Counselor Lesson

Today we had our counselor come and chat with us. I feel so lucky to have such a wonderful school counselor. She is one of those people who seems like she has birdies come help her get dressed in the morning. She is so bright and cheerful.




Today we talked about conflict. I'm always talking about how I want my classroom to be a family. The truth is, families fight! My students and I are together for seven hours every day. It is normal that we will have conflict. I want to make sure that we are utilizing different skills in dealing with conflict.
We use the "I Message" on my campus and it is very helpful. I think the world would be a much more peaceful place if we all used the I Message!

For example:
If a kiddo is on the playground and no one is playing with her, she can go to a friend and say
"I feel sad when no one plays with me and I wish you would include me."
Then the person she is talking to says, "You feel sad when no one plays with you. Next time I will include you. I'm sorry."

I will be modeling the I Message with my kiddos by telling them, "I feel frustrated when my students are talking while I am talking. I need them to be respectful listeners."
Then they can tell me, "You feel frustrated when we are talking while you're talking. Next time we will be respectful listeners. We're sorry."


I Message "I feel upset and sad when you rip apart my dress. I wish you would respect my personal space."
Empathetic Response "You feel upset and sad when we rip apart your dress. Next time we will help you get ready for the ball. We're sorry."

We also talked about strategies to calm down.
My favorite is Deep Breathing. Mrs. Hougham tells the kiddos, smell the roses (breathe in) and blow the coco (breathe out).

My I Message poster is proudly in my room and I will tell kiddos with conflict to go over to that area to discuss. My school also utilizes fifth grade mediators.

One of my students told me, "Miss Dower, I feel happy when you hug me. I wish you would hug me all the time!"
That was a perfect way to end the day!