Hello parents and guardians! It has been a busy beginning of the year here in the Counselor’s Office! We have class lessons up and running and it has been such a joy to get to know your students! Each class is receiving a social-emotional learning program called Second Step. In these lessons, your students are learning what it means to be a good listener, how to follow directions, how to identify and handle big emotions and feelings, and what it means to be a good friend. Most lessons build on the one from the previous week. This is what we have been learning in each grade level so far:
Kindergarten and 1st grade: We have learned how we use our whole bodies to pay attention! Our brains help us to think and make good choices, our eyes help us to see the grown-ups teaching us, our hands stay to our sides or in our laps, our legs are crossed or in front of us, and our mouths are used to say kind words to others. We have also learned that it’s okay to make mistakes and we keep practicing to learn new things.
2nd grade: We are learning to identify what we are good at! We’ve talked about how it is okay to make mistakes because we are still learning and that practice helps us to become better at the things we are learning. We have also talked about how it’s okay to ask for help when we make mistakes.
3rd grade: We are learning how our brains make networks that talk to each other to help us learn something new! Each skill we learn is guided by a different section of our brain that works together to help us learn.
4th and 5th grade: We are learning how to set goals towards things we want to be good at! We have determined that good goals are ones that are specific, challenging, and doable. We have worked to set individual and class goals to work towards this school year.
Counselor note:
Please do not hesitate to reach out in any way if you think your child needs additional support or check-ins to help them be successful, both in the classroom and at home. I am here to help in any way that I can!
