# data[].attributes.body
This group consists of two students from 3rd grade, two students from 4th grade, and two students from 5th grade for a total of six students. This group will meet once a week for 8 weeks and focus on The Zones of Regulation, Zone Triggers, Zone Tools, Perspective Taking, and Inner Critic vs. Inner Coach.

# data[].attributes.body
Upon completion of this group, students will master the following Mindset and Behavior Standards:

M 1. Belief in development of whole self, including a healthy balance of mental, social/emotional and physical well-being

B-SMS 1. Responsibility for self and actions

B-SMS 2. Self-discipline and self-control

B-SMS 6. Ability to identify and overcome barriers

B-SS4. Empathy

(American School Counselor Association, 2021)

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
Working with other adults for better outcomes for students. 

# data[].attributes.body
Since two students from each grade level will be selected for this group based on incident reports and teacher observation, the information given out will be specific to certain students, parents, and teachers.

I would begin with informing the classroom teachers about the students who have the potential for selection and what the group focus would be. I would then get feedback on if the group would be beneficial to those students.

If teachers are in agreement, parent phone calls would be made followed by sending an informational letter home.

Then students would be made aware of the group formation. They would each receive information about each week of the group and what the main focus will be.

# data[].attributes.body
Incident reports and teacher feedback will be analyzed to find 4-5 students from each grade level who show an increase in dysregulation and keeping their emotions under control.

Each of these students will be met with individually to be informed of the group, what we would focus on, and what will be expected of them. Through this conversation, I would gauge interest and commitment level.

From these individual conversations, I could then select the two students from each grade level who would contribute to the effectiveness of the group. I would also be able to see students who are wanting to actively work to meet their goals.

(Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015)

# data[].attributes.body
In Lubbock ISD, parents or guardians are asked to sign a consent form at the beginning of the school year for their students to participate in counseling.

For this group, I would send an additional consent form for the student to receive group counseling. In this consent form, I would give details about what the main focus of the counseling group will be.

When students first meet in the group together, I would explain the importance of confidentiality with the students. Everyone would need to agree or give assent to keep things confidential and to participate in the group.

(Dodge, M. 2021)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Consent to Participate in School-Based Counseling

# data[].attributes.body
It is very important to set ground rules for the success of the counseling group. The ground rules give everyone the same expectations for the group and helps with monitoring participation.

This specific document gives rules as suggestions with the opportunity for the group to generate other ground rules as needed. I would use this document as the foundation to make an anchor chart of the rules so it can be easily referred back to for each session. We would utilize the "Looks Like" and "Sounds Like" columns for students to give their own version of the rules.

These 10 rules that are in the document would be the rules predetermined by me, but then I would allow for students to make suggestions of other rules, if needed. The aspects of "Looks Like" and "Sounds Like" gives participants the space to determine what each rule means to them.

(Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015).

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
The stages of group dynamics are like this plant. The group must continue to grow and develop for the success of the members as a whole. 

# data[].attributes.body
Group Dynamics are important to the overall success of the group.

In Stage 1, group participants are getting to know each other, establish norms and rules, and build trust with the leader and other participants. For my group, Get in the Zone!, students would do an ice breaker and a common ground activity where they would find out that they are all there for similar reasons. I would then get an anchor chart and go into explaining the non-negotiable norms of the group which are:

Speak from the heart

Listen from the heart

Trust the Process

Be mindful of time

Then I will ask students if there are any other norms they would like to establish and we will add that to the poster. After this, we will discuss confidentiality, and how what is said in group, needs to remain in the group. There are exceptions to confidentiality and I will explain those to the group. I will then ask the group members if they agree with the norms and have the students sign the anchor chart as acknowledgement of their agreement.

In Stage 2, participants are working together to meet individual and group goals. The desired group outcomes are for students to develop a sense of self-awareness as well as self-management skills. I also want them to be able to identify the Zones of Regulation and utilize them to improve behavior. Since this group is at school, I will be checking in with group members individually in class to see how they are doing with self-awareness and self-management. While working with them in the group setting, each session will start with a self rating survey of how they feel they have done for the week with self-awareness and self-management. Participants will share the ratings with each other to be able to encourage the other participants to keep working towards meeting their goals.

