School Counseling Simplified Podcast

Latest Episodes:

64: Team Player Series: Teachers Nov 02, 2021

Show notes

As we approach the holiday season I hope you take time to rest and reflect on how you feel about the first few months of school. I know some of you have probably felt really alone and isolated in your school building full of teachers. It's just as bad, if not worse, if you have been getting push back from your class lessons or recommendations. Believe me, I've been there. That's why I decided to create this team player series for developing a strong team in your school.

Whether the staff at your school is young or established, I will be providing you with strategies to break through any barriers and create a cohesive team amongst your staff. If you're anything like me you likely want to share your ideas as much as possible, but you also need to consider that your suggestions may add to the laundry list of tasks teachers need to do. These strategies will allow for a fun, respectful, and collaborative environment.

Resources mentioned:

Connect with Rachel on social media:

If you are enjoying School Counseling Simplified please follow and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

63. Create Counseling Games with Halloween Candy Buckets Oct 26, 2021

Show notes

To wrap up one of my favorite months, I decided to do a seasonal episode in the spirit of Halloween! I'll be sharing some fun activities you can do with those Halloween buckets you've probably gotten on Amazon or in the Dollar Store. I love providing you with low-cost and simple ideas and these are no different.

If you've been a listener for a while, you know that I try to create simple activities that don't require a lot of planning or materials. If you have paper and pumpkin buckets you're all set. There are so many topics you can create sorting activities with such as problems and zones of regulation. Head over to my Instagram and let me know what grades or topics you used this activity for!

Resources mentioned:

Connect with Rachel on social media:

If you are enjoying School Counseling Simplified please follow and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

62: Ideas for School Wide Initiatives Oct 19, 2021

Show notes

Have you ever taught a great lesson only to have your student forget everything the next time they walk through your door? Teaching students truly takes a village, so it only makes sense we take advantage of our resources. I'm talking about peers, teachers, custodians, and more!

Think about it. When you explicitly teach a topic and then another staff member refers to it in the hallway, on the playground, or in the lunchroom then your teaching has extended far beyond your lesson. The more your students see and hear the terms and visuals you teach them, the less you'll be reacting to a crisis. Once you put these strategies into action, I'd love to hear how you got your school community involved!

Resources mentioned:

Connect with Rachel on social media:

If you are enjoying School Counseling Simplified please follow and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

61. Non-Boring Bullying Prevention Month Ideas Oct 12, 2021

Show notes

Did you know that October is Bullying Prevention Month? It's truly one of my favorite topics to discuss with my students. It is so important to work on those preventative measures and teach our students skills at a young age. The earlier you teach them about bullying, the more control you'll have as they get older.

There are so many different ways to teach your students to be kind and aware of what to do if others aren't. These activities can range from individual to school-wide. Each of these ideas will educate your students on what bullying is and how to communicate if they experience or witness something troubling. It's our job to make sure all of our students feel safe and bullying prevention month is the perfect time to do that!

Join my school counselor membership IMPACT here!

Resources Mentioned:

Connect with Rachel on social media:

If you are enjoying School Counseling Simplified please follow and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

60: CELEBRATING ONE YEAR OF THE PODCAST: The Best of School Counseling Simplified Oct 05, 2021

Show notes

Can you believe it's already October?! What's more exciting is that we are celebrating ONE YEAR of this podcast, School Counseling Simplified! I wanted to do something special to celebrate this milestone, so this episode will be a bit different than the others. I've created a mash-up of the top 5 most popular episodes from the show!

Be sure to stay tuned in until the very end for a special announcement. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for supporting this podcast by listening, sharing with friends, and writing reviews. It truly means the world to me!

Join my school counselor membership IMPACT here!

Resources Mentioned:

Connect with Rachel on social media:

If you are enjoying School Counseling Simplified please follow and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

59: How This Veteran Counselor is Using Data to Transform Her Program Big Time! (and You Can Too!) with Terry Foytek Sep 28, 2021

Show notes

Today is extra exciting because we have a veteran counselor on the show, Terry Foytek. Terry has been a school counselor for 25 years and is a student in my online course, Stress Free School Counseling. This goes to show that Stress Free School Counseling is not just for new counselors or for counselors with 3-5 years of experience. It's for any school counselor because we are all constantly learning new ways to grow and transform our counseling program.

Terry's favorite part of being a school counselor is doing whole class and small group lessons. She found that she needed some great ways to track her student data, which is one of the main reasons she joined Stress Free School Counseling. She's sharing her experience with my course and how it has helped with several aspects of her counseling program, including advocating for her role.

