Elementary Education Group by Jennille Schab https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320 Krista Barron, Allison McNamara, Jennille Schab & Erica Booker en-us 2022-02-28 17:47:15 UTC 2025-05-02 15:23:04 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103848975 We are working for a school that is in a low-income area of a generally affluent county. The majority of students are considered minority, with the largest population identifying as Black/African American, as well as a significant number of Mexican/Latino students. The smallest population is Caucasian-American students. Approximately 75% of the students walk to school, living in apartment complexes or townhome communities immediately surrounding the school. Many of the students live in multi-generational and extended family households, with a relatively large number of people sharing a small space. More than half of the students qualify for Free and Reduced Lunches (FARM). The school climate is very inclusive and accepting. The staff are engaged, committed to ALL of the students, and truly collaborative and supportive of both students and the other staff. ]]> 2022-03-20 16:33:29 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103848975 https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103851191 The families in this school community were considered high-risk during the Covid epidemic for multiple reasons: (1)Much of the school population is Black/African American, which were considered higher risk; (2)Parents needed their jobs to support their families, and didn’t get paid if they didn’t work, so they couldn’t afford to contract the Coronavirus and isolate for 10 days; (3)Because of the multi-generation and extended family households, they were living in close quarters which increased their vulnerability to being infected. Due to these situations, and others, the community was generally very cautious during Covid and kept their kids at home. Many kids didn’t go back to school in spring of 2021 when schools opened on a hybrid basis. Several students did not interact with anyone other than those in their household for a very extended period of time, other than during virtual classes. Those in the youngest grades (Kindergarten and 1st), are likely to have NEVER experienced in-person social interaction outside of their household. This group is the group we are targeting.]]> 2022-03-20 16:36:12 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103851191 jennilleschab https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103886127
  • The Group will be meeting in the school counseling office during lunch time: (12-12:30/12:45 pm) 30-45 minute sessions.
  • The days and times of meeting will be communicated with parents via a newsletter sent home, along with an email letting the parents know what the goal for each group session is. The parents have already completed surveys letting us know information about their student and have filled out consent forms allowing their student to participate in the group. By having a monthly newsletter to the parents, it will allow them to become an active participant in what activity took place during the group.
  • Administration will be made aware of the dates and times of the meetings by having it put on the school calendar. Administration will also be able to offer any input into the selection of students into the group and possibly offer suggestions for ways the group could be made stronger.
  • Our group meetings will be held at lunch in order to keep the students in their classes daily. This is so we do not disturb the learning of the students. 

]]> 2022-03-20 17:20:19 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103886127 jennilleschab https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103887763
The target population of this group are students who spent most of the time during COVID at home. They were not able to interact with their peers in person during school and have possibly never interacted with others in social settings outside of their families. These students have little to no social skills currently.

We want to focus on students who are in Kindergarten and 1st grade who have never attended in person school during “normal” settings. 

Students will be recruited/referred by communicating with the Kindergarten and 1st grade teachers to get their recommendations about which students could benefit the most. These would be students who are struggling to make friends or having negative interactions with their peers. After communicating with the teachers, we plan on having the identified students fill out a developmentally appropriate survey, and lastly we will send out surveys to the parents of the identified students to gain their perspectives. 
]]> 2022-03-20 17:21:53 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103887763 Other Interested Individuals jennilleschab https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103891132 If during our initial recruitment/referral process we do not get a large enough number of students to participate we will begin to open our group to other students in K and 1st that have minimal social skills and can benefit from learning more skills on how to interact with others. We will go back to the teachers to get additional referrals and possibly send out an email to the parents of the students in Kindergarten and 1st grade to see if there are any parent referrals for their child. ]]> 2022-03-20 17:26:02 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103891132 jennilleschab https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103892269 Students who meet the participation criteria need to:
  1. Have little to no social skills.
  2. Struggle to build connections with peers or people outside of their immediate family.
  3. May have had no contact with people outside of their families during the past year of COVID due to family living situations.
  4. Possibly have been alone during the day due to parents being at work. 
  5. Have little to no interest in going to school.


