CMS Counseling Program

Mission

The Mission of the school counseling program

in Carmel Unified School District Community

is to ensure that all students

acquire (develop) the academic, career and personal/social

knowledge, attitudes and skills

necessary to become lifelong learners who are prepared

for the challenges of continuing education, the workplace

and their role as self-actualizing citizens

in an ever-changing global community.

Carmel Middle School Counselors Help Our Children Find Success in School by:

· Helping develop positive attitudes among students towards self, family, and community.

· Counseling with students individually and in groups to understand and appreciate their unique qualities and to grow personally and socially.

· Supporting students in developing an individual plan for academic success.

· Developing and delivering classroom guidance lessons that teach skills such as making healthy decisions, resolving conflicts, and respecting others.

· Assisting students to become invested in their school success by showing them how school performance relates to career opportunities.

· Working collaboratively with students, parents, and teachers to identify and remove barriers that may impede student achievement.

Carmel Middle School Counselors Help Our Children Prepare for the Future by:

· Assisting students to develop personal awareness and explore career goals.

· Counseling students regarding career planning and preparation.

· Helping develop communication and interpersonal skills needed to relate well to others.

· Providing a comprehensive and developmental guidance and counseling program that impacts all students K-12. Our program is based on the National Counseling Standards with focus on Academic, Social/Personal, and Career Development.

Academic Development

Orientations:

a. 5^th grade to 6^th grade – In the spring we are part of the team that meets with 5^th grade parents and students to acquaint them with Carmel Middle School curriculum, routines and expectations. We facilitate students in preparing for this big step.

b. 8th grade to 9th grade at Carmel High School – We assist the CHS Counselors in registering our students for classes in the fall. We also accompany the 8^th grade students on a tour of the high school which acquaints them with programs, athletic teams, clubs, activities, eligibility requirements and a typical freshman class schedule.

c. New Student Orientation – New students registering at CMS for the first time meet with us in August. They receive a personal orientation about our school, home to school communication and expectations.

Student Services:

a. All 6^th graders experience a fifth period rotation which includes: Eco-literacy, Study Hall, Technology, and Middle School Success classes.

b. We review mid-trimester and trimester grades to determine appropriate interventions if necessary.

c. Counseling groups emphasize organization, study skills development and other needs determined by school.

d. Adopt a Kid Program – At risk students are adopted by a faculty/staff member to offer academic support and encouragement.

Interventions:

Student Study Team – A process initiated by Student’s counselor whereby all of the student’s teachers are assembled to problem solve strategies to improve student success.

Summer School Referrals – Counselors make recommendations to the summer school principal regarding students that would benefit from additional coursework during the summer.

Support Classes – These classes are offered within our school day to support student who are struggling in an academic area. Placement is based on counselor/teacher recommendation.

Study Hall – Offered during 5^th period for all students however, certain students will be enrolled by counselor due to academic need. This class allows students to complete 50 minutes of homework daily.

One on One Academic Counseling – Identified students who are performing below “C” level are counseled every Thursday on their academic performance.

Home-School Communication:

( Newsletter Articles

( Voice Mail System/Email

( Teacher Web Page Access

( Aeries Online Grade book

( CMS Website

( November Conference Week – Please make appointments online at www.carmelmiddle.org. If you do not have website access please call the CMS office in November.

Testing:

a. The State of California standardized testing usually occurs one week every year. It is important that all students are in attendance the entire week and come to school well rested and well fed. All doctors and dentist appointments should be avoided during that week.

b. The State 7^th grade Writing test and school wide Writing test are both administered in the spring.

California Junior Scholarship Federation 

This is a nationally recognized organization designed for students who qualify with exceptional grades and behavior.  We accept applications twice a year based on previous quarters grades.  Time and date of such applications is announced in the student bulletin.  Access to the student bulletin can also be accomplished through our web site, at http://www.carmelmiddle.org/bull.htm

Personal/Social Development

BAC (Building a Connection):

8^th grade mentors are selected and trained to support our new incoming 6^th graders with a variety of activities. This program is designed to make ALL 6^th graders feel safe, confident and a part of our CMS community.

Individual Counseling:

High priority students receive one-to-one counseling. Limited services are prioritized by crisis intervention and teacher/parent request.

Conflict Resolution:

Assistance is given to students who are dealing with a wide variety of conflicts. Students are guided on how to resolve conflicts on their own.

Character Education Program:

This began at Carmel Middle School four years ago, and now is adopted district wide K-12, stressing the 6 pillars of character (Respect, Responsibility, Caring, Trustworthiness, Citizenship, and Fairness) across the curriculum.

Group Counseling Sessions:

Provides students with the opportunities to:

See that their concerns are similar to those of others

Learn and practice new behaviors and skills

Gain self confidence in working with others

Share solutions to their common problems

Learn tolerance for others

Candidates are screened and selected based on a common need. Groups are centered on a common issue and require parent permission.

IMPACT:

This is a community coalition formed for youth to reduce substance abuse among young people on the Monterey Peninsula.

