Why I Gave Counseling Permission Slips to Everyone 

I'm serious. For three years, I sent every student in my K-5 elementary school a group counseling permission slip. Hold your hats. I (and the school counselor) saw  the 90% of students that returned a permission slip.

You might be asking how we did this. You definitely might be asking why did we do this. You might be like, girl, I see 800 kids in a day. Let me give you some reasons why send permission forms to everyone worked for us and how we did it. I'd love to hear what you do in the comments.

Tiered Counseling Services

Sending group counseling permission slips to everyone let us create a connection between all the tiers. Students could gradually receive more services and fewer students were overlooked.

Our school had a strong SEL curriculum that was implemented school-wide. Teachers taught lessons each week and the curriculum language was reinforced from the principal to the playground supervisors.

Our groups were part of Tier I, the instruction that all students got. The main intention was not to reteach concepts to students who didn't get a skill. They were designed to reinforce the skills that were being taught by the classroom teachers. 

One of the reasons it is recommended that SEL curriculums be part of the school culture and not just solitary lessons, is that students need lots of practice with these social emotional skills. These groups gave them a smaller environment to do that in. 

Now some of our students did need tier 2 intervention where they were retaught concepts in small groups. When everyone had permission, it became so simple to create a group that I could start within the week. I had my one or two students who were struggling with a social emotional skill, and two or three more students with permission who could serve as model peers. The "model peers" then had additional opportunities to practice and to teach their classmates coping skills or conflict resolution. This only strengthened their skills and confidence.

For tier 2 interventions that were specific, such as self-esteem issues or anger management, I would move beyond these more general groups and provided targeted interventions. The extra bonus of reinforcing tier 1 instruction is you often need fewer tier 2 interventions.

Building Trust

As a newer school psychologist, I wanted to make sure that students knew who I was and how I could help them. Tier I groups were a way to do that.

When they participated in groups or saw other students headed there, I went from unknown to familiar. I was Ms. Driscoll and not Who's that?. When a student went with me, it didn't mean something was wrong. It was just what everyone did. 

Within groups, we focused on problem solving, resolved everyday conflicts, and learned skills they could use that day. I went from who is that to getting flagged down across the field at recess.

Parents Onboard

Some parents can be resistant to their child seeing a school counselor or school psychologist. They think something must be wrong. 

The counseling permission slips let them know that these groups were a part of the regular curriculum. The same as their children, I wanted them to know me and see me as a resource. Once students started coming home talking about groups or mentioning me, I had parents regularly stopping by. Many of them talked to other parents positively about the groups. 

Consider sending home a short note when students are participating groups along with some simple resources, like SEL focused children's books or websites. I eventually started doing parent nights on the SEL skills their kids were learning.

When a student did need more targeted support, I was more likely to have a parent onboard if their child had been in groups. I was familiar and not scary. Having their child see me for a short time was not a risky thing to do.

Now, you do get permission slips back with a resounding no. You have to respect that. Some parents don't want their child pulled, even if it's during a non-academic time. Some have a bias against mental health supports. Try if you can to find other ways to build relationships with these parents and try again. 

How To Do It

Hopefully by this point I have convinced you to give this a try or something like it that fits your school. Here are some tips to get you started.

Start with one grade. The younger grades usually return the most permission slips. 

Phrase your counseling permission slip broadly and focused on reinforcing the SEL or counseling curriculum. You can add some language about more specific services being available, but that isn't necessary.

Use parent friendly language. "The groups are ways to connect with peers, practice keep problem solving skills, learn to handle every day stresses."

Use a different color for each grade to make it simple to sort as they return. The largest returns will come from K-3. You may have to sell it more to fourth and fifth grade.

Create a spreadsheet with all the students names organized by grade and class. Have columns where you can note if they have permission, when they participate in groups, and if they are a priority.

Plan 4 to 6 sessions that reinforces your school SEL curriculum. You can follow along with the curriculum or you can plan sessions that give more time to trickier skills (i.e., conflict resolution) or skills that benefit from small group practice (i.e., coping skills). Look at your needs assessments and see where Tier I might not be living up to its potential.

Pull struggling students more than once throughout the year. Some students who did not have a specific referral concern but continually needed SEL support stayed in small groups for the entire year. The group and the material would change around them, and they would receive ongoing Tier 1 support. Often, these students did move into a more targeted Tier 2 service, but not always.

Finally, think about how you can use this along a continuum of support. Students might have been in these groups and also seen me for individual counseling. Students don't need to be in one service or another. Tiered systems aren't a specific intervention, but rather intensifying support. 

Tier 1 small groups are a great ways to reinforce your SEL curriculum, build relationships, and integrate social, emotional, and behavioral services into the fabric of the school. Personally, I loved having connections with so many different students. 

Do you have tiered services in your school? When do you put students in small groups? 

Need more help? Schedule Small Groups in 8 Steps should help. 🙂

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