Counseling at Sundance: How are we supporting your student?
- David Guzman
- Aug 18, 2022
- 2 min read
What do Counselors do?
Every School counselor believes that every student should have access to an adult, or adults in their life who will encourage them to thrive in academics, careers, and in life. Given the appropriate supports, every student is capable of success.
We help students achieve success by offering 3 levels of support. Click on a dropdown arrow to learn more.
Tier 3 A Few Students
A few students may need more support than only Tier 1 and Tier 2 can provide. If parents, teachers, counselors and administrators agree, then a student may need Tier 3 support. Tier 3 support is intensive 1-on-1 support that is specifically catered to meet the students individual needs and skill. This may include supports such as behavior plans or 1-on-1 counseling with a specially trained counselor. Students who receive Tier 3 support STILL get Tier 1 and Tier 2 support as well.
Tier 2 Some Students
Some students at Sundance may need additional support. This support comes in the form of small groups that focus on specific social skills, study skills, or coping skills. These groups can only happen with an appropriate referral for counseling found Here. As well as an informed consent document which is found here in English or here in Spanish. Small groups are composed of up to 8 students of the same developmental level. They happen once per week for 6-8 weeks in the counseling office and last about 30 minutes. Students who receive Tier 2 support STILL get Tier 1 support as well.
Tier 1: All Students
Every student at Sundance gets Tier 1 Support. At this level we learn about Skills for Learning, Empathy and Respect, Recognizing Emotions, Managing Emotions, Problem Solving, and finally "Recognizing, Reporting and Refusing Bullying". Lessons take place for 30 minutes once per week in the classroom and students take home a worksheet that can be completed with a caring adult at home.
The Core Curriculum:
Beaumont Unified School District's counseling team uses the Second Step Social Emotional Learning Suite to aid in achieving our goal of providing a safe and secure environment and high quality educational opportunities for all students.
These lessons are considered Tier 1 Support and ALL students at Sundance get these lessons as part of their core instruction.
Lessons occur once per week in the students' classrooms' and last about 30 minutes.
Lessons are structured to provide students opportunities to interact with each other and learn and practice a new social skill, recognize an emotion, or problem solve together. At the end of every other lesson students will have a "home link" which they can complete at home with a caring adult and return to their teacher for a Sunshine Ticket!
The average lesson is structured like this:
Warm up and Review of what we have learned so far
A social story to set up the new skill
Practicing the new skill as a class
Practicing the new skill as a pair or small group
Summarizing the skills we have learned so far
Click a dropdown menu below to get a detailed breakdown of the sequence in which your child is learning each lesson this year.
Kindergarten and 1st Grade
Unit 1: Skills for Learning
Learn to listen
Focus Attention
Following Directions
Self-Talk for Staying on Task
Being Assertive
Unit 2: Empathy
Feelings
More Feelings
Identifying Anger
Same or Different
Accidents
Caring and Helping
Unit 3: Emotion Management
We Feel Feelings in Our Bodies
Managing Frustration
Calming Down Strong Feelings
Handling Waiting
Managing Anger
Managing Disappointment
Handling Being Knocked Down
Unit 4: Problem Solving
Solving Problems
Fair ways to Play
Having Fun with Friends
Handling Having Things Taken Away
Handling Name-Calling
Reviewing Skills
Bullying Prevention
Recognizing Bullying
Reporting Bullying
Refusing Bullying
Bystander Power
2nd Grade and 3rd Grade
Unit 1: Skills for Learning
Being Respectful
Focusing Attention and Listening
Using Self Talk
Being Assertive
Unit 2: Empathy
Identifying Feelings
Learning More About Feelings
Feelin Confident
Respecting Different Preferences
Showing Compassion
Predicting Feelings
Unit 3: Emotion Management
Introducing Emotion Management
Managing Embarrassment
Handling Making Mistakes
Managing Anxious Feelings
Managing Anger
Finishing tasks
Unit 4: Problem Solving
Solving Problems Part 1
Solving Problems Part 2 Taking Responsibility
Responding to Playground Exclusion
Playing Fairly on the Playground
Reviewing Skills
Bullying Prevention
Recognizing Bullying
Reporting Bullying
Refusing Bullying
Bystander Power
4th and 5th Grades
Unit 1: Empathy and Skills for Learning
Empathy and Respect
Listening With Attention
Being Assertive
Respecting Similarities and Differences
Understanding Complex Feelings
Understanding Different Perspectives
Conversations and Compliments
Joining In
Showing Compassion
Unit 2: Emotion Management
Introducing Emotion Management
Managing Strong Feelings
Calming Down Anger
Managing Anxiety
Avoiding Jumping to Conclusions
Handling Put-Downs
Unit 3: Problem Solving
Solving Problems Part 1
Solving Problems Part 2
Making a Plan
Solving Playground Problems
Takin Responsibility for Your Actions
Dealing With Peer Pressure
Reviewing Skills
Bullying Prevention
Recognizing Bullying
Reporting Bullying
Refusing Bullying
Bystander Power
Small Group Counseling
Small group counseling is a Tier 2 Service. Some students might need small group counseling to help them with social skills, coping skills, study skills, or emotion regulation.
