5th Grade Counseling Blast
Week of February 3rd
February Upcoming Events
Tuesday, February 4th: Final Boys and Girls Home Basketball Game in the Big Gym- SHOW YOUR CCP SPIRIT!
Wednesday, February 5th-Tuesday February 11th: Valogram Sales at Lunch (see below for details)
Monday, February 10th- Spring Sports Start-Boys and Girls Track and Field, Boys Soccer
Thursday, February 13th: Valograms delivered during classes
Saturday, February 22nd: Leadership Council Community Service Project at Second Harvest Food Bank 9am-12pm
Friday, February 28th: Spring Fling Dance 6pm-8pm in the Big Gym
Valograms
Leadership Council will come around during Crew on Wednesday to explain Valograms to your students. Here is the announcement:
Valentines Day is coming up next Friday!
Show your friends and special someones that you care! Give them a special valentine during class...a Valogram!
Leadership Council will be selling Valograms all this week at lunch in the cafeteria. You can purchase one to be delivered to your friends or special someone next week before Valentine’s Day. You get to personalize it and show how much you care for and appreciate them.
Choose from the following Valograms to be sent:
Card-$0.25
Card and Candy-$0.50
Card and Carnation-$1.00
Card, Candy, and Carnation-$1.50
You must pay at the time of your order. Your orders will be delivered Thursday, February 13th during class.
The money raised will be used to fund the Spring Dance coming up February 28th. Be on the look out for more information on the Dance coming soon!
New Students
5th Grade New Students:
Black, Anastasia T
Hayes, Faith M
Hernandez, Vanessa
Johnson-Daniels, Keylan A
Pinkerton, Gabriel D
Ramirez Sanchez, Kimberly P
Scott, Ayanna R
Tutoring
School Store Update
Soaring Students
Crew/Anti-Bullying Curriculum
Anti-Bullying Month/Week is postponed until March.
Classroom Guidance
Groups
Groups Schedule
Social Skills/Organization Boys Group 5th/6th-Monday Lunch and Recess (11:30-12:30)
Self-Esteem/Anxiety Girls Group 7th-Tuesday Lunch and Recess (12:40-1:40)
Boys Conflict Resolution 5th Wednesday Tutoring Block (12:30-1:15)
Grief and Loss Group 5th/6th-Wednesday Tutoring Block (1:15-2)
Self-Esteem/Anxiety Girls Group 5th/6th-Thursday Lunch and Recess (11:30-12:30)
Social Skills/Organization Boys Group 7th-Friday Lunch and Recess (12:40-1:40)
Individual Students
You can see the list of students I see individually in the link to the counseling google doc below. Please also invite me to S-team meetings for these students and any other students that might benefit from a counseling perspective. I am also in charge of any students with 504s and meetings to assess students for 504s. I will update you on things I am working on with the individual students. Feel free to email me or schedule a meeting if you would like to discuss a student more in depth.
If a student is in crisis, please text me and I will come get them from your room.
If you think a student will benefit from individual counseling or additional support who is not in crisis, please do not email/text me about them or send them to me. Instead, please fill out the referral form so Sanjana and I can figure out the best support service for them.
Meet Laura Grace! Counseling Practicum Intern
Hi Teachers and Staff of CCP,
I just wanted to introduce myself, my name is Laura Grace Carroll and I will be interning with Ashley Parker in the counseling office this semester, so you will likely see me around the halls over the next few months. I am in my first year of the Human Development Counseling program at Vanderbilt, and I am really excited about getting to work with the students and faculty at Cameron this semester. I just wanted to let you know who I am, but please stop and introduce yourself when you have a chance. I am excited about getting to be a part of all the wonderful work you all do.
Laura Grace Carroll
From the Counselor's Desk-Students with Suicidal Thoughts
What to Do
Youth who feel suicidal are not likely to seek help directly; however, parents, school personnel, and peers can recognize the warning signs and take immediate action to keep the youth safe. When a youth gives signs that they may be considering suicide, the following actions should be taken:
- Remain calm.
- Ask the youth directly if he or she is thinking about suicide.
- Focus on your concern for their wellbeing and avoid being accusatory.
- Listen.
- Reassure them that there is help and they will not feel like this forever.
- Do not judge.
- Provide constant supervision. Do not leave the youth alone.
- Remove means for self-harm.
- Get help: Contact me immediately and I will come get the student. I will conduct a thorough suicide assessment and get the student the help s/he needs.
