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A psychoeducation group for middle school students struggling with anger management, anxiety, and stress management. This six week group will focus on building emotion regulation skills for students between the ages of 11 and 14 years. The Regulators will meet weekly to build the skills needed for improved intrapersonal, interpersonal, academic, and school functioning. This is a closed group designed to help students learn how to identify their emotions, thoughts, behaviors and implement skills to reduce distress and improve their social-emotional functioning.

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Group members will master the ASCA behaviors of:

B-LS 1. Critical thinking skills to make informed decisions

B-SMS 1. Responsibility for self and actions

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

B-SMS 7. Effective coping skills

B-SS 2. Positive, respectful and supportive relationships with students who are similar to and different from them

B-SS 6. Effective collaboration and cooperation skills

B-SS 9. Social maturity and behaviors appropriate to the situation and environment

With the following mindsets in place:

M1. Belief in development of whole self, including a healthy balance of mental, social/emotional and physical well-being

M2. Sense of acceptance, respect, support and inclusion for self and others in the school environment

M3. Positive attitude towards work and learning

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Through teacher and student needs assessments, grade reporting, behavior incidents reporting, and attendance measures, it is determine that a group for students to learn ways to regulate their emotions is needed. A flyer will be placed in each teachers mailbox, posted on announcement boards, and distributed through the school's parent communication board. An announcement will be made during the monthly faculty meeting for all staff. The students will be provided a flyer in an individual meeting to discuss the group and expectations.

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Students who have been identified through cross referencing student and teacher needs assessments, grades reporting, behavior incidents reporting, and attendance measures will be selected to be members in the small group. The student will have an individual consultation with the school counselor to determine their general thoughts and feelings about being a group member. They will also discuss the purpose and goals of the group, expectations as a group member, readiness, and the benefits for them attending (Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education [MDESE], 2015). By agreeing to be a part of the group they will be expected to participate, be helpful to others, be respectful, maintain confidentiality, and share in meaningful ways (MDESE, 2015). The student will have the opportunity to ask questions before attending the initial group session and to explore goals for personal growth to ensure appropriateness for the group milieu.

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Prior to working with the student, the parent will be contacted by phone to discuss concerns seen in the child's behaviors and appropriateness for small group counseling. The school counselor will inform the parent of the goals of learning emotion regulation skills and how these skills will benefit the child academically, behaviorally, and socially. The school counselor must obtain verbal consent prior to talking with the student about the group (Pender & Thomas, 2008). The parent will be provided a paper copy and be sent a fillable electronic Informed Consent Form through the FERPA protected school communication system. The student will not be allowed to attend group unless the parent has signed for informed consent as per school policy (Sanger ISD, 2023).

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Ground rules are established for the safety and productivity of all members. The following ground rules are pre-determined by the group leader and required for all:

1. Respect each other and the group space

2. What is said in group stays in group

3. Attendance and being on time are required

By using the Participant Guidelines/ Ground Rules handout during the first group session, a safe baseline of understanding can be established for all members. The established rules would be reviewed and each group member will have the option to add additional rules to ensure individual needs for having a safe place to work are met. All rules will be agreed upon by group members, which allows for cohesion and comfort during the orientation stage of group counseling. Each member will receive a copy of the group rules. The rules will be posted in the group counseling room for each session.

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Stage 1: Establish group norms and build trust

The group leader will engage explicitly throughout the group process and act as a model for norms and expectations. To establish the group, I would first address the purpose of the group, review informed consent, and state the limits of confidentiality (MDESE, 2015). Remind students that what is said in the group space stays in the group space, it is not gossip, and we are all in here trusting each other to keep our personal information secret. Confidentiality can not be guaranteed, but it is strived for every second. The only times that it will be broken is if a student is a danger to self, someone else, or if there is some form of abuse happening. I have to make sure that each group member is safe. A posting of confidentiality and limits will hang in the room. All students will verbally affirm their understanding and have the opportunity to ask clarifying questions. Then begin building connection and rapport within the group by having each student introduce themselves and playing an icebreaker game, which can help peers identify common interests. I will also have each group member identify one goal for participating in group. I would encourage dialogue between group members and ask for their feedback and understanding throughout.

Stage 2: Maintaining cohesion, trust, and safety

Confidentiality and ground rules will be reviewed at the beginning of each session to maintain awareness and building a place of security, trust, and safety (MDESE, 2015). I would introduce each session's purpose and ask group members for success stories and about their efforts to put in place learned skills in the past week. This would establish the norm of implementing learned skills, inviting feedback from peers, encourage involvement, and guage progress throughout. At the end of each session, the group will process what was learned and identified, and then be assigned homework for each member to complete (MDESE, 2015). Having open dialogue builds connection and encourages growth individually and within the group interactions.

