The Counseling Corner

• Welcome Back!
• Meet the Village School Counselors
• What Does a School Counselor Do?
• Back to School Tips
• Recommended Back to School Articles
• Mental Health Resources & Apps

Hey everyone! We are so happy to see the new and welcome back the "old" faces this year! Though it's hard to say goodbye to summer, there is that great feeling of starting off a fresh school year, filled with new opportunities and learning. Together, let's make it an awesome year!

Of course, stumbles and hiccups are bound to happen this school year. Don't fret, though! Village School Counselors are there to help our students problem solve, answer questions, and provide support to move through tough moments.

At Village School, we're fortunate to have three School Counselors for ALL students.

Kevin Merrigan, 4th Grade School Counselor

Kate Dulac, 5th Grade School Counselor

Jeff Newsome, 6th Grade School Counselor

"People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel." - Maya Angelou

As Village School Counselors, we are big believers that all children are capable of experiencing growth and success when challenged within a caring and supportive environment. With your partnership, we're hopeful we can help your children continue to grow into the responsible, kind, connected, resilient, curious, confident, and positive young people they are becoming. To ensure your children make the progress possible this year and feel safe and happy in school, it is important that we keep our communication lines open. We're always here to listen, collaborate, and offer support so please never hesitate to contact your child's grade-level counselor.

Guidance Lessons 📚

• Grade-level counselors teach lessons on relevant social/emotional topics based on student needs and teacher feedback.
• Some topics we cover are friendship building, learning styles, technology, dealing with worry, conflict resolution, growth mindset, healthy habits, and more!

Individual Counseling 👂

• Both teachers and parents can refer students for check-ins with their grade-level counselor. Referrals occur after classroom strategies have been implemented (exceptions would be family or safety concerns).
• Students might see their grade-level counselor for individual counseling to work on decision-making, coping skills, emotional regulation, family changes, friendship skills, or other areas.
• Students can also request a regular check-in time. We don't always know what is going on in a child's life, and this gives them the opportunity to advocate for positive support!
• Because we're committed to helping our students enhance their academic development, we are careful when scheduling counseling check-ins to prevent students from missing important lessons and curriculum. Counselors work closely with teachers to coordinate appropriate times to check in with students.

Lunch Groups 🍅

• We also offer lunch groups where students practice important social and problem-solving skills, make peer connections, and build up their social support network all while having fun :)
  

Back to School & Mental Health 💚

Back to school mental health tips

Roadmap to Back to School Mental Health

10 ways to help your child succeed in school

School Mental Health Guide

Getting ready for back-to-school

Stop, Breathe, & Think

Stop, Breathe, & Think is a great tool that is designed to help you learn how to be more mindful and manage stress using simple meditation. You can check-in daily, track your progress and feel more calm. Stop, Breathe, & Think is a free app.

Happify

How you feel matters! Happify allows you to take control of your feelings and thoughts. The Happify app provides you with engaging activities and games to support positive emotions. Happify is available to download on iOS and Android devices.

Inner Explore

The Marblehead Rotary Club has generously gifted access to this amazing resource in an effort to support our community's mental health and wellness. This program fosters life skills such as improved focused, compassion, gratitude, and self-regulation strategies. Check it out!

Handhold (mental health resource website)

Handhold was created by a team of mental health and child development experts with tips, tools, and resources created especially for parents.

TeenToks

This is not a social media app. This is an educational apps focused on mental health. Created by GoZen! for Tweens and Teens!

Kevin Merrigan, Grade 4 School Counselor

Kate Dulac, Grade 5 School Counselor

Jeffrey Newsome, Grade 6 School Counselor

Website: https://www.marbleheadschools.org/domain/206
Location: Village School, Village Street, Marblehead, MA, USA
Phone: 781-639-3159