]]> 2022-03-20 17:27:25 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103892269 Student Assessment https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103894177 This is the needs assessment that will be given to the group of kindergarten and first grade students identified by their teachers as having delayed social-emotional skills in comparison to their peers.]]> 2022-03-20 17:29:54 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103894177 jennilleschab https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103894654 Efficacy of the group will be measured by observation. The observation will be by the group facilitators along with asking the students teachers to observe the students in class to see if there are changes in interaction with their peers. We as group facilitators will be observing the students interactions within our group setting along with observations made during lunch, recess and other times throughout the school day in which the students have the opportunity to interact with their peers. We will also have the students fill out the same self assessment that they filled out in the beginning  as a “post test” to see if they rate their social world more positively.]]> 2022-03-20 17:30:32 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103894654 Parent Input https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103898729 The parents of the identified students will be sent an email explaining that their child was selected as possibly being a good fit for a social group to be led by the school counselor, and that the school needs more information about the child's social history in order to determine if the child will benefit from the group. This survey will be sent as a Google Form.]]> 2022-03-20 17:35:27 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103898729 Needs Assessment Results https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103908828 The parent and child assessments identified a group of 8 students who had not been around children outside of their household for the past 2 years due to the pandemic, and who had demonstrated on the student social skills assessment that social situations were difficult for them, but who considered it important to them to have friends. This last part about the perceived importance of friendship was essential for the counselor to believe that they would actually want to benefit from the social skills group.]]> 2022-03-20 17:46:42 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103908828 Approach https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103916417 The need for this group was initially identified by teachers who noticed many students struggling to get along with peers and build friendships. The topic regularly came up at team meetings and in informal conversations among staff members. The most pressing concerns were overwhelmingly regarding the kindergarten and first grade students. Sink, et al. (2012) define a needs assessment as identifying the most pressing concerns for that particular school on a year-to-year basis. It was becoming clear to administration that the teachers had identified social skills as a significant need within the school, especially among the youngest students, so administration involved the school counselor. To further pinpoint which students were most in need of social skills interventions, a multi-phase approach will be instituted:
  1. Informally request feedback from K and 1st teachers, asking about students that seem to be struggling to make friends, are alone a lot, or frequently have negative interactions with their peers
  2. Provide a developmentally appropriate survey to identified students to determine their assessment of their friends and peer interactions.
  3. Send a survey to the parents of identified students inquiring about their child’s social interactions over the past 2 years, who they have been around, and their perceptions of who their child’s friends are, if any
]]> 2022-03-20 17:56:41 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103916417 https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103920340 There is significant evidence that children’s social-emotional competence is linked to overall success in school. Denham (2006) notes that kids who enter kindergarten with higher social-emotional competence are more likely to have more positive attitudes about school, better adjustment to the school setting, and also have higher grades and overall achievement in school. Conversely, when milestones in social-emotional competence are not achieved, students are much more likely to be at risk for academic failure and psychological distress; this is partially because these students participate less in class, are less accepted by peers and teachers, and teachers even (subconsciously) provide them with less instruction and positive feedback (Denham, 2006). 

Since returning to in person learning, teachers in schools all over are seeing increased instances of self-centered behaviors, such as wanting all of the teachers attention, students engaging in antisocial behaviors with peers for attention, throwing tantrums when they don’t get their way, and taking toys or other objects that they want from peers. Additionally, with the lack of practice students have had in interaction with different personalities of kids and problem solving with peers, minor conflicts are escalating more quickly than they used to prior to the pandemic (Campbell, 2021).Developmentally this makes sense, as friendship skills are not just behavioral, but are heavily dependent on cognitive development, particularly in the area of perspective taking, and that growth in perspective-taking skills is critically dependent on interaction with peers (Broderick & Blewitt, 2020).


]]> 2022-03-20 18:02:03 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103920340 References https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103944098
Broderick, P.C., & Blewitt, P. (2020). The life span: Human development for helping
professionals (5th ed.) Hoboken, NJ: Pearson Education

Campbell, L. (2021, October 31). Impact of Covid-19 on children’s social skills. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/leahcampbell/2021/10/31/impact-of-covid-19-on-childrens-social-skills/?sh=7c62e12a2a54.

