Small Moments, a blog about school counseling at Armstrong Elementary School - Small Moments

Welcome Back to Armstrong School!

9/4/2018

Dear Armstrong Parents and Guardians,

Welcome back to another amazing year at Armstrong! My job as School Counselor is to support the social and emotional well-being and development of our students, to help them become empathetic, empowered, self aware and comfortable members of our community.

Throughout the year, I will be visiting your child’s classroom to teach lessons focused on a range of topics, from allergies and bus safety to friendship and problem solving. After each lesson, I will publish a post to this blog giving you a summary of what we discussed and suggestions for reviewing the lesson at home.

More than anything, I want you to know that I am here as a resource along with your child’s classroom teacher and the rest of our staff. If there is anything we can do to support your child having a successful experience here at school, please do not hesitate to contact us.

I look forward to a great year!

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH: (508) 836-7760 Email: starrd@westboroughk12.org

2nd Grade Bullying Awareness Continued

6/12/2018

Dear Second Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, students are continuing their discussion on bullying. As a part of this lesson, they are watching a BrainPop Jr. video on bullying (you can watch the video by copying this link and pasting it into your browser: https://jr.brainpop.com/health/besafe/bullying/). Using the video as a guide, students are brainstorming different strategies that might help if they think they are getting bullied. The strategies include:

Tell a teacher or another trusted adult
Walk away from the student that is bullying
Spend time with friends
Calm your body by breathing, counting, thinking of a happy memory, or exercising
Stand up for yourself by being calm, confident, and by not saying something hurtful in response

If you have a moment, ask your child what they would do if they thought they were being bullied. Having a plan can be helpful, especially in response to something stressful like a bullying situation.

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH: 508-836-7760 Email: starrd@westboroughk12.org

3rd Grade Bystander Lesson

6/11/2018

Dear Third Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, third grade students are continuing their work on bullying awareness by thinking about the role bystanders, the people who see bullying happen, play in resolving a bullying situation. As part of the lesson, they are watching a video from an organization called the NED show (you can watch the video by copying this link and pasting it into your browser: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeqQCyQOCPg). The video uses the term "Upstander" to describe people who do something to help a victim of bullying. It recommends four strategies. They are:

1. Be a Buddy
2. Interrupt
3. Speak Out
4. Tell Someone

Students applied these strategies to different bullying problems, and brainstormed which they might use to help. If you have a moment, consider reviewing these options with your children, and if they see someone being treated unkindly, consider recommending that they try one of these ideas to help.

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH: 508-836-7760 Email: starrd@westboroughk12.org

3rd Grade Problem Solving and Bullying Awareness

5/30/2018

Dear Third Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, students have been continuing their work on problem solving. The last time we met, we learned about and reviewed “I feel” and “you feel” statements. They look like this:

I feel __________ when you ________. I would like you to __________.

You feel _________ when I _________. You would like me to _________.

For this lesson, students continued to work with this problem solving strategy. They brainstormed different I feel and you feel statements they might use to resolve different conflict situations. We also started our discussion on bullying. In our lesson, we defined bullying as repeated unexpected behaviors directed at another student. Often, these behaviors make the target, or victim of bullying, feel upset and scared. We talked about how bullying is different than other problem situations in that the strategies to solve most problems are no longer effective, making the victim feel powerless. We will continue our discussion on bullying the next time we meet.

In the meantime, please continue to encourage your children to try strategies like I feel sentences at home. Practice is important for many things, including (and perhaps especially) problem solving.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH: (508) 836-7760 Email: starrd@westboroughk12.org

Second Grade Bullying Awareness

5/30/2018

Dear Second Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, we are discussing bullying in second grade. Given the Massachusetts bullying legislation, it is not only incredibly important for us to begin to educate our students on bullying at an early age, but is also the law.

For this lesson, students watched an episode from the show Arthur, a cartoon about the experience of a group of students in elementary school. In the episode, Arthur, the main character, who is usually nice to his peers, starts to make fun of a friend for the sweater she is wearing. It takes the work of his teacher, friends, and the target of the bullying for him to realize that what he thought was a joke was actually bullying.

As part of the lesson, the students took time to consider what made Arthur’s actions bullying. They learned that when a person continues to tease someone even after they have been told to stop, it’s bullying. The students shared their surprise that Arthur, who is usually a nice character, could become a bully. They learned that anyone can make the mistake of teasing someone repeatedly without realizing how hurtful it can be. We also highlighted the importance of the bystanders, the other friends who saw what was happening and worked to help the target. Students learned that bystanders have a lot of power in a bullying situation. They can make things worse by laughing at the actions of the bullying student. Or they can work to help resolve the situation.

If you have a moment, ask your child what they remember from the cartoon we watched. You can even review the questions we discussed. The episode can be found online by searching for “Arthur, So Funny I Forgot to Laugh,” and the questions we reviewed are:

What made Arthur’s actions bullying?
Were you surprised that a usually kind character like Arthur could become a bully, why or why not?
Why do you think he bullied the girl in the video?
In the end, who helped him figure out that what he was doing was wrong?

Thank you for your work reviewing this important lesson.

