MVMS Student Services Newsletter
Jan/Feb
Attention Parents of 8th Grade Students:
Early in February, the school counselors from the high school will be coming to visit our 8th grade students. This will be the first step in planning for their high school schedules. Counselors will talk with students about what a day at the high school looks like as well as courses required for graduation. The focus will be on what courses students can take as Freshmen and how to fill out the student course request form. Students will be introduced to the course catalog and receive a schedule form to fill out, which will need to be returned to the middle school. The High School will also be hosting a Parent Night on February 6th. More information will be coming from the High School about this. If you have any questions, please call us here in Student Services.
Healthy Habits for Emotional Wellbeing
Recently all 7th and 8th grade students participated in a lesson about Healthy Habits of Emotional Wellbeing. These Habits are Taking Care of yourself, Checking In with others, Engage in positive social interactions, Relax by participating in activities that help you relax, and Knowing the five signs of emotional suffering. We talked in depth about each one of these habits and used activities to reinforce the learning. The students also participated in a short meditation to have the opportunity to practice a form of relaxation. They also challenged themselves by choosing one of their own healthy habits to improve on.
As part of this lesson, The Five Signs of Emotional Suffering were reviewed. The five signs are Personality Change, Agitation, Withdrawal, Poor Self care, and Hopelessness. As a group, we discussed what to do if you see these signs in yourself or others around you. All 7th and 8th graders participated in the lesson on the Five Signs last year. The Healthy Habits and Five signs lessons were adapted from The Campaign to Change Direction. This is a national campaign designed to bring awareness to mental health concerns. For more information on this campaign, please visit www.changedirection.org.
Internet Safety - A Family Resource
The Internet is an incredible resource and social media can connect us with both friends next door and people from all around the work. As adults we are aware of some of the drawbacks and dangers of this World Wide Web. However, sometimes our children may not look at the internet with the same caution that we try to.
One of the most important ways to keep your child safe on the internet is to get involved in your child’s online activities and talk with them about online safety and appropriate online behavior.
Kids Health.org covers a variety of topics. kidshealth.org/en/parents/net-safety.html is a link that can take you directly to information for parents, kids and teens about internet safety. There are a variety of articles, some to help parents be more aware of concerns and some to give ideas of ways to talk with your child. The “teen section” has a good article about how kids can protect their online identity and reputation. As always, keeping the lines of communication open between you and your child is one of the best ways for you and your child to connect.
Student Services Staff
6th Grade Counselor: Diana Zeller dzeller@mvsdpride.org
7th Grade Counselor: Lori Brodeur lbrodeur@mvsdpride.org
8th Grade Counselor: Ray Carpenter rcarpenter@mvsdpride.org
Student Assistance Program (SAP) Counselor: Amanda Senecal asenecal@mvsdpride.org
Student Services Administrative Assistant: Amy Durrell adurrell@mvsdpride.org
Website: http://mvms.mvsdpride.org/