Elementary School Counseling
We are lucky to have two full-time Elementary Counselors who serves all 450 students from Kindergarten through Fifth Grade. At the Elementary level, the School Counselor provides education, prevention, and intervention services in the areas of academic, career, and social/emotional development support. It is important to note that School Counselors do not provide treatment for mental health conditions. School Counselors are professional educators with a mental health perspective. They typically spend the majority of their time working on universal instruction and working with all students. The Elementary Counselors works in collaboration with administration, teachers, specialists, and families to determine the needs of all students.
In addition to their roles as teachers, our counselors also coordinate programs such as leadership opportunities for students, initiatives like The Great Kindness Challenge, career development, and parent/guardian education. She is a part of the K-12 Counseling Department and partners with the counselors at the Secondary Level on projects, initiatives, and program alignment. At the elementary level, Mrs. Ball & Mrs. Tweten are part of the Specialists team and work with their teammates to support kids across all their learning environments and at special events.
Contact a Counselor
Alexis Ball, Elementary Counselor
Emily Tweten, Elementary Counselor
Do you want to schedule a consultation with the Elementary Counselor? Please fill out the Elementary Counselor Consultation form and one of our counselors will be in touch with you soon.
Universal Instruction:
Our School Counselor is in each classroom regularly to teach all students on social/emotional topics. These lessons focus on our Character Traits of the month, our Well-Managed School Skills, emotional regulation, social skills, the prevention of bullying, academic skills, mindfulness, and growth mindset, etc. These lessons augment what classroom teachers are already teaching about Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) and development. The counselor also consults with classroom teachers to best support SEL in their classrooms.
Targeted:
When a student is struggling to integrate certain Social/Emotional skills with universal supports, the teacher, the Counselor, Administration, and specialists provide a targeted plan to provide additional support. This targeted support may be provided as small-group or individual support within the classroom environment.
Intensive:
If the targeted interventions do not work, or if the student is in crisis, the counselor will employ more intensive interventions. These interventions become part of an overall support plan for the student, with a number of teachers and specialists involved in serving and teaching the student. School Counselors also do screenings for Suicidal Risk or other safety issues.
Students can self-refer to the counselor if they are really struggling with something. They can leave a note in their counselor's mailbox. Also, teachers sometimes refer a student to a counselor if they notice a change or a struggle. Lastly, the student's family can seek consultation for themselves or their student.