The Role of School Counselors in Identifying Abuse

As a school counselor, you have to juggle the needs of so many students at once. The role of a school counselor is to help students achieve academic and personal success so that they can continue on to their next step and pursue their dreams. While that might be as simple as coaching younger students in identifying their interests or helping high schoolers apply for college, counseling can also be a lot more complex and emotionally challenging.

In a perfect world, school counselors would only have to worry about the academic aspects of their students’ lives. However, many children experience abuse and neglect at home. Others are dealing with their own or a family member’s mental health problems. It’s part of a counselor’s role to know how to identify abuse and take appropriate action for the student’s best interest. 

Statistics On Domestic Abuse & Neglect

Family violence and neglect are sadly much more common than we would like to think. In 2019, there were about 1.2 million cases of reported domestic violence in the United States. This number doesn’t include incidents that went unreported, of course, so the actual number is much higher. Only a little more than half of all domestic violence cases were reported to law enforcement in that same year.

Even if children in abusive homes aren’t being victimized directly, they typically witness it between their parents or other family members. About 10 million children witness these kinds of interactions each year, affecting their sense of safety and security, affecting their mental health, and shaping their worldviews.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, incidents of domestic violence rose, with some cities seeing a 20% increase in calls during February and March of 2020. Now that most students are back at school in-person, it’s easier for counselors to notice problems that their students might be having at home.

Types of Abuse Affecting Children and Teens

Children and teens can experience different kinds of domestic abuse at home. These tend to fall into a few major categories:

• Physical abuse — Hitting, kicking, beating, punching, or otherwise causing physical pain and harm. Locking a child in a room or withholding needs is also a type of physical abuse.
• Sexual abuse — Forcing sexual contact. Children can never consent to sexual contact.
• Emotional abuse — Manipulation, intimidation, insults, and other tactics to emotionally control, frighten, shame, or humiliate someone.
• Neglect—Failure to provide basic necessities like access to food, water, sleep, shelter, hygiene, and healthcare.

Obviously, children can experience more than one type of abuse simultaneously. Abuse of any kind affects a child’s welfare, safety, and health. Making a child watch abuse take place is also a form of child abuse.

Signs of Family Violence and Neglect

As a counselor, it can be difficult to tell if a child is being abused at home. Most children don’t feel safe speaking up about their situation. Others feel ashamed or embarrassed about what they’re experiencing, even though it’s not their fault.

It’s extremely important for counselors to keep an eye out for signs of family violence and neglect when working with students. Some of the signs to look out for include:

• Visible, suspicious injuries — bruises, cuts, scrapes, etc.
• Wearing clothing that fully covers the body, especially during warmer months (to hide injuries)
• Showing fear of adults
• Withdrawing
• Aggressive or defiant behavior
• Struggling with friendships
• Exhibiting “fearless” behavior
• Being destructive
• Being called “accident-prone” by parent or guardian
• Spending excessive time at school and not wanting to be home
• Struggling with schoolwork for no clear reason
• Avoiding physical contact with others
• Coming to school in the same clothes consistently
• Hygiene issues
• Showing signs of being excessively hungry

It’s important to remember that these are not definitive signs of abuse. There are lots of reasons for unusual behavior, and children do injure themselves playing together. However, if multiple signs are coming up and a child is unwilling to talk about their home life, it’s important to consider the possibility of abuse.

How to Help Students Affected By Abuse

Reporting abuse can be emotionally difficult for school counselors. No one wants to accuse a child’s parents or guardians of abuse, especially when there is any uncertainty surrounding the issue. Still, it’s critical for counselors to speak up and report potential abuse to the authorities.  

When a report is filed, Child Protective Services will get involved. The person making the report is not identified. You might be called on to provide additional information during or after the investigation, however. The most important thing is to ensure that children and teens who might be experiencing abuse are safe. If you do need to make an abuse report and you’re having trouble with your own emotions, don’t hesitate to get mental health support for yourself!  

