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The Breakfast Club and The Lunch Bunch Small Counseling Groups

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The Breakfast Club and The Lunch Bunch Small Counseling Groups

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The Lunch Bunch and The Breakfast Club are small groups of 4th through 5th grade students, ranging from nine to around eleven years old.  These students have been selected based on a needs assessment, teacher recommendation and counselor observation. They have been identified as needing further development in managing anxiety to address social and academic concerns, specifically in relation to testing, including STAAR Reading and Math.  The counselor will meet with these groups once a week; one group will meet for small group and breakfast with the counselor, and the other group will meet for lunch and small group with the counselor.  The group will focus on identifying worries and coping strategies.

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After reviewing the Needs Assessment and gathering teacher input, personal invitations will be delivered to the identified students.  More information on the group will be emailed/mailed directly to the parents of the invited students.

A quick reference infographic will be delivered to all teachers in their mailboxes. The counselor will explain the information to them during monthly team meetings. The infographic will contain facts/information about the group and information to help teachers identify students that could benefit from the small group skills.

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For the first round of groups of students that were identified based on the Needs Assessment, the pre-selected students will be observed in the classroom by the school counselor.  It would be especially helpful to observe during a test, if possible.  After observation, the counselor will meet individually with students to be assessed in order to see if the small group skills would be beneficial to them.  The school counselor will follow this format:

* Informing students about the group
- Describing the group
- Tell students what they may gain from being in the group
- Explain group expectations, including participation and confidentiality

*Gauge students' level of interest and commitment
- Is the student willing to follow expectations and ground rules?
-  Have the student rate their level of interest.
-  Is the student a willing participant?  (Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015)

Once the counselor confirms that the student would benefit, the personal invitations will be sent directly to the student, and information will be sent to the child's parent/guardian.

For future small groups covering the same topics, the counselor will review teacher recommendations and parent recommendations.  The counselor will conduct observations and individual meetings with potentially identified students to see if they could benefit from the small group.  If so, the invitation will be given to the student and information sent to the parent/guardian.

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For this group, there are several Therapeutic Factors that could be present.  First, Universality would be present.  Anxiety is a miserable feeling, and it will be beneficial for the group members to find that they are not alone in this problem.  They will learn that others may even have the exact same worries as they do.
Second, Imparting of Information will be present in this group. Students will learn that anxiety is a mental health concern.  They will learn about the process of anxiety, and what happens to the brain and body when anxiety is occurring.
Third, Direct Advice will be present in the group.  Students will be given the opportunity to come up with coping strategies and offer this advice to the other group members.

(Yalom, 1995)

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Prior to beginning the group, the school counselor will have the following group rules established:
1.  Be respectful to each other
2. Understand and respect confidentiality
3.  You have the opportunity to share, but you are not required to do so.

Additional rules will be created and discussed with the small group during the opening session.  These rules will be agreed upon and reviewed (looks like, sounds like) to ensure understanding and commitment before students sign their assent forms.

(Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015)

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American Counseling Association. (2014). ACA code of ethics. https://www.counseling.org/resources/aca-code-of-ethics.pdf

American School Counselor Association. (2022). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors. https://www.schoolcounselor.org/About-School-Counseling/Ethical-Legal-Responsibilities/ASCA-Ethical-Standards-for-School-Counselors-(1)

Cherry, K. (2021, August 11). Leadership styles and  frameworks you should know. Verywell
Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/leadership-styles-2795312

Groesbeck ISD. Groesbeck ISD - Student Handbook.    Retrieved November 5, 2022, from https://www.groesbeckisd.net/99847_2

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.
http://www.missouricareereducation.org/doc/smallgroup/SmallGroupCounseling.pdf

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

Texas administrative code. (2021, January 23). Retrieved November 5, 2022, from https://texreg.sos.state.tx.us/public/readtac$ext.TacPage?sl=R&app=9&p_dir=&p_rloc=&p_tloc=&p_ploc=&pg=1&p_tac=&ti=19&pt=7&ch=239&rl=15

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Group members are fourth and fifth grade male and female students who have been identified with struggles with anxiety affecting their academic and social progress.  These students are underachieving in at least one academic core subject.

Stage 1 will focus on discussions and activities aimed at building positive and trusting relationships among the group members and the school counselor.  Group norms, rules and expectations will be determined and discussed.  This will include a discussion of maintaining confidentiality, each group member's responsibility in maintaining confidentiality, and the school counselor's limitations to confidentiality.  The group will be notified that to maintain trust within the group, even though confidentiality can not be guaranteed in a group setting, they are responsible for doing their part in upholding the expectation of confidentiality.  They will also be notified to not share anything they feel uncomfortable with, and that they can request a one-on-one discussion with the school counselor outside of the group setting.  The counselor will work to establish a culture of trust, understanding, non-judgment and empathy.

Stage 2 will consist of activities aimed at identifying worries, triggers, coping strategies and goal setting.  Opportunities for students to share will be given, as well as opportunities for students to offer praise and encouragement to other group members.  Students will celebrate breakthroughs and milestones in meeting their overall academic and social goals.  Discussion and sharing experiences will promote trust and encouragement among the group members.

