Responsibility!

This month I'm talking about responsibility with my K-2 kids! 
I read them the fable "The Ant and the Grasshoppper" and we talk about working before we play, like the Ant did. We talk about what responsibility means and some ways we can be responsible. I tell them that school is their job and that it is the most important job in the world. It is more important than my job, their teacher's job, and the principal's job. That's why it is so important that they come every day unless they are sick and do their best because they are growing up to graduate. I love how my school system pushes graduation all the way from kindergarten!

Then we do a really fun activity. I give them a picture of a pig to color, who I call Wilburt. 
After they finish coloring, we go over some choices Wilburt has made and whether he was responsible or not. When he isn't responsible, we talk about what he could have done different. These examples of his choices are included in the pack in my TPT store!
This is a super fun lesson that the kids love and the teachers appreciate!

Click here to get the Wilburt activity!

Younger Bullying Lesson

This month we are talking about bullying at both of my schools! I've already made a post about my bulling lesson for 4th-6th grade, which you can find HERE. I really, really want my kids to know what bullying really means. We over use that word so much, so I'm determined to help them learn when it is real bullying.

Kindergarten-1st grade
I use the book Llama Llama and the Bullygoat for my smallest babies. After reading the book, we talk about the difference between mean kids and bullies. I tell them I want them to know the difference. Mean kids aren't a big deal and they have already learned some skills to help with that in Simon's Hook and in our tattling lesson. Then I tell them bullies are a big deal that an adult needs to help with. Then I explain the difference:

A bully is someone that:

• Hurts you over and over again. They hurt you every day.
• They hurt you on purpose.
• You are not being mean back to them.

I tell them that if they are calling someone a mean name back every day that it is NOT bullying. I give them some examples of mean kids vs. bullies and ask them to help me figure out which ones are bullies and which ones are mean kids. After that I give them a coloring page. 


2nd grade and 3rd grade
For these students, I use the book The Recess Queen. However, instead of reading it to them, I use a Youtube video of someone else reading it. Why? Because while someone else is reading the book, I take a piece of paper with a heart drawn on it and rip it every time Mean Jean bullies kids on the playground.
I stop the video at about 1:53 and we talk about what happened to my heart. I tell them this is what happens when we bully our friends. 
After this discussion, we finish the video of someone reading the book. Then we talk about what Katy Sue did that no one else had. We refer back to our bucket filling lesson and the activities we did and how bullies are bucket dippers, so they have an empty bucket. Katy Sue filled Mean Jean's bucket! And then Mean Jean wasn't so mean any more.
I also give them the same info about mean kids vs. bullies, and remind them that they learned how to cope with mean kids last month with Simon's Hook. 


Click HERE to get all the resources I use for K-3!

What fun things to you do to help stop bullying and teach kids about bullying at your school?

Happy National School Counseling Week!

Happy National School Counseling Week! 

I cannot believe how fast this came up! I wanted to have big plans for this week and to make this week a big deal. The person I replaced when I took this job did not do the best job of advocating for our profession and showing and telling our teachers what school counselors do. My staff has been so welcoming to me and all the new things I have brought. I wanted to have cards made or give out candy for my amazing staff, but time just got away from me! I did take the time to make a little thank you note for them though. You can find it in my TPT store. There are three per page and can be changed and edited to meet your needs. I only have access to black and white printing, but you can make it colorful if you have access to that.

Also, to celebrate this week, my entire store will be 20% off Tuesday, Feb. 2, through Friday, Feb. 5.

Are you doing anything for National School Counseling Week? I'd love to hear ideas for next year. Next year I'd really like to do something for my students too. Throw me some ideas, please!

Conflict Resolution for Older Elementary

For my older babies, I do a lesson on actual conflict resolution instead of teasing. For this, I use a Powerpoint that you can find here in my TPT store.
First, we talk about conflict and how it is a part of life. Conflict isn't bad until it leads to an argument or a fight. We want to keep if from getting to that point (hence a lesson)!

Then we talk about three styles of conflict. Each style has an animal that makes it easy for the kids to remember. My students love this part and are stopping me in the halls to tell me they aren't being sharks! 
The we watch The Zax, a short video of the story by Dr. Seuss. It is a wonderful adaptation and uses the original images from the story. They we talk about the style of the Zax and about their conflict and how they could've done better at resolving their conflict.

This is where the powerpoint in my TPT store ends. The reason for this is that I use a wonderful resource already on TPT in another store.


I do not want to take away from this person, so I have taken out the discussion and images of the SODAS model from the Powerpoint in my TPT store. However, my kids love this because they love soda! It really helps them remember the steps!
Click HERE to get this awesome resource for FREE!

In my lesson, I add images from this resource and we go through a couple of scenarios together using this model. The resource includes a worksheet where you can have the students work in groups if you'd prefer that. I whited out my detailed part of the activity for this post, but I added all the steps in a text box over the image I took from the resource mentioned above. I have each section staged to appear after we have talked about it as a group. This is a great way for them to see the process laid out!

 

How do you teach conflict resolution? What fun activities do you do with your students? What makes it click for them?

TPT Sitewide sale!

Hello, all! TPT is having a sitewide sale, and I have decided to participate! My entire store is 20% off Jan. 20th & 21st, and you'll get an addition percentage off using the code below. Let's start off our new year strong to finish out the school year strong!

Simon's Hook

Wow I have been busy since returning to school! Attendance monitoring is a part of my job, and December attendance threw me through a loop this month. I'm finally starting to rise out of the ocean of phone calls and paperwork I do to monitor attendance. While I've been wading through attendance, I have been teaching lessons. This month my lessons are about conflict resolution. For my little ones (K-3), I am focusing on teasing. 


I use two videos based on the book Simon's Hook by Karen Gedig Burnett. The book and the lesson are very good, but the book has some parts that are very busy and can be hard for little ones to grasp. The author helped make these videos, so they are nearly verbatim from the book. You can find the links to the videos at the end of this post.




I start out my lesson by reviewing what we have already talked about this year. Then I explain that we are watching a video based on this book. I always take the book because sometimes technology fails! I tell them they are going to meet Simon, and Simon has a problem: he is being teased at school. We talk about what teasing means to make sure they understand. I then tell him he is going to talk to Grandma Rose and that she will help him solve this problem. Then we watch the first video.
After the first video, I reiterate that when people tease, they want to see someone get upset; they want to see someone get sad or mad and react that way. I tell them to pay close attention as Grandma Rose teaches Simon five ways to handle teasing. Then we watch the second part. After it finishes we review the five strategies. 
To finish our time, I give them each a fish to color, and for the older ones, I ask them to write their favorite strategy in their fish, which one they plan to use next time they get teased.

You can download the fish I use for my lesson for FREE in my TPT store!

Video #1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DB6BnCYcG-4

Video #2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTMsbHz4xDY

Welcome back!

I hope everyone had a great Christmas break! I know I did and I enjoyed a few weeks to rest up for th rest of the year. We jump right back into school, so I am hitting the ground running today.

What plans do you have for the new year/last half of the school year? I am getting my conflict resolution lessons going today!