Join my school counselor membership IMPACT here!

Resources Mentioned:

Head to stressfreeschoolcounseling.com to join my course, Stress Free School Counseling!
Stress Free School Counseling Admin Letter
Stress Free School Counseling Bootcamp
Show Notes: bright-futurescounseling.com/podcast

Connect with Rachel on social media:

If you are enjoying School Counseling Simplified please follow and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

58. How This First Year Counselor is Implementing Productivity Systems with Confidence! (and You Can Too!) with Kaylena Rasmussen Sep 24, 2021

Show notes

If you have been considering joining my Stress Free School Counseling course, then this episode is for you. I don't have guest episodes often, but I had to introduce you to one of my Stress Free School Counseling alumni, Kaylena. I hope any questions you have are answered after listening to her real-life testimonial!

Like many of you, this is Kaylena's first year as a school counselor. She has experience in the classroom but has quickly learned how different the daily operations are of a school counselor. She will walk you through her reasons for becoming a member of Stress Free School Counseling and how it has allowed her to easily transition into this new position. Whether you're a first year counselor or have been in the career for years, you won't want to miss this LAST opportunity to join Stress Free School Counseling.

Join my school counselor membership IMPACT here!

Resources Mentioned:

Head to stressfreeschoolcounseling.com to join my course, Stress Free School Counseling!
Stress Free School Counseling Admin Letter
Show Notes: bright-futurescounseling.com/podcast

Connect with Rachel on social media:

If you are enjoying School Counseling Simplified please follow and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

57: 3 Scheduling Strategies to Increase your Impact Sep 21, 2021

Show notes

Do you constantly feel like you are putting out fires rather than preventing them? Or maybe you take work home regularly to catch up because of all the distractions throughout the day. In this episode I will give you a solution to these never-ending problems. It all starts with scheduling, and I don't mean when you see specific students.

I want you to think about how you are organizing your time throughout the day. You are not doing yourself any favors if you don't allocate time for bathroom breaks or traveling from one building to another. You have to be realistic about what you need to do and make sure your students and staff can rely on you to be there when you say you will. Creating these clear boundaries and time slots in your schedule will help you increase your impact and advocate for your role.

Join my school counselor membership IMPACT here!

Resources Mentioned:

Sign up for my free live masterclass: stressfreeschoolcounseling.com/3secrets
Show Notes: bright-futurescounseling.com/podcast

Connect with Rachel on social media:

If you are enjoying School Counseling Simplified please follow and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

56: 2 Game Changing Organization Tools Sep 14, 2021

Show notes

There are two things I suggest you focus on first and foremost as the school year begins. The first one is data collection, which I talked about during my last episode. The second is organization, which may not come so easy to school counselors. I feel like teachers tend to have this under control with their flair pens and post-its, but after this episode they'll be asking you for tips!

As counselors we wear so many hats and can be pulled in different directions all throughout the day. Our time is so valuable and the last thing we should be doing is sifting through notes and papers while our students need us. I promise if you take the time to create these systems now you will see the benefits all year long! Don't forget to send me a message on Instagram to let me know if you're on team messy or team organized!

Join my school counselor membership IMPACT here!

Resources Mentioned:

Sign up for my free live masterclass: stressfreeschoolcounseling.com/3secrets
Stress Free School Counseling Toolkit
Show Notes: bright-futurescounseling.com/podcast

Connect with Rachel on social media:

If you are enjoying School Counseling Simplified please follow and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

55. Why It's Not Too Soon to Collect Data Sep 07, 2021

Show notes

By now, you may know how much I LOVE data collection, and there's a good reason for it! Collecting and sharing data is the best way to measure growth and advocate for your role as a school counselor. I know what you may be thinking right now - It's only September. Why are we already talking about data?

Here's the thing, even if you've only just started the school year, it's not too early to begin data collection! In fact, it's the perfect time to get started. With everything else going on at the beginning of a new year, data is one of the things that often gets overlooked. Even if you're a first year counselor, or don't have data from the previous year, you can still collect and display data right away! In this episode, I'm sharing how to break your data down into two areas: services provided and student progress.

After listening, I hope you feel empowered, not intimidated, to begin tracking and sharing data this year! Starting at the beginning of the year truly is such a great habit to get into. It's going to give you a wealth of information so that you can be able to see the impact you made on your students and get the recognition you deserve by displaying your data proudly!

Join my school counselor membership IMPACT here!

Resources Mentioned: