My Favorite October School Counseling Activities
It's October! I love this time of year. Even though I live in Costa Rica and it’s at least 80 degrees everyday I try to embrace the fall spirit!
When deciding which lessons and activities to do with my students each month I like to look at seasonal trends. October is always a busy one because it is Bullying Prevention Month in addition to pumpkin-themed everything!
Check out these activity ideas to spread awareness, strategies for implementing school-wide initiatives, and some fall favorite resources of mine.
October is Bullying Prevention Month!
Try spreading awareness at your school by hosting a fun run where students pledge laps, showing thought provoking videos, or playing bullying prevention games during class lessons and small groups.
These websites are a great place to start for free lesson plans and activities.
Common Sense Media - great for cyberbullying resources
Stop Bullying - includes videos to show students
National Bullying Prevention Center - has a challenge for kids
Looking for some engaging activities? This salad bowl charades game is such a hit with kiddos and a great way to teach terminology around bullying and this Halloween-themed bullying prevention board game is so fun to play in small groups!
Shop all Bullying Prevention resources here and read this blog post for more bullying prevention interventions to try.
3 Ways to Implement a Self-Regulation School-Wide Initiative During October
I teach self-regulation all year long, but I especially like to reinforce it a few months after school has started.
Self-regulation is so powerful at the elementary level because it gives students a simple and visual way to communicate how they are feeling and what they need to simply feel better. But students K-12 (and even adults!) can benefit from this emotional regulation system.
Simplifying this concept into four easy to learn colors is a great way to start a school-wide approach to self-regulation. A common language gets everyone on board!
Use visuals such a bulletin boards or class posters
Use classroom calm down corners
Use videos, games, and journals during self-regulation class lessons, small groups, and individual sessions.
The best part about teaching self-regulation in October? You can use these fun fall self-regulation activities.
Check out this blog post for more details on how to implement a school wide approach to self-regulation.
October Resource Roundup!
Check out these top 3 fall must-haves:
Fall Coping Strategies Digital Activity - I love to use this activity during an individual session or class lesson. It includes a Boom Cards version too!
Size of the Problem Pumpkins - This flip book and sorting game is so much fun to do with a social skills group!
Self-Regulation Pumpkins Boom Cards - "My students loved working on these boom cards. It was so much better than just talking about it with them, and they were able to make their own decisions as well!" - Counselor Review
Check out this October Bundle for a little bit of everything and if you want fall plus bullying prevention resources then you’ll love these school wide activities!
Have a great month and happy counseling!