Recognizing the Warning Signs
Suicide and other self-destructive behaviors rarely occur without some warning signs. You, perhaps even more than parents of teens, can assess what is "normal" adolescent behavior and what may be an indication that something is wrong.
Here are some signs that a young person may be considering suicide:
- A suddenly deteriorating academic performance. Teens who were typically conscientious about their school work and who are now neglecting assignments, cutting classes, or missing school altogether may be experiencing problems that can affect their academic success, behavior, and health and put them at risk of suicide.
- Self-mutilation. Some young people resort to cutting their arms or legs with razor blades and other sharp objects to cope with emotional pain. Self-mutilation of this type is an unmistakable sign that something is wrong.
- A fixation with death or violence. Teens may express this fixation through poetry, essays, doodling, or other artwork. They may be preoccupied with violent movies, video games, and music, or fascinated with weapons.
- Unhealthy peer relationships. Teens whose circle of friends dramatically changes for no apparent reason, who don’t have friends, or who begin associating with other young people known for substance abuse or other risk behaviors may signal a change in their emotional lives. Their destructive behaviors may discourage more stable friends from associating with them, or they themselves may reject former friends who "don’t understand [them] any more."
- Volatile mood swings or a sudden change in personality. Students who become sullen, silent, and withdrawn, or angry and acting out, may have problems that can lead to suicide.
- Indications that the student is in an unhealthy, destructive, or abusive relationship. This can include abusive relationships with peers or family members. Signs of an abusive relationship include unexplained bruises, a swollen face, or other injuries, particularly if the student refuses to discuss them.
- Risk-taking behaviors. Risk-taking behaviors often co-occur and are symptomatic of underlying emotional or social problems. Such behaviors as unprotected or promiscuous sex, alcohol or other drug use, driving recklessly or without a license, petty theft, or vandalism, especially by young people who formerly did not engage in these activities, can be an indication that something is wrong.
- Signs of an eating disorder. An eating disorder is an unmistakable sign that a student needs help. A dramatic change in weight that is not associated with a medically supervised diet may also indicate that something is wrong.
- Difficulty in adjusting to gender identity. Gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered teens have higher suicide attempt rates than their heterosexual peers. While coming to terms with gender identity can be challenging for many young people, gay and lesbian youth face social pressures that can make this adjustment especially difficult.
- Bullying. Children and adolescents who are bullied, as well as those who bully, are at increased risk of depression and suicidal ideation (Kaltiala-Heino, Rimpela, Marttunen, Rimpela, & Rantanen, 1999).
- Depression. Although most people who are clinically depressed do not attempt suicide, depression significantly increases the risk of suicide or suicide attempts. Symptoms of depression include the following:
- A sudden worsening in academic performance
- Withdrawal from friends and extracurricular activities
- Expressions of sadness and hopelessness, or anger and rage
- A sudden decline in enthusiasm and energy
- Overreaction to criticism
- Lowered self-esteem, or feelings of guilt
- Indecision, lack of concentration, and forgetfulness
- Restlessness and agitation
- Changes in eating or sleeping patterns
- Unprovoked episodes of crying
- Sudden neglect of appearance and hygiene
- Fatigue
- The abuse of alcohol or other drugs as young people try to "self-medicate" their emotional pain
Some warning signs of suicide demand immediate action:
- Talking or writing about suicide or death
- Giving direct verbal cues, such as "I wish I were dead" and "I’m going to end it all"
- Giving less direct verbal cues, such as "You will be better off without me," "What’s the point of living?", "Soon you won’t have to worry about me," and "Who cares if I’m dead, anyway?"
- Isolating him- or herself from friends and family
- Expressing the belief that life is meaningless
- Giving away prized possessions
- Exhibiting a sudden and unexplained improvement in mood after being depressed or withdrawn
- Neglecting his or her appearance and hygiene
- Dropping out of school or social, athletic, and/or community activities
- Obtaining a weapon (such as a firearm) or another means of hurting him- or herself (such as prescription medications)
Resiliency Factors
The presence of resiliency factors can lessen the potential of risk factors to lead to suicidal ideation and behaviors. Once a child or adolescent is considered at risk, schools, families, and friends should work to build these factors in and around the youth. These include:
- Family support and cohesion, including good communication.
- Peer support and close social networks.
- School and community connectedness.
- Cultural or religious beliefs that discourage suicide and promote healthy living.
- Adaptive coping and problem-solving skills, including conflict-resolution.
- General life satisfaction, good self-esteem, sense of purpose.
- Easy access to effective medical and mental health resources.