Career Development

8^th Grade Career Exploration:

Students understand the relationship among personal qualities, education and training, and the world of work. We accomplish this by going into the 8^th grade classes each year and instruct the students on their own individual career exploration. We are able to provide a 28-page pamphlet for each student, with the help of our P.T.A.

Career Day:

This involves the entire school, highlighting the different types of careers.  All careers presented involve such skills as leadership qualities or being in charge, working with tools or being outside, challenges your mind and likes to problem solve, people skills or like to explain things, strong organization skills, like being part of a team, creative thinkers, or those with great imaginations.

College Day:

The entire school learns about A-G requirements and learns the difference between private, CSU and UC systems. Teachers share their own college experience and discuss the schools they attended. This day is followed by a college bowl activity at the end of the week.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I ensure a smooth transition from elementary school to middle school?

Stay involved, stay involved, stay involved in your student’s school experience. Opportunities include: “Back to School Night” in September, Conference Week in November, PTA, Open House, volunteer for food services, chaperone field trips or any other school sponsored events.

Make learning part of everyday life.

Encourage curiosity, problem solving and independent thinking with your child.

Become “positive coaches” when helping your student with school work.

Have high but realistic expectations for your student’s success.

Model lifelong learning and the value of education

Support the school’s discipline policy.

Understand your child’s learning styles and how to develop and strengthen them.

Encourage positive behavior with your child.

Encourage language development through reading, talking and listening.

Realize there is no substitute for attendance in school and limit the amount of time you putt your child out of school for additional vacation time, dentist/orthodontist appointments, doctor appointments, etc…

How do I know if my child has homework?

There are several tools you can use to determine if your child has homework. These include:

§ Check Online Gradebook. Click on link at www.carmelmiddle.org and enter your student’s username and password. This allows you to check current grade in all classes. This program is updated at least every 10 days.

§ Voicemail (with a response usually within 24 hours)

§ Checking your child’s “CMS Cougar Planner” nightly. *See below for strategies if you’re not sure if everything is getting written down in the calendar.

§ E-mail. Our web site is www.carmelmiddle.org, and has an email directory of all our faculty and staff.

*If you aren’t sure if your student is writing down all of their homework, ask them to get the teachers signatures by the written assignment. All teachers are happy to do this, as well as our substitutes. (There should be no excuses) If your child says, “but I don’t have any homework”, than they should write the words, “NO HOMEWORK” and have the teacher sign it. When your child comes home, and they have all four academic teacher signatures, give them a reward. This can be 20 minutes of free time, or time on the phone, or time with a friend. If they don’t have ALL four signatures, take away their freedom, just for 24 hours. This means even if they have everything written down, but they don’t have the FOUR signatures, they have no phone, no T.V., no computer for 24 hours. Remember, you are training them to get their teacher signatures, and it is those signatures that ensure you that EVERYTHING is written down. This has been a very effective strategy for dealing with this problem. Good-luck!

How much homework can I expect every evening?

We believe depending on your child’s ability to attend to tasks at hand (ie: not talking on the phone, getting a snack, all types of interruptions) you can expect an average of:

· 1 hour in the 6^th grade

· 1 ½ hours in the 7^th grade

· 2 hours in the 8^th grade

Recognizing that schoolwork, tests and assignments can build up; our faculty has adopted the following test schedule. (Occasionally a department will get together and change a test date with another department)

· Language Arts Monday & Thursday

· Math Tuesday & Friday

· Science Tuesday & Thursday

· Social Studies Wednesday & Friday

· Electives/Life Skills Monday & Wednesday

No written homework is assigned on a Friday, however assignments that have not been completed on time need to be made up over the weekend or missing assignments due to absences.

Are there any resources available for both students and parents to deal with the adolescence years?

Yes. The middle school years are often a difficult and emotional passage for our children and their families. The following is a list of resources we feel are very informative.

• Covey, S. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens

· Dee, C. The Girl’s Guide to Life:  How to Take Charge of Issues that Affect You

• Hazelton Publ. How to Tell When Kids Are In Trouble With Alcohol/Drugs
• Hazelton Publ. Life on the Edge; parenting a Child with ADD/ADHD
• Hoover, J. Teasing and Harassment
• Hoover, J. The Bullying Prevention Handbook
• Pollack, W. Real Boys;  Rescuing Our Sons from the Myth of Boyhood
• Pipher, M. Reviving Ophelia; S aving Adolescent Girls

· Rimm, S. How Jane Won: 55 Successful Women Share How They Grew from Ordinary Girls to   Extraordinary Women

In addition to the above, we have several books in our school library as well as in our Counseling Offices that deal with everything from dyslexia to managing anger to dealing with the homework hassle. We are happy to make any suggestions, or loan any books out to our parents.

For more one on one guidance we also keep a list of credible counselors and agencies that specialize in adolescence and their families.

What is there to do after school?

· Our school library is open after school until 4:00 PM daily.

· There are after school sports teams, both with the school and the local YMCA, which has quite an active program.

· Youth Center in town (Carmel-By-the-Sea) accessible by our CUSD Bus transportation with a parent note

· Carmel Libraries. Harrison Memorial, Youth Park Branch and Carmel Valley all accessible by our CUSD Bus transportation with a parent note.

Updated 01/16/07