This month, I put together some awesome things for our Cooley Cobras to participate in! As a reminder, in August, I sent out needs surveys to students and parents/families. I used the results of these surveys to tailor my program to meet those needs. The number one area of concern for both students and parents/guardians was stress and anxiety. This month, I held a "Managing Anxiety during Uncertain Times" workshop for students. Students learned all about what anxiety is, the difference between anxiety and anxiety disorders, what coping skills they can use when they feel anxious, and different resources or people they can go to for support when they are experiencing anxiety. Thanks to all the Cobras that joined me for that workshop!
I also provided the Start With Hello workshop/training for students in the WEB 1st period class and as a drop-in workshop during independent work time. Students learned about how to recognize loneliness and social isolation in the peers, and we talked about how they can help someone who appears to be lonely or socially isolated, and how to make our campus a socially inclusive campus. A socially inclusive campus is a campus where all students feel valued, accepted, and respected. I decided to host this workshop/training because October is Bullying Prevention Month, and what better way to prevent bullying, than to promote inclusion. Here are some of the results from the workshop!
I also provided a lesson to all of our English language learner students in their ELD classes about self-esteem and growth mindset. We worked together to define self-esteem and growth mindset, we talked about the difference between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset, talked about how to boost our confidence, and practiced changing fixed mindset statements into growth mindset statements. Here are some of the results from that classroom lesson!
Additionally, we have been given permission to host a mini WEB orientation for our 6th graders on Tuesday, November 3rd. We will be requiring all students to wear masks, practice social distancing where practicable, and our fabulous WEB Leaders will be conducting a school tour for small groups of no more than 10 people. We are so excited to introduce our newest Cobras to our campus and show them the ropes before starting back on campus on November 4th. For more information, please see our daily bulletin or the SWIFT message sent out to all parents/families on Monday, October 26th.
Lastly, I have continued to run No Place for Hate (Kindness) Club, GSA Club, and Trivia Club in an effort to help students maintain their social connections during this time of distance learning. I am still figuring out how to support these clubs when students return to campus, so stay tuned for more information.
I am so excited to be bringing some of our Cooley Cobras back to campus on Wednesday, November 4th, and am so thrilled to be able to still support those of our Cobras who have chosen Champions Academy. These have been some of the most difficult times as I never imagined that in my young career as a school counselor I would ever spend this much time physically away from my students. But we are ALL Cobras, no matter what, and we will always be #CobraStrong.