How to Help Students Create a Personal Brand Statement 

For students who are getting ready to head to college or enter the workforce, the thought of creating a resume, building their professional network, or finding a job can be a bit intimidating. To help them solidify where they want to go and how they feel they can add value to their industry, a personal brand statement can be extremely helpful. 

A personal brand statement is a one to two-sentence summary that highlights how you can add value to your industry based on your skills, your experience, and your passions. 

This can be extremely beneficial to high school students making the transition to college as it can help them: 

• Find a job
• Expand their professional network
• Attract additional opportunities
• Find other people in their field of study 

6 Steps to Crafting a Personal Brand Statement 

Now that we know what a personal brand statement is, let’s go over the steps you can take to help your students craft theirs. 

1. Have them make a list of their skills 

The first step in crafting a personal brand statement is to make a list of skills. Have your students start by creating a list of what they think their unique skills are—soft and hard skills. These skills should be specific, so have them focus on ones that relate to the industry they’ll be studying in college, a job they hope to land, or a club or network they hope to join. 

2. Have them define their audience 

They’ll likely already have an audience they want to target in their mind, so have them pinpoint it so they can craft a statement that will speak to that industry. You want to avoid a general statement so you can stand out amongst others. 

3. Have them research what others are saying 

Have them research what other people in their industry are saying. Are they specific buzzwords they’re using? Is there a gap in knowledge that they know they can fill with their experience? Discovering this can help them better understand what to include in their statement. 

4. Have them start building their sentences 

It may take a few rounds, but have them start crafting their sentences once they’ve completed steps one through three. These sentences should be clear and concise, speak to their target audience, reveal how they can add value, and any unique skills they have that can help them stand out. 

5. Help them revise and simplify their sentences 

The more clear and consise, the better. Help them remove the fluff and trim down anything that isn’t necessary. 

6. Have them add their statement to professional platforms 

Once they’ve got their personal brand statement finalized, it’s time to start marketing themselves! They can add this to their resumes, LinkedIn profiles, email signatures, and any other platforms that are going to help them receive more opportunities. 

To help students build a personal brand statement, check out this downloadable worksheet that can help them brainstorm ideas and craft the perfect personal brand statement that will help them in their future endeavors. 

5 Ways to Help Your Students Improve Their Math Skills

Part of your role as a counselor sometimes includes motivating your students to push through the slog of study towards achievement. This often needs to happen in very practical ways. Students that don’t maintain standards in a few key areas can be severely hampered from entering college or accomplishing the goals they have for themselves. Math skills are one of these areas. Because of this, it can sometimes make or break a student’s chances at being able to study and pursue what they want.

With a bit of encouragement, many students can keep on task and get the math scores and proficiencies they need before any of it slips out of reach or becomes too daunting while in high school. A few tips and tricks can make this much easier. These strategies can easily be incorporated into your office, meetings, and plans with the students you serve.

Help Your Students See the Wide Breadth of Math-Related Skills

So often, classroom math seems arbitrary and pointless. It doesn’t help that many math curriculums don’t do a good job of making it clear to students why they’ll need those skills and what they’ll do with them once they’re finished with school.

Showing the link between math skills and other real-life aptitudes is a great way of helping motivate your students to engage with their math homework. Math skills can feed directly into larger, more all-encompassing skills like problem-solving, analytical thinking, and strategy. These skills are valuable in just about any profession.

Helping your students understand this connection can make them value their math classes just a little bit more and can encourage them to engage when they might not have otherwise.

Help Your Students Understand the Advantages of Good Math Skills for College

Math grades, proficiencies, and scores on standardized testing can sometimes carry more weight in the application and matriculation process for colleges and universities than other skill sets. Some schools offer more scholarships for engineering, mathematics, or STEM proficiencies even when a student isn’t necessarily pursuing a degree in any of those subjects.

And scoring well on math entrance exams can save quite a bit of time, stress, and money by allowing students to opt out of fundamental math courses. Investing time in keeping math levels high can be well worth it in the long run.

Have a List of Online Math Resources Available

Though most school districts are racing to incorporate more technology into their classrooms and curriculums, sometimes students still need alternative resources that might better fit their learning style. Many solid math teaching resources exist online that students often never learn about. Sometimes, having an additional tool or two available can make all the difference for a student trying to master a tougher math class or subject.

