Sherwood Park Elementary School Counseling Program

The mission of Cumberland County School Counselor Program is to help students demonstrate a positive attitude towards self and others, gain career and life-planning skills, and develop effective academic foundations. These attributes will increase educational and life success. Our program follows the ASCA National Model for Counseling programs which integrates the following domains:

ACADEMIC DEVELOPMENT
CAREER DEVELOPMENT
PERSONAL/SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

In addition to classroom and small group school counseling curriculum for all students K-2, several student support groups are offered throughout the school year. More may be developed and implemented upon student need.

STUDENT SUPPORT GROUPS: Student Support groups provide an opportunity for additional personal and social skill building. They provide a chance for students to share, be a part of, feel special, and increase their sense of belonging.

New Student Group: This group is designated for new first and second grade students to the district. It is designed to help your child get acquainted with a new school, encourage positive social skills as well as meet other new students at SWPES. He/She will also learn things specific to SWPES and how to make new friends. This group is specifically for first and second grade students only.

Family Change Group: This group is designed to help those students referred to cope with separation or divorce in their family. It is an opportunity for students to build coping skills, share, and relate to other students going through similar issues as well as increase their sense of belonging. I am sensitive to the approval of both family parties and may require special permission from both sides prior to the start of group.

Grief Group: This group is designed to help students who are grieving the loss of a loved one. Considering the sensitive nature of this topic the counselor will use discretion when accepting students into this group. The counselor will meet with students on an individual basis if the amount of students does not meet a large enough amount for a group.

Friendship Group: This group is designed to give students extra support in the area of friendships. Students who might need additional skills to help make friends and keep friends could benefit from this group.

Anger Group: This group is designed to give students extra support in the area of anger management including understanding anger, where it comes from, and how to handle it from there without harming themselves or others.

Marvelous Me Group: This is a group to help students who need a boost with self esteem. This group is designed to help students feel a sense of belonging and feel empowered within themselves to not only like themselves, but stand up for their needs.

Club USA: This is a group specifically for those students who have parents serving in the armed forces away from home. Especially those parents who are deployed to combat zones. This group is designed to give students extra support in the area of being a military child.

Caught Being Good CHARACTER EDUCATION PROGRAM
This year our school is implementing “Caught Being Good,” a comprehensive character education program focusing on nine character traits which we will be teaching, modeling, and encouraging in our classes and school. You, as the most important adults in your children’s lives, are the first and most influential character teachers they have. We hope to take what you have so diligently begun at home, and incorporate it into the school setting as well.  Our school has always emphasized good character, but this year we are using a specific program which we feel will make this crucial teaching even more obvious and overt in the school setting. Since we are partners in teaching your children we look forward to your comments, suggestions, support, and help in implementing this important program this year.

As part of our partnership we will be sending you a letter each month telling you the character trait we will be focusing on that month. Our letter will also include ideas for how you can reinforce at home what we are doing at school.  Each character education trait will be announced at our monthly all school morning meetings and on our television broadcast. Our character traits for the school year will be Respect, Thankfulness, Caring, Honesty, Responsibility, Cooperation, and Good Citizenship. Your child will be recognized when they are seen showing these trait in school with a “Caught being Good announcement on Friday mornings. At this time these students will meet me in the cafeteria to choose a gift from my “Caught Being Good treasure chest”.

Please follow up our efforts at school with your own discussions at home to help your child internalize this concept. Examples of questions you could ask are:

What have you learned about (character trait) at school?

Do you have times when you need to show (character trait) at home also?

When are those times?

What does (charter trait) look like?

What does (character trait)sound like?

Why do you think it is important?

Please contact the school if you have any questions about our “Caught Being Good Program”.

Sincerely,
Frankie C. Colvin
School Counselor

School Psychologist: Candice Locklear
Available: Wednesday & Thursday
School psychologists are highly trained in both psychology and education, completing a minimum of a specialist-level degree program.  they provide assessment and testing of students for special services.  Consultation with teachers.  Counseling for students.  In addition, they provide prevention, crisis intervention, conflict resolution, and program modification for special learning and/or behavioral needs.

Sherwood Park Elementary School Social Work Program

Sherwood Park Elementary School Social Work Program provides services to strengthen and facilitate the educational process by identifying, modifying, and removing barriers to learning while promoting wellness and student success. We recognize that attendance is a major factor in your child’s education; therefore we adhere to the NC compulsory attendance law. NC requires all children who are enrolled in grades K-12th grade to attend school on a regular basis.

If the student is not in school then the parent/guardian needs to notify the teacher in writing the day they
return with an explanation for the absences REQUIRED BY LAW

1. First letter will be for 3 unexcused absences. These are absences that the student has received a code of unexcused due to no note from the parent.

2. Second letter will be sent home for 6 unexcused absences. These are absences that are coded by the teacher as unexcused. These absences have been from the beginning of the student’s school year. This letter is signed by the principal.

3. Third contact letter is the 10 day contact letter that requests a conference with School personnel, student, parent/guardian and anyone who either party wishes to Be involved. This meeting is in an effort to resolve the attendance concerns.