This booklet is designed for teachers and counselors in middle schools and high schools who are teaching the Sharing Today and Responsibility Tomorrow (START) Curriculum. The mission of the START Curriculum is to help students develop strong character by providing them with awareness, knowledge, and skills for building healthy relationships with…

Asserts that children in junior high and middle school may be reluctant to participate in the process of counseling. Recommends that school counselors use therapeutic techniques that actively involve children and excite their imagination. Examines three such techniques that work with middle school students: game play, stories and metaphors, and…

Early adolescents make early career decisions in the form of curriculum choices for high school, and these choices can influence future postsecondary education and career paths. This exploratory study examined relationships between school and demographic variables and 522 eighth graders' choices of high school academic tracks. Analysis of variance…

This program guide was written to help teach young people effective anger management skills. Geared toward adolescents of middle school age and intended for in-class use, the sessions are readily adaptable for use in small group or individual contexts. The main goal is to help youngsters gain the awareness and skills to manage their anger so that…

Viktor Frankl stated, "One of the main features of human existence is the capacity to rise above such conditions, to grow beyond them. Man is capable of changing the world for the better if possible and of changing himself for the better if necessary." Effective counselors do this daily, rising above conditions, seizing opportunities to change the…

The current study examined important predictors of substance use during early adolescence. The authors hypothesized that adolescents' relationships with key adults (i.e., teachers and parents) influence their choices to use substances indirectly through links with their decisions regarding peer groups. A total of 461 middle school students from an…

The Walking Advisement program at Crittenden Middle School in Armonk, New York was started during the 1984-1985 school year. It was based on the work of Alfred Arth, a middle school specialist at the University of Wyoming. Essentially, the program attempts to expand the guidance function of the school by bringing faculty and students together to…

Examines suicide attempts and completions among middle school students to alert middle school counselors to the reality of child suicide. Discusses common symptomatic areas under the categories of drug abuse, social influences, acting out, pubescence, depression, and nuclear threat. Offers suggestions for the prevention of child suicide and…

The transition to middle school has been a frequent research topic in recent years. The findings have highlighted both the significant risk and opportunity for school counselor intervention in the transition. One particularly important component of the multifaceted transition is course placement. The importance and influence of mathematics and…

It is estimated that attention deficit disorder (ADD) affects from 3 to 10% of school age students. The ratio of male to female is reported as high as six to one. Children with ADD display signs of inappropriate inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity and are more likely than other children to have a variety of academic and social problems.…

This resource guide was developed to help new elementary and middle school counselors in Georgia plan and implement school counseling programs. It has been organized according to the required tasks in the Georgia School Counselor Evaluation Program. Sample forms, activities, and other information are included with each section of the guide.…

Examined effects of relaxation training on preadolescent children (N=532) with behavior problems. Results indicated fewer discipline problems among students receiving relaxation training than those who did not. Fighting, cutting class, and discipline reports markedly decreased. Suggests that counselors can serve as schoolwise consultants for…

There is no question that professionals and students need help in the process of gathering, deciphering, and then utilizing career information. As we enter the 21st century, school counselors are in a significant position to access and facilitate use of all sorts of career information, and they must be technically prepared to orient students,…

This paper describes the implementation and evaluation of a social competence promotion program conducted in the sixth grade of a middle school. The need to increase social competence within the school arose from the results of enumerative and stakeholder data collected at the school. This paper outlines the steps of the needs assessment, program…

The presentation covers information on test anxiety reduction strategies from over thirty years of experience with clients of a variety of ages. Dr. Ross is from the College of Lake County. Dr. Driscoll is a private practitioner and Director of the American Test Anxieties Association. The purpose is to address age appropriate test anxiety…