Free Resources to promote body positivity in children:

theresponsivecounselor.com/2020/11/free-resources-to-promote-body-positivity-in-children.html?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=free_body_positivity_resources&utm_term=2020-11-17 

Kids and Anger Challenges

Do you have a student who has a low frustration tolerance?  Even the slightest thing sets him off?

Do you have a child that loses control and throws temper tantrums?  Are you walking on eggshells trying to keep her on an even keel?

What can you do to teach more emotional control?  In the past, we taught kids lots of simple anger techniques;  take a deep breath and count to ten, take a break, ask for help. These are all worthwhile and often effective.  However, when a child has frequent anger outbursts, these techniques alone don’t really get to the root of the problem.  What if instead of teaching children what to do after they get angry, we also taught them how to understand and manage their feelings?  What if we challenged the thinking that lead them to be angry in the first place?

Here is the technique:

1. Teach children that all feelings come from our own thoughts, not from our circumstances.  This is good news.  It means that we are each responsible for our own feelings and consequently our own behavior.  No person and no situation makes us happy or mad. It is how we see or perceive the situation. Circumstances are those things that happen which are outside of our control. Here are some examples of circumstances:

   1. Sally took the toy I was playing with.

   2. George said I couldn’t play on his team.

2. Help children identify the thought that creates the feeling.  This is the hardest part of the technique but even young children can learn to identify what the thought was that preceded the feeling. This may involve  reviewing the circumstance in hindsight,  Here are some examples:

   1. I thought: Sally was mean to me.  She should wait her turn.

   2. I thought: George should include me on his team.

3. Help children determine the feeling as well as the body sensations that go along with the feeling. This involves teaching children body language as well as the words that describe feelings. This is also a great point at which to teach kids to regulate their feelings. You can do this by introducing a scale from 1-10. Where is their feeling on the scale? Does the situation warrant a 10 on the scale or is it more like a 5?

   1. I feel mad.  My body is tense and I am clenching my fists. On the feeling scale, I am a 9.

   2. I feel left out.  I am tearing up and about to cry. On the feeling scale I  am a 7.

4. Help children change the thought in order to change and control the feeling. This is the teaching moment where you may  need to help children think of more positive and productive thoughts.   Here are some examples:

   1. Sally didn’t share or ask nicely for the toy but I know a better way to play with others. Sally is learning how to share too and she is younger than I am.

   2. Everyone can’t be on the same team.  It is okay if I am on a different team.

5. Identify the new behavior that follows:

   1. I will play with a different toy or I will ask Sally to share the toy with me.

   2. I will ask if I can join a different team.

This is obviously a technique that requires practice and understanding. It is not meant to replace other behavior management techniques that calm and redirect children in the midst of difficult feelings. Instead, it is a means of educating children and teaching alternative behaviors. As a preventive strategy, it can also help to prepare kids to handle difficult situations that they may encounter later.

Mental Health Services Information:

Pursuant to WCPSS Board Policy, there should be no mental health services or presentations provided by outside providers on the school campus during the school day.

When trying to assist a student or family in accessing community mental health services please follow these directions:

• If a student is known to be covered by Medicaid, or are uninsured, please assist the parent in contacting Alliance’s Access staff at 1-800-510-9132. This contact should be initiated by the consumer but school staff can assist in the call.

• The Alliance staff will determine the need for a diagnostic assessment and schedule it with the consumer. The diagnostic assessment will establish a diagnosis and determine the appropriate level of service.

• The consumer should then be given a list of potential service providers. Should the parent request input from school staff regarding choosing a provider, school staff may make the parent aware of all agencies with whom you are familiar. It is not our responsibility to evaluate the quality of their services.

• If you have any concerns or complaints about providers please make those complaints to the Access staff at the same number.

Alliance Bridge to Service Program

The Alliance Bridge to Service Program is a partnership established between Alliance Behavioral Healthcare and WCPSS. This project allows Alliance to place licensed Clinical Care Coordinators in designated schools and are available to assist staff and families of all the schools within their region. The Care Coordinators are available to help staff assess and link students for whom there is a determined mental health concern which is impacting school success and for which there is an identifiable barrier to linking the student to the appropriate service.

Please see the referral form and consent forms below. Please submit as directed on the form.

Due to the inability to get parent/guardian signatures in person, please follow the following steps:

1. Send an email to the parent/guardian requesting consent to send a referral to Alliance/School-Based Mental Health Team (SBT).

2. Parent/guardian sends a reply email stating "I grant consent to send a referral to Alliance/School-Based Mental Health Team (SBT)".

• Alliance Referral Form 

• Authorization for Release of Education Records (English)

• Authorization for Release of Education Records (Spanish)

• Consent for Release of Information

• Alternative Means of Communication

Mental Health Processes revised date on August 4, 2020.

https://www.andnextcomesl.com/2016/04/what-to-put-in-a-calm-down-kit-for-kids.html 

https://www.encourageplay.com/blog/10-strategies-to-help-kids-calm-down 

In January, I went to a workshop and learned more about helping students with anxiety:  Here are some resources I learned about while I was there.  I have only tried “Calm” for myself and “ichill” with students.  Feel free to check them out!!  Please let me know if you have any questions!! Please know that we are not trying to "eliminate" anxiety, but to work through it.  :)   Great life skill that we all can use for the rest of our lives!!  Miss you all!   Sincerely,  Ms. Davis

 Apps to help with Anxiety: 

Stop, Breathe, and Think: Free

Calm: Paid website and mobile app (some free offers)

Insight Timer: Free

MindShift: Free 

Smiling Mind: Free 

Headspace: Free for educators

iChill: Free

Breathe: Free 

Breathe2Relax: Free

https://www.wcpss.net/cms/lib/NC01911451/Centricity/Domain/4/201920%20Student%20Handbook%20ENGLISH.pdf -student handbook

https://deeprootsathome.com/kids-bored-entitled/-bored,  impatient children?

https://www.understood.org/en -Attention issues

https://posproject.org/