Denham, S.A. (2006). Social-emotional competence as support for school readiness: What is it and how do we assess it? Early Education and Development, 17(1), 57-89.

]]> 2022-03-20 18:34:26 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103944098 References https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103954476 Sink, C. A., Edwards, C., & Eppler, C. (2012). School based group counseling. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.

]]> 2022-03-20 18:49:07 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103954476 Podcast: Growing up in a Pandemic: How Covid is Affecting Children's Development https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103956401 2022-03-20 18:51:54 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103956401 Article: Impact of Covid-19 on Children's Social Skills https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103957192 2022-03-20 18:52:50 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103957192 Focus on 5 Social-Emotional Competency Clusters: https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103993349 1. Self-Awareness
  • Recognize emotions, thoughts, values, and how they influence behavior.
2. Self-Management
  • Ability to navigate and shift in a healthy way one's thoughts, emotions, and behaviors in order to make decisions and goals thats benefit self and others.
3. Social Skills
  • Sharing
  • Listening to others
  • Engaging
  • Empathy
  • Respecting boundaries
  • Patience
  • Following Directions
  • Working together
4. Relationship Skills
  • Friendships
  • Teamwork & problem solving
  • Communicating effectively
  • Resolving conflicts
  • Compromising among the group
5. Responsible Decision Making
  • Stay clam
  • Observe
  • Identify the problem
  • Make a plan
  • Make constructive and respectful choices
]]> 2022-03-20 19:41:51 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103993349 References https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103995085 Li, L., Flynn, K. S., DeRosier, M. E., Weiser, G., & Austin-King, K. (1AD, January 1). Social-emotional learning amidst COVID-19 school closures: Positive findings from an efficacy study of adventures aboard the S.S. grin program. Frontiers. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2021.683142/full ]]> 2022-03-20 19:43:21 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103995085 https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103998724 Mindsets:
  • 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 towards 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.
  • M 6. Understanding the postsecondary education and life-long learning are necessary for long-term success.
Behaviors:
Learning strategies:
  • B-LS 2. Creative approach to learning, tasks and problem solving
  • B-LS 3. Time-management, organizational and study skills
  • B-LS 4. Self-motivation and self- direction for learning
  • B-LS 7. Long- and short-term academic, career and social/emotional goals
  • B-LS 10. ​​Participation in enrichment and extracurricular activities
Self Management Skills:
  • B-SMS 1. Responsibility for self and actions
  • B-SMS 5. Perseverance to achieve long- and short-term goals
  • B-SMS 6. Ability to identify and overcome barriers
  • B-SMS 7. Effective Coping Skills
  • B-SMS 8.  Balance of school, home, and community activities.
  • B-SMS 10. Ability to manage transitions and adapt to change
Social skills:
  • B-SS 1. Effective oral and written communication skills and listening skills
  • B-SS 2. Positive, respectful and supportive relationships with students who are similar to and different from them.
  • B-SS 3. Positive relationships with adults to support success
  • B-SS 4. Empathy
  • B-SS 5. Ethical decision-making and social responsibility
  • B-SS 6. Effective collaboration and cooperation skills
  • B-SS 7. Leadership and teamwork skills to work effectively in diverse groups
  • 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
  • B-SS 10. Cultural awareness, sensitivity and responsiveness
]]> 2022-03-20 19:48:41 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103998724 References https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103998823 https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/7428a787-a452-4abb-afec-d78ec77870cd/Mindsets-Behaviors.pdf]]> 2022-03-20 19:48:52 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2103998823 jennilleschab https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104009052 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0193397321001386
Sun, J., Singletary, B., Jiang, H., Justice, L.M., Lin, T.J., & Purtell, K.M. (2022). Child behavior problems during COVID-19: Associations with parent distress and child social-emotional skills. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, (78). https://doi.org/10/1016/j.appdev.2021.10137. 
]]> 2022-03-20 20:03:32 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104009052 https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104032907 Group size: Around 6-12 students
Group Age/Grade Level: K-1st Grade, Age: 5-6 years old
Type of group: Social Skills Group
Open or Closed group: Closed group
Time of Day Group Meets: Lunch time
Number of weeks: Span of 6 weeks
]]> 2022-03-20 20:25:47 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104032907 jennilleschab https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104034063 This is the feedback questionnaire that we would use to determine if our students were able to improve their social skills.  Most questions can be simply answered with yes or no, however there are a couple asking for small details. 
Since there are some short answer questions we would ask the questions and write down the student's responses. ]]> 2022-03-20 20:27:39 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104034063 https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104037244 2022-03-20 20:32:16 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104037244 Video https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104037477 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVvGvoMRUhk]]> 2022-03-20 20:32:40 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104037477 https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104037964 Chupp, A. I., & Boes, S. R. (2012). Effectiveness of Small Group Social Skills Lessons with Elementary Students. Georgia School Counselors Association Journal, 19(1), 92–111.]]> 2022-03-20 20:33:27 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104037964 References https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104059571 Sink, C. A., Edwards, C., & Eppler, C. (2012). School based group counseling. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.]]> 2022-03-20 21:07:17 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104059571 References https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104069891 Sink, C. A., Edwards, C., & Eppler, C. (2012). School based group counseling. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.]]> 2022-03-20 21:24:56 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104069891 https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104098722 2022-03-20 22:20:24 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104098722 jennilleschab https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104149546 Tyson, L.E., Pérusse, R., Whitledge, J., Coy, D.R., Akos, P., & Moore, I.L. (2004). Screening of Members: “Everyone is Welcome”. In Tyson, L.E., Pérusse, R., Whitledge, J., Coy, D.R., Akos, P., & Moore, I.L. Editors (Ed.), Critical Incidents in Group Counseling (pp. 9-14). American Counseling Association.]]> 2022-03-20 23:49:22 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104149546 https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104162672 2022-03-21 00:05:30 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104162672 Reference https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104166411 Benton, A., Meade, E., Vandenberg, A. (2021, September 20). Covid-19 impact on low-income families [infographic). Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. https://aspe.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/2021-09/low-income-covid-19-impacts.pdf

