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Kindergarten and First Grade Calm Body Lesson

1/27/2016

Dear Kindergarten and First Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, we have been continuing our work on problem solving. Over the last couple of lessons, we have been working to understand the difference between expected and unexpected behaviors. We learned that no matter what, all of us experience unexpected things, or problems, from time to time. Therefore, learning strategies to solve these problems becomes especially important.

Often, when something unexpected happens, it can make us feel sad, angry, upset, or frustrated. However, it is incredibly difficult to effectively solve a problem if we are upset. In order to best solve the problem, first we need to calm our body down.

In this lesson, we learned and practiced two strategies to calm our body. These are:

Take 3 deep breaths
Count slowly to 10

Each student had a chance to practice both strategies and chose one to try over the next couple of weeks. If you have a moment, ask your child to show you the one they chose. And when something unexpected happens that makes them upset at home, encourage them to use the strategy to calm their body before trying to solve the problem.

Thank you for your help.

Sincerely,

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

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Second Grade Feelings

1/20/2016

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Dear Second Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week and last, we have been continuing our unit on friendship. The last time we met, students worked in teams to act out scenes where they asked to join a group and included others in a way that was kind and flexible. For this lesson, we are taking time to think about some of the emotions, or feelings, associated with friendship. Friends have a big impact on how we feel. When things with our friends are going well, we feel happy, safe, and comfortable. When we have problems with our friends, we might feel upset, uncomfortable, even unsafe. As part of our lesson, we reviewed some of the feelings, both positive and negative, that we have throughout the day. We read the book, “The Way I Feel,” by Janan Cain, which uses poetry to describe different feelings.

In the second part of our lesson, we discussed ways to calm our body when unexpected things happen. When we have a problem with another person, we often feel negative feelings, and as a result, can sometimes make choices that make the problem worse. Since this is the last thing we want to do, our first job when we have a problem is to stop, and if we are upset, work to calm our body down. As a class, we reviewed three strategies to calm our bodies. They include:

Take three deep breaths
Count slowly to ten
Think about something you like

If you have a moment, please review these strategies with your children. You can even encourage them to use these techniques when they have a problem and are upset at home.

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

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3rd Grade Problem Solving

1/20/2016

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Dear 3rd Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week and last, we have been continuing our unit on friendship. The last time we met, students worked in teams to act out scenes where they asked to join a group and included others in a way that was kind and flexible. This week, I asked students to continue thinking about including others. It is easy to say we will include other people. But what if the other person was mean to you all last year, or never lets you be their partner, or even picks their nose? Students shared that they would have a much more difficult time including others in these trickier situations. Here at Armstrong, each of us has to make a commitment to include all other students. It does not mean they have to be your friend or come to your birthday party, but here at school, everyone who wants to deserves to be part of the group.

In thinking about including others, it is important to acknowledge that there are times when you really do not want to include the other person. Often, this is the result of a conflict you are having with them or a problem you have had in the past. I believe that if that conflict can be resolved, including the other person becomes less of an issue.

To hopefully alleviate some of these conflicts, I would like to use our next few lessons to further develop our students’ problem solving strategies. To begin, we used the second half of this lesson to review some ways to calm your body down when you are upset. Strategies included taking three deep breaths, counting slowly to 10, and thinking of something that you like and makes you feel good. Using a strategy to calm your body down is one of the most important things you can do to successfully resolve a conflict.

At the end of the lesson, each student picked a strategy to try over the next few weeks. If you have a moment, ask your child to share the strategy they chose, and when they are upset at home, encourage them to use it.

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

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K, 1 Expected, Unexpected Behaviors Lesson

1/5/2016

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Dear Kindergarten and First Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, I have been introducing the vocabulary “expected” and “unexpected” to kindergarten and first grade students. These words can be helpful for teaching students the impact their behaviors have on other people. When we do things that are unexpected, it makes others feel uncomfortable, unhappy, and unsafe. When we do things other people expect, they feel comfortable, happy, and safe. When we make others feel good, we feel good too.

If you have a moment, please review the words expected and unexpected with your children. You can even use these words to reinforce expectations at home.

Sincerely,

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

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Kindergarten and First Grade Calm Body Lesson

Second Grade Feelings

3rd Grade Problem Solving

K, 1 Expected, Unexpected Behaviors Lesson

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