the month of November we learned about the Zones of Regulation!! We discussed how we can label all of our feelings and sort them into "zones."
- Green Zone-Ready for Learning, Happy, Calm, Okay
- Blue Zone- Sad, Bored, Sick, Tired
- Yellow Zone- Silly, Wiggly, Hyper, Frustrated, Upset
- Red Zone- Mad, Angry, Yelling, Hitting
Each class watched short video clips and decided which zone the characters were in. The younger grades created their own individual zones on a paper plate that they could use in class or at home to express to their teachers/parents which zone they are in.
Students in all grade levels practiced three strategies that would help them get back to the green zone! Watch the videos to see Volcano Breaths, Tense and Release, and Focused Counting to 10.
IMG_5282.MOVIMG_5289.MOVIMG_5288.MOVIMG_5405.MOVFourth and Fifth Grade students acted out what it would look like for them to be in each of the zones!
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IMG_6860.MOVYellow Zone
IMG_6862.MOVGreen Zone
Our character trait lesson for October was over KINDNESS! This aligns perfectly with our Kindness Campaign we have began this year at Slaughter! We read the picture book We're All Wonders by R.J. Palacio which led to some great conversations about kindness!
- We made observations about how we are all different.
- We discovered we are all unique and "wonders" in our own way.
- We shared feeling words to describe how we have felt when others have said hurtful things about us.
- We discussed that we cannot control what other people say or how they act, but we can control what we say and how we act. We made a pledge to CHOOSE KIND!
Kindergarten and First Grade used Mr. Potato head to learn about what a school counselor does! They learned that the counselor's:
- Eyes- Looking for ways to help students.
- Ears- Listening to you whenever you need someone to listen to your feelings/problems.
- Hands-For helping students and giving big hugs!
- Mouth-Speaking kind words to others.
- Feet- Walking to find friends when they need help.
Second and Third Grade students played a "Getting to know the school counselor game" with partners to learn about the role of a school counselor! They answered questions like:
- Explain what confidentiality means.
- Name two other trusted people you can talk to.
- Name two people who can refer you to the school counselor.
Fourth and Fifth Grade students played "Get to know the School Counselor Tic-Tac-Toe!" They answered questions such as:
- How do I request to see the school counselor?
- What are three things I can see the school counselor for?
- True or False: You can see the school counselor in an individual session, small group, or guidance lesson with your whole class. (True)
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