Counselor Connection

The kindergarten students have been working SO hard this fall! The winter vacation will be a nice break for all! While your students are home, you can keep the learning going by reading books, doing crafts and just spending time together. Children learn best when they are having fun!

As part of a school wide SEL initiative, students will learn and practice a different character trait each month. These traits will also be highlighted at our monthly Whole School Assembly where our students will have the opportunity to perform a song/act that represents and models the character trait of that month.

December's theme is DIVERSITY. A "kid-friendly" way to describe diversity is, being different in many ways!

Examples of diversity for kids: Diversity can be seen in things like different hair colors and styles, different favorite foods, different ways of speaking, or different family traditions.

This month during our Social Skills lesson, we read a book, which taught us a new strategy to use when someone is doing something that bothers us. Instead of getting frustrated, yelling or using our hands, we can use this simple phrase:

"It Bugs me when ____________________ I wish you would _______________________"

For example:

"It bugs me when you cut in line, I wish you would stay in your line spot."

"It bugs me when you call me names, I wish you would be nice."

During our lesson, we talked about when to use this strategy (for a small problem) and we role played using a "bug and a wish" with friends. After we practiced, we made Bug and A Wish wands to remind us how to use the strategy.

What a fun day! Therapy dogs visited all the classrooms and the students got a chance to meet and pet their class visitor! Students learned the importance of therapy dogs and how they can help people to feel safe and calm.

Ask your child which therapy dog they met on Wellness Day!

I want to share a helpful resource: our local partners at the MetroWest Food Collaborative have created an easy-to-use website where food pantries, community meal sites, farmers markets and more are listed for our region. You’ll find flyers and calendars in English, Spanish and Portuguese, and you can search by town to see what’s available. MWFC

Please check it out if you or your family ever need additional support: metrowestfoodcollaborative.org/find-food

• Preschool through grade two students are too young to participate in virtual therapy, so Cartwheel offers virtual parent meetings with a licensed therapist for 30 minutes every other week. These coaching sessions aim to help parents understand their child's mental health needs and the skills, knowledge, and confidence to best meet those needs.
• Students in grades 3-12 can participate in individual tele-therapy with little to no wait time! Therapists speak various languages, and Cartwheel takes most insurance.
• If your child would benefit from either of these services, please complete this referral form or contact your child's school counselor for more information.

Cartwheel's free webinars are designed to empower caregivers, family members, and school staff with practical and actionable information on mental health topics affecting youth and families today. Cartwheel's hope is that every person leaves their webinars feeling more confident in how to connect with a child in their life.

Our district partners with Care Solace to provide a free referral service that families can use to help any member of their immediate family access therapeutic support. https://caresolace.com/ashlandk12

• December 12: Report Cards sent home
• December 23: Early Release at 1:15, lunch is served
• December 24-January 2: No School Winter Vacation
• January 5: Return to School