Seminar: Indian Country School Counselors Institute Professional Development Program
Program: ICSCI
Subject Area: Counseling
Grade Level: 1st
Year of Publication: 2024
Abstract
At the beginning of each school year, I email a teacher/staff assessment through Google forms to all Kinsey staff to gather insight on which social-emotional, academic and career topics our staff deem necessary to teach to our students for the upcoming year. This helps to build the framework of my curriculum for the year. In the 2023-2024 school year, lesson topics included emotion regulation, self-control, integrity, friendship, appropriate speech, body boundaries, careers, finances, and responsible decision making. While some schools choose to adopt a social-emotional program, such as Sanford Harmony, Second Step or Character Strong, I have yet to find one that is truly engaging and responsive for the demographic Kinsey serves. For this reason, I choose to adapt my own lessons, often borrowing resources from books, school counseling blogs, Teachers Pay Teachers, and my colleagues across the school district.