With the craziness of everything going on in the world, I wanted to reach out and offer support in the best way I know how, given the circumstances. In the world of guidance counselors and school counselors, there has been much discussion as to how we can help. I am going to link some resources that may be helpful. The students are going to have questions at some point. I feel like the age of your child should be a key factor in how the topic is approached. I just want to highlight some observations that I have experienced in my 21 years of working with children. These are just my observations and not quotes from studies, psychiatrists or psychologists-just my experiences.
* Kids will ask questions when they are not given enough explanation. Start with the minimum information. If they don't understand, they will ask. It's better to start with not enough than too much. You can always add to the information. You can't erase it if too much is given. Too much information can cause anxiety about the situation. There are some things their brains just cannot understand no matter how hard you try to explain. Given the uncertainty of the current situation, less may be best.
* It's ok that they not know all the details. There have been many times that I have run into the situation where one child is VERY knowledgeable on a current event and then there are other students who have been blissfully shielded form the same situation. What frequently happens is that the knowledgeable ones "educate" the shielded ones, leaving lots of questions. (I have done this with my own kids. It only took a couple of times to realize that it rarely ends well. I also quickly learned that telling your child not to say anything to other kids rarely works.) Kids struggle with what to say and what not to say, as I'm sure you have experienced first hand (birthdays are always fun times in this arena! Think of the times you were told you were old or you looked 10 years older than your actual age.) Everyone is different and that is something to take into consideration.
*Specifically related to this situation, I encourage everyone to keep a social distance from each other. My own children groaned when I told them this was not going to be a time of sleepovers and hanging out "just cause." One of them made a statement to the effect of, "Of course you are going to be 'one of those parents." (See, you won't be alone in that group!) Yes it will be very hard to keep them occupied but think of the alternative-an actual quarantine at home or worse yet a hospital. No one complains about being over prepared, as my fitness instructor has said. Please play it on the safe side and limit this as much as possible. You know its being taken very seriously if our own bishop is suspending the obligation to attend mass on Sundays until further notice.
(
https://owensborodiocese.org/covid-2019/ )
Here is handout from Counselor Keri, the creator of many of the lessons I use with the students in the guidance classes. She also has a blog under the same name that gives lots of resources for anxiety, worry and self regulation. These are under copyright of Counselor Keri. She has given us permission to share them digitally.
Julia Cook, a children's author has wrote a story, which she had her students illustrate. It has not been published yet but she did record herself reading it and posted it on YouTube. Julia Cook has written
It's Hard To Be a Verb,
My Mouth Is a Volcano and
It's Not My Fault. She is a former teacher and School guidance counselor. I have used several of her books when working with students. Here is the YouTube link to her story called,
The Yucky Bug.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZD9KNhmOCV4
Here is a resource that lists various learning websites. These may be beneficial to help them practice skills they have already learn and keep them busy for a while longer. (Hey-that's a win-win!) I have noticed that Facebook has several posts that include more websites, such as some of the larger zoos doing live presentations at certain times of the day.
Should I come across any other resources that could be beneficial, I will create another blog, with the links. Also, please let me know if there is anything that I can do to help the students or you. I will be checking my email frequently (kim.bennett@owensborocatholic.org). I do check the SeeSaw app but not as frequently as my email. Please let us know if someone does get sick. Prayer is very powerful. You will have one amazing set of teachers and staff storming heaven! Hopefully, this will pass quickly and we will see everyone on April 6th! God bless and stay well!
Hello everyone! This blog is not going to be long, but I wanted to reach out to everyone since it looks like we are going to be doing nontraditional instruction for a while. I miss seeing all the kids and having them in guidance class. Please know that you are in my thoughts and prayers. I have created a google form that anyone can fill out, if they would like to talk with me or if your child would like to talk to me. It is available to everyone through the OCS web page, under the K-3 Campus Counselor page. I will put the link here as well: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdGkEeGfO7y-DO138HQHqRrmMClozyr9N6KZjK8Sj0yccjw9A/viewform
