- Ridgewood Elementary School
- Counselor's Corner - Donna Greer, M.Ed., LPC
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Counselor's Corner
Building Character Champions!
Counselor: Donna Greer, M.Ed., LPC
Kids for Character
The curriculum in our counseling sessions will focus on the 6 pillars of character:
Respect-Responsibility-Caring-Trustworthiness-Fairness- Citizenship
Students will learn new vocabulary throughout the year to help them incorporate these lessons into their daily lives. My hope for your child is to develop strong character to help them be better students, friends, and community members! We also incorporate Social Emotional Learning. This includes learning about Self Awareness, Self Management, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, and Responsible Decision Making. During the year we will also learns ways to protect our bodies from strangers and from uncomfortable touches.
- Be sure to read the PDF file: 8 red flags for recognizing a predator
- Check out the Class Files on this page for parenting tips!
- Each month a Home and School Connection newsletter will go home with your child. This newsletter includes many helpful parenting tips for you!
- Each month a Home and School Reading Connection newsletter will go home with your child. Check out some helpful tips for developing better readers!
Please contact me if there are any special needs for your child that you need to discuss. Information is available through the counselor's office that address a variety of needs. I will begin groups for children who live in divorced families soon. Please contact me if you are interested in your child participating in these groups.
Meet MaggieMaggie, a 5 year old Australian Shepherd will be visiting Ridgewood at various times throughout the year. She loves to bring smiles to the kids and sometimes she likes to listen to students read!
Class Announcements
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What's ahead?
Throughout the year we have focused on many different topics in our counseling sessions. These topics have included: respect, responsibility, trustworthiness, caring, and fairness. We have covered other topics such as bullies and friendship within the 6 pillars of character. We have also focused on keeping our bodies safe from uncomfortable touches and from Tricky People. Each grade level is …
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Newsletters
Each month we will send home a copy of the "Home and School Connection". It is also accessible to you online:
Working together for school success. Check out this newsletter: http://goo.gl/EPPTKg
Check out the Home & School Connection newsletter this month: http://goo.gl/EPPTKg
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RESPECT
The first 6 weeks we will focus on manners and Respect. Some of the character traits your children will learn about include: Respect Courage Considerate Courtesy Polite
We will learn how to practice the "Golden Rule"~Treat others the way you want to be treated. We will also have lessons focusing on our words. One saying that will be often heard is "If you can't say something nice, don't say …
Class Files
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Screen Free activities
If you are doing lessons online and if you are trying to fill time with xbox, videos, and televisions you may be concerned that your child has too much screen time. I hope these ideas will help with finding screen free activities.
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Online Safety Tips
Read this article to learn safety tips to use with your child online. This article is specific to MoMo and will give you tips to use in talking with your child.
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5 Things Dads Can Learn .doc
Dads: Please read! Even if you haven't watched Mary Poppins you will benefit from these 5 suggestions! -
Dallas Morning News article.pdf
This article discusses the importance of Character Education in schools. -
From_Chaos_to_Order_in_Your_Home.pdf
Is there Chaos in your home? Read this helpful Dr. Brad article. -
Talking_to_Children_about_Boundaries.pdf
This is an important article teaching parents how to talk with their children about physical boundaries.
Discussion Topics
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Starting School Anxiety
Posted by DONNA GREER on 9/10/2018 12:05:00 PMWelcome!!Are you concerned that your child may be anxious about the start of the school year?
The beginning of a school year is an exciting time that can bring a few challenges to some families. The anticipation of a new school year may bring anxiety to some of our young children which will result in tears and refusal to go to school instead of smiles and an eager attitude. For these children there are ways to help them ease into the new school year. Parents should begin now speaking positively about school. Be aware of your own attitudes as your attitude may inadvertently become your child’s attitude. Your child will know if you are anxious and sad about them leaving home! Children need to know that going to school is not an option. Be firm and matter of fact regarding their attendance at school. If you have a child who is having difficulty separating you may want to wait at least 1-2 weeks before eating lunch with them at school. Most of the time children will stop crying once they have settled into the classroom and parents have left the room. Often the tears will start up again when the parent leaves lunch. As the school year progresses your child will gain confidence and self esteem as they realize they are able to go to class on their own!! Please feel free to contact me if you are having difficulty at home with separation anxiety. We want your child’s school experience to be positive!! -
Building Kids with structure~ Check out this blog to help you establish routines at home.
Posted by DONNA GREER on 9/10/2018 11:08:00 AMBuilding Kids with Structure!Whew! We made it through the first day of school….Now what? I don’t know about you but I love my “no time, no calendar” schedules in the summer. Staying up late, eating fun foods, sleeping in, and hanging out by the water is what summer is all about! Getting back into a routine and alarm clock can be a difficult adjustment. However, kids need and want a routine and schedule even though they may never request that from you as a parent. Here are a few tips to help you:
- Establish a bed time and stick with it during the school week. Studies indicate that young elementary kids need about 11 hours of sleep!
- Set up an afternoon routine that works best for your child. Examples may include:
- 3:00- play and a snack
- 3:30- any homework, review or going through folders
- 4:00-play ,exercise and chores
- 6:00-dinner
- 7:00-begin getting ready for bed-pick out clothes for the next day
- 8:00-bed time
- (Did you notice no screen time was included in this schedule during the week???!!)
- Establish a morning routine to help your child have a positive start to the day. Be creative with your wake up calls ~
- Breakfast is an important part of this routine. If your child does not eat breakfast at school make sure they eat a healthy breakfast at home. Try choosing eggs, bacon , fruit or other protein choices. Lots of sugar interferes with their ability to concentrate (and grow healthy!)
- Brush teeth
- Have backpacks and clothes (including shoes and socks) ready the night before. Those little things can cause lots of tears and stress in the morning!
- Always send your child away with positive words. Maybe you have a saying around your house or maybe it’s just I love you. But be sure to send them off with a positive-even on those hectic mornings.
Our school day gets started earlier now (7:50 late bell) and we want to establish good habits at a young age by helping our children to be on time!!
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Friday
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Saturday
Class Links
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Parenting Tips
This is one of the sites mentioned in my Counselor's Chronicles newsletters.
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Counselor's Chronicles
Read my February/March 2021 issue to get information on the benefits of limiting screen time!
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Sibling Rivalry and Coping Skills
This article has helpful tips for sibling rivalry, social skills and conflict resolution. There are also links for resources you may want to utilize in your home.
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I'm Bored
You've probably heard this a few times. Read the article for ideas on how to address "I'm Bored".