Stage 3 will emphasize support among the group members, including for after the group concludes.  To help prevent the "feeling of abandonment," the counselor will encourage the members to look to each other for friendship and motivation as they continue to work towards their academic and social goals involving managing anxiety.  They will be encouraged to check in with each other regularly and offer encouragement.  The counselor will make plans for follow up with each student.  The counselor will check in on goal progress and feelings about the group experience (see attached form).   The counselor will also periodically check in with the students' teachers to monitor continued progress and academic success.

(Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015)

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According to the American Counseling Association, even though minors can not give informed consent due to age, counselors can seek the assent of these clients to include them in the decision making process as appropriate.  In order to participate in the group, the school counselor, after reviewing group expectations and confidentiality, will allow the participant to give assent.  If they do not sign for assent, they will not continue in the group sessions.  The right to assent is also seen in the American School Counselor Ethical Responsibilities.  The school counselor should make attempts to gain appropriate assent to the individual student.

A.2.d. Inability to Give Consent When counseling minors, incapacitated adults, or other persons unable to give voluntary consent, counselors seek the assent of clients to services and include them in decision making as appropriate. Counselors recognize the need to balance the ethical rights of clients to make choices, their capacity to give consent or assent to receive services, and parental or familial legal rights and responsibilities to protect these clients and make decisions on their behalf.
(American Counseling Association, 2014)

A. 2. Confidentiality
School counselors:
* Recognize that informed consent requires competence, voluntariness and knowledge on students’ part to understand the limits of confidentiality and, therefore, can be difficult to obtain from students of certain developmental levels and special-needs populations. The school counselor should make attempts to gain assent appropriate to the individual student (e.g., in the student’s preferred language) prior to disclosure.

(American School Counselor Association, 2022)

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The following Mindsets and Behaviors for students will be met through participation in this group:

Mindsets-
M 4. Self-confidence in ability to succeed
M 5. Belief in using abilities to their fullest to achieve high-quality results and outcomes

Behaviors-
Learning Strategies:
B-LS 7. Long- and short-term academic, career and social/emotional goals

Self-Management Skills:
B-SMS 2. Self-discipline and self-control
B-SMS 5. Perseverance to achieve longand short-term goals
B-SMS 6. Ability to identify and overcome barriers
B-SMS 7. Effective coping skills

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

(American School Counselor Association)

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For this small group, a participative leadership approach will be used.  According to Lewin's study, this is typically the most effective leadership style.  This is because democratic leaders offer guidance to group members, but they also participate in the group and allow group members to provide input.  The study also found that contributions from children in a democratic led group are of higher quality.  Under this style of leadership, the students will feel engaged in the entire process and become more motivated and creative.  The school counselor, using this style of leadership, will guide students to feel like an important part of the group, which will lead to commitment to the goals of the group (Cherry, 2021).

This approach would work best because as opposed to the leader (the counselor) making all of the decisions and not allowing for student input, the group members would work as a team to provide input, leading to more engagement, motivation and creativity.

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According to the ASCA Ethical Standards (A.7.F), school counselors have the ethical responsibility to use data to inform group topics, establish well-defined expectations and measure the outcomes of group participation.

(American School Counselor Association, 2022)

This will be evident in the small group focusing on anxiety coping strategies.  The group will be formed based on school needs (needs based assessment), teacher/parent recommendation and counselor observation.  Expectations will be established, discussed and agreed upon for participation in the group.  The school counselor will follow up with students to check on progress towards their goals and monitor their academic progress, including STAAR results.

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The Groesbeck Independent School District does not have a policy for obtaining informed consent for the minor student.  Taken directly from the 2022-2023 student handbook:

Personal Counseling (All Grade Levels):
The school counselor is available to assist students with a wide range of personal, social, and family concerns, including emotional or mental health issues and substance abuse. A student who wishes to meet with the school counselor should make an appointment through the office with the consent of the classroom teacher. As a parent, if you are concerned about your child’s  mental or emotional health, please speak with the school counselor for a list of resources that may be of assistance. If your child has experienced trauma, contact the school counselor for more information (Groesbeck Independent School District, 2022).

Regardless of district policy, upon selecting students for the group, the school counselor will require informed consent from the parent or guardian.  The form will be sent home with the student to deliver to parent/guardian for signature.  If the form does not come back in a timely manner, the form will be mailed directly to the parent to review and signature.  The counselor will follow up with the parent/guardian if signed form is not returned back to the school.

In addition, the counselor will require the student to sign for assent during the first meeting, after reviewing group rules and the purpose.   The student will not be able to further participate without both parent/guardian consent and student assent.

(Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015)

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According to Standard 2 of section239.15, the certified school counselor applies the knowledge base to promote the educational, personal, social, and career development of the learner as outlined in The Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs.

Standard II (3C) states that the certified school counselor must counsel individuals and smalls groups using appropriate counseling theories and techniques in response to students' needs.
Standard II (6C) states that the certified school counselor must demonstrate proficiency in teaching small and large groups by actively engaging students in the learning process
(Texas Administrative Code, 2021)

During our small group sessions, students will be actively engaged in their learning process via discussions, connecting their learning to potential real-life situations, and hands on activities.