If a student is having persistent difficulty with applying life skills to their learning, friendships, or emotion management, then they may need a referral for counseling which can be found Here. Students will also need parents or guardians to sign an informed consent document which is found here in English or here in Spanish.
Small groups are composed of up to 8 students of the same developmental level. They happen once per week for 6-8 weeks in the counseling office and last about 30 minutes.
Students in small groups are encouraged to respect confidentiality. Confidentiality in a school setting means that students will respect the privacy of their fellow group members by refraining from disclosing what other students share during group. If students wish to share what they shared in group, then they are permitted to do so so long as it does not violate other students confidence. The counselor is not permitted to share what students say during group unless:
The student is a danger to themselves
The student is a danger to others
The student is in danger from others
If any of the three above conditions are met, the counselor must breech confidentiality in order to KEEP ALL STUDENTS SAFE.
Below are some examples of small group curriculum that we use at Sundance to support student success. These may change based on student need and school or community counseling goals.
Following Directions
An 8 week group for K-5 which focuses on following single directions, multi-step directions, and encouraging students to understand that following directions helps us learn. Students practice using Self Talk in this group.
Friendship Skills
This group is for K-5 and aims at teaching students how to attend conversations, how to take turns, what makes a good friendship, what to look for in a good friend, and how to be a good friend. Students also practice being assertive in this group.
Worry Warriors
This group teaches students why we worry, what "job" the worried feeling has, how to calm down worry, and how to ask for support when you feel a "big worry". Students use Assertiveness, Self-talk, and belly breathing in this group.
Friendship and Other Weapons
This group is written for girls in Grades K-5, but can be adapted to fit all students. We typically use this curriculum for grades 4-5. This group deals with "relational aggression" which a form of social bullying that typically begins occurring by around 4th grade. Relational Aggression leverages friendships to pressure students into making choices they may not want to make, or risk "losing friends". In elementary school it may look like "she isn't my friend today" or " my friends keep leaving me out or ignoring me"
In this group students learn how to recognize the bullying "red flags", how to report bullying, and how to refuse bullying. Students also learn how to form healthy friendships and be assertive upstanders.
Girls in Real Life Situations (GIRLS)
This curriculum is specifically written for girls in grades K-5 that have difficulty with self-esteem and self-efficacy. Though we often use it for students in K-3. In this group students are given the opportunity to feel empowered, gain self-awareness, develop coping strategies, improve problem-solving skills, understand that they are not alone, and learn to make good choices.
Building Champions
This group is written to help students of upper elementary and middle-school age build trust, respect, and peer connections, Building Champions covers the topics students most want and need to become better friends, classmates, and citizens.
Zones of Regulation
The Zones of Regulation is the original framework and curriculum that develops awareness of feelings, energy and alertness levels while exploring a variety of tools and strategies for regulation, prosocial skills, self-care, and overall wellness. This curriculum provides us an easy way to think and talk about how we feel on the inside and sort these feelings into four colored Zones, all of which are expected in life. Once we understand our feelings and zones, we can learn to use tools/strategies to manage our different Zones in order to meet goals like doing schoolwork or other tasks, managing big feelings, and healthy relationships with others. The simple, common language and visual structure of The Zones of Regulation helps make the complex skill of regulation more concrete for learners and those who support them.
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