Sincerely,
David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH: 508-836-7760 Email: starrd@westboroughk12.org

First Grade Bullying Awareness Lesson

5/22/2018

Dear First Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, we are discussing bullying in first grade. Given the continued goal of improving bullying prevention and response in schools, it is not only incredibly important for us to begin to educate our students on bullying at an early age, it is also the law.

In our lesson, we defined bullying as repeated mean behaviors directed at another student. Often, these actions make the target, or victim, feel scared, angry, upset, even powerless.

We read the book, “Stop Picking on Me,” by Pat Thomas. The book explains that when someone is being bullied, it can be hard to get help. However, reaching out to a trusted adult is the most important thing our students can do. We connected bullying to our discussion on problem solving from last week, and realized that when someone is hurting our feelings and we cannot solve the problem on our own, getting help is an important next step.

If you have a moment, please take time to review the definition of bullying with your children and remind them that if someone is ever hurting their feelings and they cannot get them to stop, it is important to tell a friend or adult.

Thank you for your help supporting this important lesson.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH: 508-836-7760, Email: starrd@westboroughk12.org

May 15th, 2018

5/15/2018

Dear Kindergarten Parents and Guardians,

This week, we are discussing bullying in kindergarten. Given the continued goal of improving bullying prevention and response in schools, it is not only incredibly important for us to begin to educate our students about bullying at an early age, it is also the law.

In our lesson, we defined bullying as repeated mean behaviors directed at another person. Often, these actions make the target, or victim, feel scared, angry, upset, even powerless.

We read the book “One,” by Kathryn Otoshi. The book says that when it comes to resolving a bullying situation, everyone counts. Bystanders play an important role. They can be nice to the victim, help the victim get an adult, or even tell the student who is bullying to stop if they feel comfortable speaking up. Students had a chance to write about and illustrate ways they could help someone who is being bullied.

If you have a moment, please review the definition of bullying with your children and encourage them to be active bystanders, people who do something to help those who are being bullied.

Thank you for your help reinforcing this important lesson.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH: 508-836-7760, Email: starrd@westboroughk12.org

2nd Grade I Feel Sentences Continued

4/30/2018

Dear Second Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, students are continuing their work on problem solving. The last time we met, we learned about and reviewed “I feel” statements. They look like this:

I feel __________ when you ________. I would like you to __________.

For more information on our I feel statement introduction lesson, please scroll down to my post from April 2nd.

For this lesson, students continued to work with this problem solving strategy. They brainstormed different I feel statements they might use to resolve different conflict situations.

Please continue to encourage your children to try this strategy at home. Practice is important for many things, including (and perhaps especially) problem solving.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH: (508) 836-7760 Email: starrd@westboroughk12.org

Third Grade MCAS Assessments

4/24/2018

Dear Third Grade Parents and Guardians,

Next week, third grade students here at Armstrong will be taking English Language Arts assessments for MCAS, the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System. These tests give us as educators a chance to see how we are doing in comparison to other schools throughout Massachusetts.

This week, I am going into third grade classes to discuss MCAS and answer student questions. We are taking time to talk about ways to relax your body during the test, as well as the importance of getting a good night’s sleep and eating a healthy breakfast. We are also reading the book, “The Biggest Test in the Universe,” by Nancy Poydar. It talks about the fictional experience of a student going through his first state assessment.

You can help your child be as prepared as possible for MCAS:

Ask your child about strategies they can use to relax their body during the test. These strategies include:
- Counting slowly
- Taking deep breaths
- Thinking of something that makes you happy

Make sure your child goes to bed at an appropriate time the night before the test. If they are having trouble sleeping, encourage them to use some of the relaxation strategies we talked about in class.

Make sure your child eats a healthy and filling breakfast the morning of the test. This food will provide the energy they need to do their best.

Please make sure your child arrives to school on time. The test will begin promptly at nine, and it is essential that all students are in their classrooms for the test to start. Students arriving after nine will not be allowed to take the test with their class.

If you have any questions about MCAS, do not hesitate to contact myself or your child's classroom teacher.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH: 508-836-7760, Email: starrd@westboroughk12.org

Kindergarten and First Grade I Feel Sentences

4/10/2018

Dear Kindergarten and First Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, we are working on problem solving in K and 1 classes. The last time we met, students reviewed the importance of strategies like taking three deep breaths and counting to 10 to help calm their body when they are angry or upset. We also spent time working on yoga and mindfulness. For this lesson, students are starting to learn the words they can say to solve a problem. We are using a modified form of the I feel statement taught in second and third grade. It looks like this:

· I feel _________ when you ________.

Students watched videos of former Armstrong students acting out different problem situations and worked to brainstorm I feel sentences that might help solve the problems. They then wrote their own I feel sentences. By learning to verbalize their feelings and what is causing them to feel that way, our hope is to develop a problem solving foundation with our students that will continue to grow throughout the rest of their time at Armstrong and beyond.

You can use this language to help build your children’s problem solving skills at home as well. When your child has a problem, encourage them to try an I feel statement to help solve it. If you find they have a problem solving success, please consider sharing it in the comments section of this blog post. My hope is to give you as parents a forum to share your stories from home.

Thank you for your help with this important lesson.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH: (508) 836-7760 Email: starrd@westboroughk12.org