WISD Guidance & Counseling

Welcome to the Willis ISD Guidance & Counseling Parent Newsletter!

We are committed to supporting the well-being of our students and their families. This newsletter will provide valuable information, resources, and tips to help you navigate mental health and wellness topics. Our goal is to create a supportive community where everyone feels empowered to prioritize mental health.

Thank you for being a crucial part of our community. Together, we can grow healthy minds and happy hearts in all our students.

Warm regards,

Kelly Locke

Director of Guidance & Counseling
Willis ISD

Previous Newsletters -

August

September

October

This past week, a team of 15 incredible Willis ISD school counselors represented our district at the Lone Star State School Counselor Association Annual Conference in Frisco, TX — and they absolutely made us proud!

Our counselors attended nearly 150 sessions of professional learning, gaining new strategies, insights, and tools to continue supporting our students academically, socially, and emotionally. Talk about dedication to growth and excellence!

Brabham Middle School was honored with the LSSSCA Bronze Award, recognizing their outstanding, data-driven, and comprehensive counseling program that supports all students and closes achievement gaps. This Bronze Award is the first step toward national recognition through the ASCA RAMP (Recognized ASCA Model Program) — way to go, Brabham team!

We also had 3 counselors present breakout sessions, sharing their expertise and passion with colleagues from across Texas!

And to top it off, one of our very own counselors serves as Secretary on the LSSSCA Board, helping lead the way for school counseling excellence across the state!

Let’s give a huge round of applause to our amazing counselors who go above and beyond for Willis ISD students every single day. You are making a difference and setting the standard for school counseling in Texas!
#WillisISD #CounselorPride #LSSSCA #SchoolCounselorStrong

Below is how Willis ISD is supporting your child's personal development that leads to their career development. Our main purpose is to prepare your child for a successful life and we enjoy every step of the journey!

With Screen Time, there are a number of settings and parental controls that you can use to help keep your child's device usage safe, private, and age appropriate.

What you can do with parental controls

Apple's parental controls are important tools that allow parents and guardians to choose how — and how often — their children use their devices. Parental controls are built directly into iPhone, iPad, and Mac, and can help you manage the downloads and purchases your child can make, who they can communicate with, and the apps and other content they can access.

Before you can set parental controls for a child's device, make sure that Family Sharing is set up and that your child's Apple Account is part of the Family Sharing group. Learn how to set up Family Sharing.

When Family Sharing is set up, and your child's Apple Account is added to the Family Sharing group, you need to turn on Content & Privacy Restrictions. Then you're ready to start setting and managing parental controls.

You can use some Screen Time features without turning on Content & Privacy Restrictions or setting parental controls. For example, you can enable Screen Distance to help reduce eye strain; Communication Limits to manage how your child communicates with others; and Communication Safety to help detect inappropriate photos and videos before they're even sent from or viewed on your child's device. Learn more about Screen Time.

Click HERE to read the full article.

A study published in BMJ Mental Health found that problematic smartphone usage (PSU) is linked to anxiety, depression, and insomnia among UK adolescents aged 13-16. The study included 69 students from two secondary schools and used semi-structured questionnaires to assess their mobile usage, sleep, and mood.

Click HERE to read the article.

Click HERE to read the article.

Click HERE to read the article.

Click on the icons below to see our content.

Use these planners to inspire conversations about tech use as a family.

Entertainment and tech have the potential to spark meaningful conversations. And tech planners are a great way for kids to have a shared understanding of how your family makes the most out of entertainment and tech time.

Click HERE to access.

Free Resources

• ParentGuidance.org helps parents find answers to help guide their child.

50+ On-demand Courses

• Led by licensed therapists and clinicians who provide trusted and specialised courses. Discover the power you have to shape your child's well-being.

Ask A Therapist

• Find 30+ mental health questions submitted by parents, answered by licensed therapists.