My NEW office at my new school

I had a pretty sweet set-up in my last office having a Smartboard, several cabinets of storage and ample space for group counseling.  When I learned I was being transferred, I was excited about having something I've never had before two HUGE nearly floor to ceiling, south-facing windows.  Though I now have less than half the storage, square footage and NO Smartboard, the windows and sunlight streaming in every afternoon make up for it!

My office has a rather awkward hallway-type entrance that limits my office size but provides some natural privacy from people walking by.  I bought these two cubical cabinets that each hold 9 fabric storage cubes.  I use the cubes for creative materials, games, props and other experiential supplies I use in groups.  

Curriculum storage

Book Storage Cabinet

This is my work space and storage area.  I appreciate the under-cabinet lighting in the morning when I don't have much light and need some task lighting and don't want to turn on the overhead flourescnts.

I got these two butterfly chairs with memory phone cushioning last year.  They are so comfortable!

Progress is addicting

Today, I embraced a 30 minute window of a gift of time.  I unwrapped this gift frantically and told myself, I am going to do this.  I pulled the iClicker base and flash drive, plugged them, made sure that I had indeed entered student rosters and had "loaned a clicker" to each student in room 402.  Before the class returned, I approached the teacher's computer and chanted "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can."  I chose this classroom strategically because the teacher is fabulously flexible and helpful.  And with her help and support, we did it.  I passed out remotes in alphabetical order and as expected made last minute adjustments for the kids who had moved in and moved in since I had entered the classroom roster.

Then it was GO time.  I never did read through each of the 146 page user guide but I got the jist of it and truthfully, I just had to DO it to learn how to utilize the iClicker system.  After realizing that I had to start and stop the poll for each question, I realized it really will work.  There were a couple problems with three remotes not registering their answers but 19 of the 22 worked!  

I really wanted to rush back to my room, plug in the flash drive and see it right away.  Instead, I rushed to another classroom to teach a lesson, inhaled my lunch and then rushed to teach anther lesson.  As I glanced at the clock, I realized I could sneak a peek before for my last counseling session of the day.  Voila, there it was.  After I better learned to navigate the iClicker and iGrader menu, I quickly was able to see everyone's responses.  Amazing!

The rest of my time at work wasn't so amazing.  The usual duties, meetings, and bits and pieces to deal with.  I try to end each day by finishing up my Notecounselor documentation because honestly, I won't remember the day before.  With the nature of my job putting me in litigious jeopardy, documenting my sessions and accounting for my time gives me another gift.  This is surely not a gift of time but rather the gift of peace...peace of mind.  I'm not just talking about having good documentation to cover my behind either.  This peace comes only from reflection.  When I reflect on my practice, I critically evaluate and consciously push myself to question if I did my best for the kids today.  Many times, I concluded the answer is no.  I never can do enough to help and support my students in the ways many desperately need me to.  So honestly, I often feel inadequate.  But this is one occasion where Mya Angelou's belief that "when you know better, you do better" is true.  When I can reflect on where I went wrong, I can begin to find another approach to move in the right direction.

Whimsy

Whimsical and Fun

Being an elementary school counselor allows me to have quirky, fun toys, decor and even clothing.  When I was a high school counselor, I preferred matching pieces, soft hues and simplicity.  As an elementary counselor, it is more about fun.

I picked up these unusual wall decor pieces at a garage sale for a couple dollars.  I was surprised when I saw a price tag on the back indicating they had been $19.99 on sale. They immediately caught my eye because they reminded me of my daughter's curly hair when she was younger.  While they are sure strange pieces, they are fun and certainly a conversation piece!

My curly girl pictures and  confidentiality banner

The banner shown in the bottom picture below is one I designed and had printed through Vistaprint.  I had seen so many cool banners on Pinterest and other counselor blogs that I wanted to make my own.

My banner is hung right above the Smartboard in my office.  Because I turn off the light in my office when using the Smartboard and it gets really dark (I have no windows), I keep this little string of lights hanging above the Smartboard.

When I started counseling nearly 20 years ago, I purchased several Flavia posters that have been hung in every office I've had over the years whether I was working in the high school or elementary.  I have six Flavia posters in all and three of them in this size.  

Poster Storage

I have an extensive collection of posters I've purchased over the years.  Most of them have a character trait theme. Some of my favorite posters are from the Second STEP curriculum.  Over the years I have also hung posters in the hallway but haven't done that as much lately because it seems they were always falling off the wall.  These days I am selective about the posters I use in the hallway and now use velcro.  I used to store my posters in boxes that are sold at teacher supply stores.  Those boxes aren't very sturdy and take up a lot of space.  When my mom retired, I asked for her awesome artist canvas bags.  These things are tough, have a zipper closure and can be stored far more easily.  The green poster holder in one that I attached to the inside of my cabinet door.  