]]> 2022-03-21 00:09:32 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104166411 Adlerian Theory https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104307863 An appropriate theoretical orientation for an early elementary social skills group is the Adlerian Theory. Sink (2012) describes the Adlerian theory as assisting students with working towards positive goals at the same time as improving interpersonal skills. It is also very much a strength-based theory, and focusing on the students’ strengths to help them improve their friendships and social competence is exactly the type of group we are aiming to create. Role-playing is a commonly used tool in Adlerian therapy, which is beneficial for young children in elementary school because it can be considered by them as a form of play. Utilizing this theory, the counselor’s role will be to provide strengths-based activities and techniques, which allows for some structure, while allowing the children unstructured opportunities to explore these techniques within the provided activities (Sink, 2012). ]]> 2022-03-21 01:49:17 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104307863 Reference https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104324694 Sink, C. A., Edwards, C., & Eppler, C. (2012). School based group counseling. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.

]]> 2022-03-21 02:00:56 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104324694 jennilleschab https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104336361 The ethical considerations to be mindful of are that in a school setting confidentiality is hard to say that it will be 100%, but that we are asking all students to be aware that their peers may tell them something that they don’t want others to know. Since this is a Kindergarten and 1st grade group it is important to stress that we want to make sure to treat others how we would like to be treated, especially if we are wanting what we tell others to stay in the group then we need to make sure that we don’t share information.
Our group population will be mixed in diversity so all students participating, and counselors involved need to be aware of cultural differences, especially concerning the reasons on why the students were kept at home during COVID. Additionally, different cultures emphasize different aspects of social-emotional development (Chung, et al., 2020) so it will be important to pay attention to the different ways that the group members are communicating what is important to them in their social interactions with their peers, and how they define friendship.
We will also have a responsibility to the students’ parents to keep them informed of what is going on with their child. These are parents who had strong feelings about having their students return to school so this time could still be a stressful time in their lives.


]]> 2022-03-21 02:08:38 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104336361 jennilleschab https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104336819 American School Counselor Association. (2016). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors. Retrieved from https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/f041cbd0-7004-47a5-ba01-3a5d657c6743/Ethical-Standards.pdf]]> 2022-03-21 02:08:59 UTC https://padlet.com/jennilleschab/COUN6320/wish/2104336819