LIFE IN THE MIDDLE ~ FEBRUARY ~
A Mental Health and Wellness Newsletter from CMS Counselors
IN THIS ISSUE: CULTURAL AWARENESS
WHAT IS CULTURAL AWARENESS
This month is Cultural Awareness Month. We would like to share with you an article from The NBC Toolkit: "Teaching Teens to Respect Diversity : Respecting diversity involves understanding and valuing the perspectives, behaviors and needs of people from all backgrounds."
Respecting diversity involves understanding and valuing the perspectives, behaviors and needs of people from all backgrounds. The world is a great tapestry of different cultures, abilities, beliefs, genders and preferences, and the ability to respect others sets the tone for the way a person approaches their interactions and relationships. As society becomes more diverse, your adolescent will most likely be exposed to people from various backgrounds, and it is good to teach her about the value of respecting differences.
Expose your middle-schooler to different cultures and backgrounds. You are a great influence in your child’s life, and by having diverse friendships and being respectful of people’s views and backgrounds, you will be providing her with a valuable lesson in tolerance. You can also help build your child’s ability to respect differences by encouraging her to participate in activities that promote diversity and nurture tolerance. Find local cultural events, like parades or celebrations, and bring the whole family to enjoy the festivities. These types of events can be a fun way to introduce your adolescent to new cultures and help her gain awareness of the diverse history of our country. You may also want to sign her up for summer camp, an art workshop or a peer program that includes people from all backgrounds and abilities. For example, there are many programs out there that allow children to mentor or become “buddies” with children with special needs. You can contact your local children’s hospital to learn more about which programs exist in your community as well.
Teach your adolescent about the need to be open-minded. People all have different experiences, backgrounds, customs, opinions, points of view, genders and preferences, and it’s good to talk to your child regularly about the importance of being accepting of others. Neurologist Judy Willis says that helping your adolescent become open-minded about differences can build her mental flexibility, problem-solving abilities and sense of tolerance. Willis suggests that you talk to your middle-schooler about the beliefs of those involved in social problems and ask her to consider what historical figures would think about these current issues.
Talk about bullying. Bullying is a growing concern for children at this age, and by teaching your child about respecting and honoring differences, you are also helping to prepare her to respond to bullying in an assertive way Bullying is often linked to prejudice, as the targets of bullies are often people who are considered “different” by their peers. Name-calling, physical harassment, hurtful comments online and being left out of cliques are some of the most common ways middle-school students are exposed to bullying. Education consultant Jennifer Miller recommends that you prepare your adolescent with responses to bullying behavior. Often young people are caught off-guard and don’t know how to respond to bullying. Miller suggests that you work together on what your child can say to stop the harassment and allow her to remain respectful of herself and others. Sometimes, it’s as simple as saying, “Stop, you know you’re wrong,” with some assertion. Or she can say, “You know you are out of line,” if the bully is harassing another person, and then she can leave the area and tell an adult who can help the victim. By reminding your adolescent that others’ opinions and feelings are valid even when they are different from her own, you are helping to raise an open-minded child who has the courage and skills needed to stand up against bullying.
PARENT/GUARDIAN INFLUENCE
The most powerful influence on a student’s cultural awareness and respect to diversity is what they see from their parent or guardian. Students are empowered to take a stand against bias, racism or insensitivity when their guardians model this for them. Students, this does not mean to sit back and wait for your guardians to lead the way. You are all old enough to form your own opinions and educate yourselves. Students, families and friends, let’s work together this month to embrace the differences and the similarities that make us all human.
As a parent or guardian, when your children were young, you taught them not to point and stare, but now your role goes beyond teaching those basics. Now you are raising teenagers who are trying to figure out who they are and where they fit as an individual. It is important for them to know where they came from. Talk to them about your own family history and any traditions that you had growing up. Maybe consider bringing some of those traditions back for your family now or start a new tradition. Teens who are self confident are often less hesitant to reach out to others who are different. Once you talk to your child about his/her culture, encourage him/her to go out and meet different people. Exposure and experiences will have a more profound influence than conversations.
CMS KINDNESS ROCKS!
An opportunity was provided during lunch to purchase a rock for $.25 and to write an encouraging phrase on the brightly-colored spray-painted side of the rock. CMS staff had previously written #CMSKindnessRocks @Carroll_Middle on the back of each rock. Students were asked to place their rocks in our Southlake community to encourage strangers as the rocks are seen. As rocks are found, we hope the finder will tweet a photo and possibly place the rock in another location to be an encouragement to someone else.
We will be selling rocks again soon during lunches in the cafeteria!
How can my child meet with their counselor?
1. Teacher Referral
2. Parent Referral
3. Self Referral
We meet with students for many reasons:
1. Academic - Performance, struggles, test taking strategies, study skills etc.
2. Friendship/ Peer/Social Concerns
3. Personal Concerns
4. Behavioral Concerns
5. Stress/Anxiety
6. Responsive Services - meeting their immediate needs and concerns
If you have a concern and you would like for a counselor to meet with your child, please contact your child's grade level counselor via email or phone.
Thank you!
CMS Counseling Staff
7th Grade Counselor
Paula Lynn
8th Grade Counselor
Paula.lynn@southlakecarroll.edu
Website: http://cmscounselor.edublogs.org/
Phone: 817.949.5400
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CMSDragonsCounselors/