Counseling Connect
January Newsletter
Welcome Back and Happy New Year!
Hello parents! We are back with a new year and the counseling office is so excited to be starting the second half of the school year with you! We hope that your holidays were filled with joy, love and some much needed self care with friends and family. We would like to thank all the parents who gifted us special treats, gift cards, and your notes during the last week of school. We truly appreciate the love and we are happy to serve your students everyday!
Registration for the 2020-2021 School Year
It is January! Do you know what that means? You guessed it..... REGISTRATION! We have a few special calendar dates that we want parents to be mindful of. They are as follows:
January 9th- Parent Night with Counselors at 6pm at LSMS. Join us as your counselors will discuss the same registration procedures that we discussed with your students.
January 13th and 14th - Current 6th and 7th grade students will be receiving a presentation from their grade level counselor on 7th and 8th grade registration and enrollment procedures as well as detailing paperwork that needs to be returned to school.
January 14th- Parents of incoming 9th grade students are encouraged to attend Curriculum Night at Eureka High school where they will receive a presentation from teachers and counselors. Presentation will begin at 6:30 pm
January 16th- Eureka High School counselors will be visiting our 8th grade students about high school registration.
January 17th- Registration Window Opens at 7am. This will be the first time that your student will be able to login into Infinite Campus and sign up for classes.
January 27th- Registration Window closes at 4pm. This will be the last time that your student will be able to login into infinite campus and sign up for classes. Please keep in mind that it does not matter what time your student enrolls on Infinite Campus to ensure specific classes, as we do not honor a first come first serve process.
January 28th- Registration Page and Course Selection Worksheets are due to the LSMS counseling office. This is the deadline that all forms will be due. Please note that registration is a high volume calling period. We appreciate your patience as we work at returning your calls and emails if you have further questions.
See the attachment below for the full LaSalle Springs Course Description Guide
Course Recommendation Forms-8th Grade
All registration materials for each grade level are posted to the LaSalle Springs Website in the Guidance and Counseling tab under "Student Registration"
Error in Course Description Guide
The Materials Processing Course (Woodshop) is not listed in our course description guide but is a course that is offered here at LaSalle Springs. This is a hands-on-activity class which provides students an opportunity to create, construct and build projects.
Also, if you are a current 5th grade/ incoming 6th grade parent, please note that Sixth Grade Design, is not a course offered here at LaSalle. Please go by the list of courses listed on the purple Course Registration form.
Special Note about Incoming 6th grade registration
Helping Your Teen When They Have Struggles with Executive Function
Students that struggle with Executive Function skills have a hard time performing certain tasks required to carry out their daily responsibilities. They include, but are not limited to, analyzing, organizing, deciding, and planning. At school, teens may have difficulty getting assignments done and turned in on time; keeping their folders, binders, and lockers organized; and managing their time while resisting distractions. At home, teens may have difficulty handling their emotions, following a series of directions, or keeping their room clean.
There are 12 Executive Function skills:
1- Response Inhibition: the capacity to think before you act
2- Working Memory: The ability to hold information in memory while performing complex tasks.
3- Emotional Control: The ability to manage emotions in order to achieve goals, complete tasks or control and direct behavior
4- Sustained Attention: The capacity to maintain attention to a situation or task in spite of distractions.
5- Task Initiation: The ability to begin projects without undue procrastination, in an efficient or timely fashion.
6- Planning/Prioritizing: The ability to create a roadmap to reach a goal or to complete a task
7- Organization: The ability to create and maintain systems to keep track of information or materials
8- Time Management: the capacity to estimate how much time one has, how to allocate it, and how to stay within time limits and deadlines.
9- Goal- Directed persistence: the capacity to have a goal, follow through to the completion goal, and not be put off by or distracted by competing interests.
10- Flexibility: The ability to revise plans in the face of obstacles, setbacks, new information or mistakes.
11- Metacognition: the ability to stand back and take a birds-eye view of oneself in a situation.
12-Stress Tolerance: the ability to thrive in stressful situations and to cope with uncertainty, change, and performance demands.
Attached below is a PDF of an Executive Skills Questionnaire. If you suspect your student has struggles in any of the above areas, this informal questionnaire may help point out strengths and weaknesses. Also within this attachment includes suggestions and possible interventions for treating weaknesses in each of the executive skill areas.
More information also here : https://www.understood.org/en/learning-thinking-differences/child-learning-disabilities/executive-functioning-issues/what-is-executive-function
Mindfulness for Teen Worry- Connecting with Your Body Through Contact by Jeffrey Bernstein
Try this!
You can do this exercise indoors or outdoors. A recommended position is sitting in a comfortable chair or on a comfy pillow or gently leaning against a tree or the side of your house or building.
1. Take a few calming breaths
2. Notice at least three points where your body makes contact with itself or the surfaces around you. If you are sitting down, you can think about your body touching the chair you are sitting in as well as parts of your body in contact with itself. If you are lying down, then notice where your body is in contact with that surface. Pick three points of contact.
3. Reflect on how your body feels at these three points. If there is a sense of pressure, where do you feel it? Is there comfort? Is there pain? What parts of your body feel relaxed?
4. Notice this experience for a few minutes.