Children's Books in the Elementary Counseling Office

When I was a kid, I loved looking around my classroom and enjoyed all my teacher's decorations.  I especially loved my mom's classroom.  She changed her bulletin boards monthly and the room was filled with festive and colorful seasonal decorations.  When I finally got my own counseling office, I was excited to decorate this home away from home.  A co-worker mentioned that the couch, stereo and pictures on my walls were nicer than what he had at home.  I said that I spent most of my day at school so I figured I might as well have a comfortable place to work.  Most of what I use in my office is cast-off from our home, a hand-me-down from a relative or purchased at a garage sale.

Children's Books

Books are an important part of my life and can be incredibly therapeutic.  I had a double major in college in psychology and journalism.  The common thread between these two disciplines is that everyone has a story.  Over the years I have used both bibliotherapy and narrative counseling in my work with children of all ages.

I have a lot of books in my office and the majority of them are inherited from my mom's collection when she retired.  Several of the books are ones that my kids no longer want or need.  I also received a lot of books from a counselor who retired when I was hired in the district.  The antique cabinet housing most of my books on three large shelves is one that my husband found thrown away.  He striped the paint off, sanded and refinished it when I was pregnant with my first born.  When my kids finally had "real" furniture with drawers, I took this cabinet out of my basement and brought it to school and easily filled it with books. 

I only have a few books on display because I found that kids were frequently distracted by my books and asked to read random books.    About ten years ago, my mom gave me the book carousel that actually holds a lot of books.  I keep all my Joy Berry books and several theme books on this.  Another way I group books is by using high quality book boxes I have had at least 10-12 years.  I used to use these colorful cardboard boxes to organize my character education books by character trait.

Where in the world is the counselor?

While I have always posted a schedule on my office door and often a "counseling in session" sign on my door, it isn't the most elementary student-friendly way of helping students find me. Since many of my students are not yet readers, are just learning English and many struggle with reading, a sign with pictures as well as words is more helpful.

I created these velcro-attached signs about five years ago and find that they are still holding up well. I simply attach one to my door whenever I leave my office as well as when I am meeting with an individual or group to let others know I am busy at the moment.

The patterned paper is approximately 6x6 and my typed-up signs are about 4x4. After I printed my signs and cut them out, I used a glue stick to adhere them to the patterned paper before laminating and adding the velcro. A very simple project with a very practical use!

If you would like my templates, please choose the follow-me button on my blog and I will email you the Microsoft Word templates for you to customize and use.

Organizing for a New School Year

On the last day of school, I bring home bags and boxes of binders, books, files and other school stuff that usually ends up untouched despite my good intentions. Unfortunately, this year was no exception. Today my husband took my three kids out and about for the day so I could unpack and organize my new counseling room. Though he was gone six hours, I never managed to leave the house and get to school. Instead, I went through all the stuff I brought home months ago.

Over the years I have tried to use binders to organize my reference materials and use color coding to find things quickly. When I graduated with a M.S. in counseling, the ASCA National Model and my state's comprehensive guidance model used different terminology than what is used today. While I am trying to update my organizational style based on the new terminology, my brain still automatically categorizes using the terms I was trained in. This old dog is still trying to learn new tricks! But for now, I created a hodge podge of categories that work for me now.

For example, I have always divided my files into these categories:

• Counseling (individual, group, family, other)
• Curriculum (guidance - personal/social, academic, career)
• Coordination/Consultation - Referrals, Mentor Program, Student Assistance Team
• Responsive Services (behavior, conflict management, crisis response, referral)
• Program Management

While this seems simple enough, I had several categories put in the same binders and file drawers and often had to look in several places to locate information.

This year I really cleaned out the older papers in my binder system and re-organized them. I now have different binders for each category. In the past I tried to put too many categories in one binder or file drawer and then ended up not putting papers away where they belong because it involved too much thinking and looking for the correct file folder or place in the binder. I was also hesitant to bring my binders with me to meetings because they were to bulky. These are my new binder categories:

• Student Rosters (1/2 in.)- Class lists, alpha list with address and phone numbers
• Responsive Services (1 in.)- Behavior Plans, SPED behavior plans, office referral data, attendance data, etc...
• Curriculum (2 in.) (Counseling Action Plans, Curriculum Maps, Guidance Outline by Grade Level, Data, RAMP/ASCA National Model information)
• Reference - (2 in.)Professional Counseling (District, State, ASCA), District Information, Building Information, Reference, Community/State Reference, DSS/Child Protection, Technology
• Counseling - (1 in.) ideas for individual and group counseling activities
• Guidance- (3 in.) Lesson ideas I would like to use as well as lessons from curriculum I've copied or summarized to share with other counselors

With more binders, I am hoping it will be easier to find information and put new information in the binders. I also plan to bring the relevant binder with me when I go to meetings. In the past I have put more information in my files and had more file drawers. As I store more data electronically, I am using the paper files less often and have purged many of my file drawers. I have one short file drawer that I use daily and I have a four-drawer file cabinet I store less used items in.