COUNSELING CALENDAR
Dec. 4th – Learning to Breathe (7th Hour) Dec. 5th – Career Explorations: Computer Scientists (Lunch) Dec. 5th – NJHS Officers Meeting (7th Hour) Dec. 6th – Student Voice (7th Hour) Dec. 8th – NJHS Meeting & Girls Mentoring Cookie Party (7th Hour) Dec. 12th – Sources of Strength (7th Hour) Dec. 13th – Career Explorations: Cadet Program (Lunch) Dec. 15th – Boys Mentoring (7th Hour) Dec. 20th – Junior College Prep Group: Powerhouse Panel (10am) SENIORS With the early action deadlines coming to a close it’s time to start thinking about those regular decision college application deadlines! Make sure you are paying attention to the deadlines for each of the schools you are applying to as some of them will be over winter break. YOU are responsible for keeping track of your deadlines. Remember you will need to request transcripts for those schools before the break as we will not be available to submit anything during the break. We are asking that you have all of your requests in by DECEMBER 13th. If you have any questions please come see your counselor. This notification is for students who have college applications due by January 7th. Scholarship Workshop Are you stressing about how to pay for college? Starting in the Spring semester we will be hosting scholarship workshops for students. We have arranged 6 dates throughout the semester during 7th hours to have students come down and explore scholarships. We will provide you with multiple data bases to look at, and help you narrow down options. ICAP and Scholarship Class Meeting Mark your calendars! On Wednesday January 10th we will be meeting with you to complete your district required ICAP. We are going to be touching on some last minute college information, and introducing you to financial aid information. We will be having you all sign up for the COF (Colorado Opportunity Fund), which helps give students from the state of Colorado a discount to attend in-state schools. To sign up you will need your social security number, so make sure you know that or have it with you on Wednesday! We will also be having a guest from the DEF share scholarships that pertain directly to all of you! This will be a very informative meeting on paying for college so we highly encourage you to attend! JUNIORS ICAP and College Introduction When we return from winter break we are starting off the ICAP season with you! On January 8th we will be meeting with you during 7th hour to complete the district required ICAP. This meeting is targeting what you are doing to reach your goals after high school. We will be looking at what careers you are considering, and what steps you will take to prepare for those careers. We will also be introducing you to college search engines, and help you take the steps you need to start deciding which colleges you want to apply to. SOPHOMORES Career Lunch Sessions Hello Sophomores! Get ready to start exploring careers. We are beginning to put together our career shadow days and lunch sessions. We are expecting all of you to attend at least one of the sessions. We will have a variety of speakers and careers presenting throughout the year, so if something grabs your attention please join us! Coming up we have Computer Scientists on 12/5 and on 12/13 we have a guest speaker coming to talk about the Denver Cadet Program. ICAP and College Introduction When we return from winter break we will be meeting with you all as a big group on January 9th based on your last name to complete the district required ICAP. The purpose of this ICAP is to help support you in your continuing exploration of careers, and to help you generate a plan to reach your future goals. We want you to begin to consider life after high school and what steps you need to take to reach your end goal. We will also be introducing you to the college search process so you have the foundation to begin looking at schools you are interested in attending. We are very excited to work with you all again, and hear about all of the great ideas you have! FRESHMEN Career Lunch Sessions Hello Freshmen! Get ready to start exploring careers. We are beginning to put together our career shadow days and lunch sessions. We are expecting all of you to attend at least one of the sessions. We will have a variety of speakers and careers presenting throughout the year, so if something grabs your attention please join us! Coming up we have Computer Scientists on 12/5 and on 12/13 we have a guest speaker coming to talk about the Denver Cadet Program. Course Selection and ICAP In February we will be coming into your English classes to go over your course selection for next year! On this day we will talk about the courses you will need to take your sophomore year, and introduce the possible electives you can take. Once we complete the course selection we will also complete your required district ICAP. This ICAP will help you outline the steps you need to take over the next few years to graduate on time. You will be setting goals, choosing careers that interest you, and other taking a deeper look into what you need to do to reach your goals. We recognize that a main concern at our school is the amount of stress homework, extracurricular activities, tests, and all the other factors that play into a school day can have on our students. As a counseling department we are constantly trying to develop effective strategies on how to deliver information about coping with stress. Each month we are going to have a Counseling Tips section to share strategies related to a specific topic. Our topic for November is test taking anxiety.
With finals just around the corner we figured an important topic to cover would be test taking anxiety. Tests can be an intimidating concept, and finals tend to bring out copious amounts of stress on students because of the amount of tests students have to study for. One of the most important aspects in figuring out how to reduce anxiety is to learn the symptoms that come along with it. Once we recognize the symptoms we can utilize strategies and coping mechanisms to alleviate those symptoms. Symptoms of Test Anxiety:
There are multiple causes for test anxiety and some of the most common ones are a fear of failure, lack of preparation, and poor test history. Through all of these causes an important thing to keep in mind is to stay as positive as possible. One of the best ways to beat test anxiety is to prepare for tests and start preparing early. Start studying course subjects weeks before an exam. This is a lot easier said than done, however when students get in the habit of cramming for tests that will increase stress and anxiety levels. Tips for Managing Test Anxiety:
These are just a few strategies to help cope with test anxiety. If you have any questions or want more information, please stop by the counseling office. Taking Time for You
Caring for ourselves during the holiday season can feel particularly difficult, and many of us can struggle with it year round. We all have so much to do and are balancing so many stressors each day, that it can be hard to take time for self-care practices. Why is it important for us to take the moments we need to take care of ourselves today and every day? It is central to feeling better, being at our best, and modeling good self-care for our children. If you are ever reluctant to take the few minutes you need to breathe, take a walk, rest, have a snack, talk with a friend, or whatever you need to recharge, try to remind yourself that doing so actually helps you and your family. To meet the challenges of life, work, and parenting every day with your best self, you must start by caring for yourself. Do so each day, in ways that work best for you physically, emotionally, and creatively/spiritually. A few examples of such practices follow: Physical Self-Care Emotional/Social Self-Care Creative/Spiritual Self-Care Get enough sleep Spend time with friends Journal Exercise Read Spend time in nature Eat healthy Take a spa day Enjoy a hobby Take a walk outside Practice Gratitude Practice mindfulness Take tech-free time Spend time with family Pray or meditate For more information on self-care practices, a few resources can be found using the links provided:
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