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Anger Avengers focuses on empowering 5th grade boys to develop skills for understanding and managing their anger in a positive and productive way. We do this by fun, interactive activities and discussions.

The group will focus on recognizing the signs of anger, learning techniques to stay calm, and finding healthy ways to express anger. The goal of this group is to empower each student to handle challenging situations with control and confidence. We do this by ensuring each student has the tools to resolve conflicts appropriately and maintain positive relationships.

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Upon completion of the group, students will identify the following mindsets and behaviors:

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*

*(ASCA, 2021).

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-SMS 7. Effective coping skills*

B-SS 4. Empathy*

B-SS 6. Effective collaboration and cooperation skills*

B-SS 8. Advocacy skills for self and others and ability to assert self, when necessary*

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

*(ASCA, 2021).

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Parents:

Email: Send out an email with information about the group's goals, structure, and benefits. Include contact information if they want to nominate student for group.

School Facebook Page: Post information about the group on the school’s Facebook page. Include contact information if they want to nominate student for group.

Students:

Classroom Announcements: Share a fun announcement about the group during homeroom and lunch time. Include information on how to contact counselor for consideration.

Flyers: Put up flyers around the school that highlight the group’s fun activities and the benefits of joining. Include information on how to contact counselor for consideration.

Teachers and Administration Team:

Email: Send an email with a brief overview of the group, the benefits for students, and how teachers/staff refer students to the group.

Staff Meeting: Present the program during a staff meeting to explain its benefits and how teachers/staff can refer a student who would benefit.

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It is important to be ethical and remember not every student is ready for a group setting (Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015).

Referrals: Anger Avengers is a group for 5th grade boys who struggle with anger management. This is the initial selection criteria, then reviewing referrals from teachers/staff, parents and students is the next step.

Parental Consent: Once the referrals are reviewed, I would then make parent phone calls to those students who met criteria to obtain verbal consent from parent to speak more to student. IF student was chosen for the group, a written and signed consent would be obtained.

Individual Student Interviews: Use the "TAP-In" process Tell the student about the group, Ask the student about his level of interest/commitment to the group, Pick participants. (Morganett, 1990). This allows for the student to have a clear understanding of the group and ask questions. Along with decide themselves if they want to be involved or not--some students are not ready to address their needs.

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I would use the attached PDF Parent consent that has been created for the group. The process I would use is to call each chosen participants' parent/guardian. I would explain that their student has been chosen for the group and I am sending home a consent form that must be signed. I give an overview of the consent form, along with asking if they have any questions. I ensure that they understand that their student cannot participate until I have a signed copied back. I will then meet with the group and give them each the consent in an envelope--explaining that their parent knows it is coming and it has to be returned signed. I also provide an incentive (candy, fidget, etc.) if they can return--as 5th graders can be forgetful.

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I would use this as a guide to create our own anchor chart of group rules during the first session. I would put these into words/statements that the group members would understand and relate to. I also would ask for them to add anything they want as a group rule too.

My predetermined rules include:

No making fun of others

No cell phones

Participation is needed

Keep your hands to yourself

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

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Stage 1 Getting acquainted/setting norms/building trust: Building rapport with the group members is essential. I plan to do this by unconditional positive regard and active listening. I also think being able to show that I am human will help as well; such as providing appropriate self-disclosure. Group rules and reviewing confidentiality are critical to ensure all members are informed. The ability to create group rules together gives the members a sense of community and that this is their group. Limitations of confidentiality have to be discussed as well; harm to self, harm to others, abuse/neglect or a court order.

Stage 2 Working together to accomplish individual and group goals: During this stage I would be focusing on the group functioning together and learning. I would be monitoring progress of each member during sessions with the appropriate objectives for that session. Reminders of group rules and confidentiality would be used as well. We would all be working on our group goals and individual goals during our sessions in order to meet the objectives of the class and grow in our social/emotional areas.

Stage 3 Ending the Group: Discussion of termination begins in group one. Preparing the members about the end of these sessions should happen every session--to ensure no one is blind sighted by it. It is important for members to know how much time they have left in order to ask questions or work on skills they are lacking. This also allows time for them to process through emotions about the group ending. A follow-up session would be a good transition idea too after the group ends to each in with the group members and how they are applying what they have learned.

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

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Children don't respond well to being told "what to do". If I took a leadership style that was authoritarian, command by the leader and control of the followers, I would not have a group! (Cherry, 2023). "Democratic leaders offer guidance to group members, but they also participate in the group and allow input from other group members" (Cherry, 2023). This allows for the students to have a sense of control which is needed for them to participate in groups.

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Universality - demonstration that we are not alone in our misery or our "problems".

Altruism - opportunity to rise out of oneself and help somebody else; the feeling of usefulness.

Interpersonal learning - social learning or development of interpersonal skills.

Direct Advice - receiving and giving suggestions for strategies for handling problems.

Interpersonal learning - receiving feedback from others and experimenting with new ways of relating.

(Yalom, 1995)

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Informed Consent: This is an ethical requirement in group counseling, especially working with minors. Counselors must be sure that all participants are informed of the nature, purpose and projected outcomes of the group. Participants need to understand their participation is voluntary--and they can stop at any time with no penalty.

"The professional school counselor informs students and parents/guardians about the purpose, goals, techniques and rules of the counseling process, including the limitations of confidentiality (ASCA, 2022).

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B.1.C: Counselors must maintain confidentiality and only share information with appropriate consent or when required by law (American Counseling Association, 2014).

This means that I cannot share any information with teachers/staff unless I am provided consent from parent or permission from student to share. I think that this can be a very grey area for some situations as it could help support the student. There are limitations to confidentiality as well: harm to self, harm to others, abuse/neglect, and court order.

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ACSA ethical standards for school counselors. ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors- American School Cousnelor Association (ASCA). (2022). https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/44f30280-ffe8-4b41-9ad8-f15909c3d164/EthicalStandards.pdf

American Counseling Association. (2014). 2014 ACA code of ethics. https://www.counseling.org/knowledge-center/ethics

American School Counselor Association (2021). ASCA Student Standards; Mindsets and Behaviors for Student Success. Alexandria, VA: Author.

Cherry, Kendra. (2023). 6 leadership styles and Frameworks. Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/leadership-styles-2795312

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.

Morganett, R. S. (1990). Skills for living: Group counseling activities for young adolescents. Chicago: Research

Press.

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