Stage 3: Closure

In the final group session, I would take time in the beginning of the session to talk about how each group member feels about group ending and provide support and encouragement to all for putting in place learned skills post group. I would also encourage them to maintain the friendships that they built within the group and remind them that confidentiality does not end when group ends, but it is something that is kept always. I would plan an activity for the final session that incorporates all learned skills in a fun way, to encourage recognition of growth and build confidence in their ability to implement these skills outside of group (MDESE, 2015). I would also have them complete a post-assessment for them to gauge their progress and the group successfulness. I will have each group member identify their original goal and ask them how they feel about their progress in meeting their goal. I will also let each member know that I will be following up with them individually periodically to see how they are doing with maintaining goals and using their learned skills. This encourages continued growth and reduces fear of abandonment.

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I would adopt the Transformational leadership style when working with The Regulators. This would be effective for The Regulators group because it encourages growth while maintaining the group purpose through a powerful vision and belief in group members that they can succeed (Cherry, 2023). Transformational leaders create a culture of trust and goal alignment through effective communication, empowerment, and motivation (Cherry, 2023). This would provide a strong level of support that is encouraging for the students to succeed and build confidence in their belief to put learned skills into place. Students learning emotion regulation skills need to feel secure, encouraged, and supported as they try new skills and this leadership style provides this as a strong base from which members can grow.

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In an emotion regulation group I would expect to see the Instillation of Hope as group members begin to recognize that the skills learned can be effective (Yalom, 1995). Group members may demonstrate Universality as the recognize that everyone in the group struggles with the same difficulties and are in this together to learn. Group members would show Development of Socializing Techniques through modeling behaviors and use of learned skills in and outside of the group. The group members could also demonstrate Interpersonal Learning as they are encouraged to share and communicate feedback throughout the group sessions. Members would also show Direct Advice as rapport is built, they would begin to share skills and strategies that work for them to advise others (Yalom, 1995).

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According to the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Ethical Standards for School Counselors, in group work it is important to "communicate the aspiration of confidentiality as a group norm, while recognizing and working from the protective posture that confidentiality for students in small groups cannot be guaranteed" (p. 4). By engaging in group work, it is important to recognize that confidentiality is strived for at all times, but can not be guaranteed. This guideline supports the role of the school counselor by establishing safe parameters to work from. It allows for the school counselor to know that if necessary, confidentiality can be breached in the event of a student being a threat to self or others, or if there is an outcry of abuse or neglect. The school counselor can balance confidentiality and safety by understanding the parameters of practice. This standard allows for the protection of group members as they can understand that their cognitive and emotional safety is paramount. They can share and know the scope of their sharing within the group is safe, which builds trust and connection.This also brings awareness to the risk of a student breaching the confidentiality of a group member. By having awareness, confidentiality issues can be mitigated by the school counselor through communication, expectations, and clear rules. This highlights the importance of having frequent reminders of confidentiality in each group session and planning for risks as a school counselor.

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According to ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors, the school counselor should "reflect on group outcomes and determine adjustments that may improve future group interventions" (p.4). This ethical standard reflects on the importance of growth not just for the students participating in the group, but also for the school counselor and counseling program. This encourages the use of data collection, feedback, and reflection throughout all stages of group planning and implementation. It encourages the school counselor to be mindful during the group process to identify adjustments for improving programming and the effectiveness of interventions and skills taught within the group. As a school counselor, it is important to recognize the needs of students as well as encourage the counselor to continue learning and growing to best support the students. This standard encourages improvements to be made in the interventions used and focuses on supporting the growth mindset of a school counselor.

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American School Counselor Association [ASCA]. (2022). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors. https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/44f30280-ffe8-4b41-9ad8-f15909c3d164/EthicalStandards.pdf

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

Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. (2015). Missouri comprehensive guidance & counseling programs: Linking school success to life success. https://dese.mo.gov/media/pdf/guid-respon-serv-small-group-counseling-guide-2015

Pender, D. A., & Thomas, R.V. (May 2008). Association for Specialists in Group Work: Best Practice Guidelines 2007 Revisions. The Journal for Specialists in Group Work. 33 (2): 11-117. DOI:10.1080/01933920801971184

Sanger Independent School District. (2023). Our district. https://www.sangerisd.net

Yalom, Irvin D. (1995). The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy (4th ed.). Basic Books