In Stage 3, the group will come to an end and participants will be given time to reflect on where they were when the group began, and where they are now that the group is coming to a close. We will review what they have learned about self-awareness, self-management, and the Zones of Regulation. I would lead the students to develop a plan of action and individual goals they want to meet in the weeks following the closure of the group. I will lead this last session with the hope of encouraging the students to continue to meet their goals. I will also remind them that just because our group is ending, does not mean that we can now share everyone's secrets. There must still be confidentiality when it comes to talking about others and situations from the group.

(Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015).

# data[].attributes.body
I would say that my leadership style of this group could bounce back and forth between Authoritarian and Participative (Democratic) Leadership.

I would be Authoritarian in the sense that I know the direction that the group needs to go and I would be dictating who does what when. I would be Participative or Democratic in the sense that the students would have the ability to help establish the norms and ground rules for our group. I would also be an active participant and answer the questions for myself and provide my own examples to the group. I would want to share in the learning with the participants.

These leadership styles would work best with this group because the group members are 8, 9, and 10 years old and they would need to have someone to take charge of this group to help them gain the skills they are needing to access.

(Cherry, K. 2023)

# data[].attributes.body
In my group, the potential to see some of Yalom's Therapeutic Factors would be high. I feel like Universality would definitely exist between participants because all of the students are there because they have similar behavioral problems in the classrooms. They would have the ability to connect and see that they are not the only one on campus who has rough behaviors.

As the counselor, I would be Imparting Information to the group relating to self-awareness, self-management, and the Zones of Regulation.

The students could also have the potential to Develop Socializing Techniques through the process of relating with other people. Many students who have extreme behavior problems in the classroom, do not typically have many friends or are able to socialize well. Through being in this group, students might be able to develop those socializing skills because they are with people who are similar to them.

Since I have different grade levels within the group, I might be able to see some Imitative Behaviors. The third graders in the group may feel the need to imitate the fourth or fifth graders if they feel the need to show some maturity.

The students might also show or give Direct Advice to other participants. Direct Advice would definitely be given to participants from the counselor as well.

(Yalom, ID, 1995)

# data[].attributes.headline
Counselor Legal and Ethical Requirements

# data[].attributes.subject
Counselor Legal and Ethical Requirements

# data[].attributes.body
In ASCA School Counselor Professional Standards & Competencies, under Direct and Indirect Student Services B-SS 3 states "Provide short term counseling in small group and individual settings". In B-SS 3a, it states that the counselor will "use data to identify students in need of counseling intervention".

This standard and competency shows that a school counselor must collect data to be able to identify which students are in need of intervention. With my plan of gathering teacher feedback, incident report data and observation data, I would be utilizing different forms of data to select the students in need of intervention.

(American School Counselor Association, 2019)

# data[].attributes.headline
Counselor Legal and Ethical Requirements

# data[].attributes.subject
Counselor Legal and Ethical Requirements

# data[].attributes.body
In the American Counseling Association Code of Ethics, A.9a discusses Group Work and Screening participants saying "Counselors screen prospective group counseling therapy participants. To the extent possible, counselors select members whose needs and goals are compatible with the goals of the group, who will not impede the group process, and whose well-being will not be jeopardized by the group experience."

The students that participate in my group will be screened through an interview process to make sure that the student's goals are similar to the goals of the group. Having this interview or screening process will ensure that the right students are selected and they will not be a hindrance to themselves or others.

(American Counseling Association, 2014)

# data[].attributes.body
American School Counselor Association. (2021). ASCA student standards; Mindsets and behaviors for student success. Alexandria, VA: Author.

American School Counselor Association. (2019). ASCA School Counselor Professional Standards & Competencies. Alexandria, VA: Author.

American Counseling Association. (2014). ACA code of ethics. Alexandria, VA: Author. counseling.org

Cherry, K. (27 June 2023). How to lead: 6 leadership styles and frameworks. Verywell Mind. Retrieved from: https://www.verywellmind.com/leadership-styles-2795312

Dodge, M. (29 September 2021). Consent to participate in school-based counseling. Lubbock ISD Professional Development.

Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators. (2015). Professional school counselor small group counseling guide: A professional school counselor’s guide to planning, implementing, and evaluating school-based counseling groups.

Yalom ID. (1995). The theory and practice of group psychotherapy (4th ed.). New York: Basic Books.