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The Star Squad includes 20 students in grades 1-4. These students were chosen by their teacher as students who will benefit from being a part of this group. These students have been identified through teacher observations, classroom grades, district assessments, and multiple disciplinary infractions as needing assistance with developing better self control. Developing their ability for self control will lead to academic and social success.

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The members of this group will meet the following standards through their participation:

M 1. Belief in development of whole self, including a healthy balance of mental, social/emotional and physical well-being
M 2. Sense of acceptance, respect, support and inclusion for self and others in the school environment
M 3. Positive attitude toward work and learning
M 4. Self-confidence in ability to succeed M 5. Belief in using abilities to their fullest to achieve high-quality results and outcomes
B-SMS 1. Responsibility for self and actions
B-SMS 2. Self-discipline and self-control
B-SS 3. Positive relationships with adults to support success
B-SS 9. Social maturity and behaviors appropriate to the situation and environment

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This group will not need public advertising as it is a private group of handpicked students. The information that needs to out will be given to group members teachers through an email and a google form questionnaire. The plan will be to create flyers for the parents with information concerning the topic we will be studying each week and things that they could do at home to support that topic. Each week an email will go out to teachers and parents to discuss the students progress with a place for teacher and parent input as well.

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Students will be picked for this group based on the severity of their needs concerning self control. Teachers will fill out a premade questionnaire and the counselor will come in and do observations on those students to see if they are a good candidate for this specific group. Students for this group will be screened individually and depend on their specific needs. We will do a weekly assessment through a google form questionnaire to evaluate student progress.

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Once students are selected by teachers and the counselor, a form of consent will be sent home to parents along with a letter explaining the purpose of the group and how it will benefit their child's academics and social skills.
At the first meeting the kids will also sign a consent form that includes the rules for the group.

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During the first meeting we plan to go over the rules and discuss each one so participants fully understand group expectations.

Rule #1 - Respect all group members and the information they share.
Rule #2 - Group members will agree to not talk about the things talked about within the group.
Rule #3 - All members will participate and work to develop the new skills being taught.

On the first meeting, the group will come up with guidelines they find important to keep with in the group.

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There will be a star squad for each grade. Each squad will consist of five students from each grade. These students will have been identified as students who could benefit from some guidance on self control.
Stage 1: We will begin to build relationships within the group by creating a hello and goodbye routine between the counselor and student, and student to student.  We will build relationships through the creation of a social contract. As a group we will come up with the expectations on how we want to treat each other. Letting the students create the contract gives them a sense of responsibility to the group. We will hold very intentional discussions that connect students to the common goal of the group.
Stage 2: To keep members working together to reach a common goal we will read a topic related book, complete an activity/game, or hold a discussion to begin each class. Starting each class this way will help build relationships between the members. At the end of each weekly session, students will take a short survey to answer questions about how they feel and what they learned that week. This will be used to keep up with their progress throughout the 6 week session.
Stage 3: To close out the session each student will get a certificate of completion to show their growth within the group. Each group will come up with one goal they want to work on that will help them in the classroom and after two weeks we will have a session and check in to see how they did with their goal and come up with a new goal. We will also take this time to discuss the importance of not talking about the things other members have said in our group. Teaching the students that trust is earned and important for keeping relationships.

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With this type of group I would use a participative leadership style. Students with self control issues will need someone who can guide them but also be an active participant in the group as well. The students in this group will benefit from someone they can relate to and feel comfortable opening up with.

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In this type of group, I think that several of Yolam's therapeutic factors could be present. Some members of this group may demonstrate universality. Sometimes children who have a lack of self control need to see that there are others who suffer from this problem as well. Altruism may be a present factor within this group as they start helping other members reach their goal. The factor that I hope all students demonstrate is the development of socializing techniques. Through the skills the members will be learning each week we should see a growth in their social learning. Some of the members of this group may demonstrate imitative behavior when they experience other members who deal with certain situations in a healthier manner.

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According to the Texas Administrative Code standard V(2) of section 239.15 school counselors must advocate for all students by using their "knowledge of group dynamics and productive group interactions. This ethical requirement supports me in my role as the counselor of this group by demonstrating how important it is to know the behaviors in the group and predict how they may react to each other. This will give me an idea of how to best handle situations as they may arise during group meetings.

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According to the ACA Code of Ethics, school counselors must follow certain ethical requirements during small group counseling. The A.9.a. screening standard states that, "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" (ACA, 2014). This ethical standard supports my role as the counselor of the star squad by providing me with a guideline on the importance of screening the students that will best benefit from this particular group. The group being based on lack of self control makes screening an important part of picking the members so that a student will not impede the process of the group.

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American Counseling Association. (2005). In ACA Code of Ethics: As approved by the ACA Governing Council, 2005. essay.

Cherry, K. (2021, August 11). What are prominent leadership styles and frameworks you should know? Verywell Mind. Retrieved April 21, 2022, from https://www.verywellmind.com/leadership-styles-2795312

19 Texas Administrative Code §239.15