To help make your students aware of additional tools and aids they can use while taking on math classes, try simply gathering a list of online math tools and teaching aids that you can hand out to students that are struggling with math. You could include these suggestions in hand-outs or resources that all your students receive, or simply have them available in your office when needed.

Gamify Math Skills with Your Students

Gamification is the process of introducing competitive or game-like elements to things that wouldn’t normally include them. Gamification can make difficult subjects more fun and interesting. It can also help increase engagement from students who might not otherwise be motivated to learn.

One strategy for this is to use communal or interpersonal gamification. This might look like setting up a leaderboard or point system in your office for students to compete against each other. Be careful with your setup – students shouldn’t compete over things like grades or test scores. However, things like study hours, units completed, extra credit assignments, or number of flashcards answered on an app or online platform could be good objects to use for friendly math-related competition.

Another way of incorporating gamification is to help your students set individual goals for themselves. This could be any of the examples above or could also be a grade or level they’d like to reach for themselves. You could create handouts, punch cards, medals, and other aids that make these goals more exciting. The only limit is your creativity. Badges, prizes, and more could all motivate your students to engage more seriously with their math studies if you incorporate them into gamified structures.

Give Examples of How Math Is Used in Real Professions Your Students are Interested In

Finally, one of the most motivating tools you can utilize to help your students focus on their math skills is to help them more readily understand how those math skills translate into usable tools for the professions they’re interested in pursuing.

Posting charts or stories of how math can be utilized in professions your students are interested in can go a long way to help motivate them to continue focusing on their math classes and not give up on learning those skills.

By helping your students make math more approachable, you’ll help them stay motivated and engaged as they complete their high school studies.

Brag Sheet Template Your Students Can Use

Here is a brag sheet template your students can use to keep track of their accomplishments all year long in one document. Completing this will keep their pertinent information for their college applications in one place. This was posted to the HS Counselors Group on FB by Allison Gibbons Tokar, a Counselor in Georgia who got it from one of her colleagues. Feel free to adapt and use for your students.

A Brag Sheet is a student resume and is sent to people who will write letters of recommendations (LOR) on your behalf. LORs are needed for college applications, jobs, and scholarships.

The golden rule of Brag Sheets:

THE BETTER THE BRAG SHEET (that’s your part),

THE BETTER THE LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION (that’s our part).

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READ ALL DIRECTIONS BEFORE STARTING

Directions: Save a copy for yourself by naming it “YourName YourSchool Year”. Begin filling out the highlighted blanks with the appropriate information. Do not skip anything. Instead, delete lines that do not apply to you by right-clicking on a row and selecting “delete row”. You can add lines if you have additional accomplishments you want to highlight by right-clicking on a row and selecting “insert row below”.

TIP: Every time you accomplish something (win an award, start playing a new sport, get a new job) add it to your Brag Sheet. That way nothing important is left out.

When you need a letter of recommendation written for you, you need to make this doc into a pdf. Go to  > file > download > pdf Document (.pdf) and it will save in your downloads.Then email it to the person you are asking to write a letter of recommendation. Your School Counselor will also need one if you are using CommonApp. Please email the pdf to School’s Counselor email at least 2-3 weeks before your first application is due.

Typically, you can expect a two-week turnaround time for your letters of recommendation. Any less and we will have to rush, which means you may not get the most-comprehensive letter possible.

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Class of

Last name	First name	Middle initial	Preferred Name

Student ID:

Date of birth:

Career Goal:

Future Plans

Delete any rows that do NOT apply by highlighting that row, right-clicking, and selecting “delete row.”	Name of schools/programs being considered
Intended major
4-year university
2-year university
Vocational/tech school
Apprenticeship program
Intermediate employment
Armed services	Branch of service:
Other

Awards, Recognition, and Accolades (Reflect on your personal achievements. Consider SAT scores, honor roll, Student of the Week, and any other awards you have received. Add your information to the table below, and add more rows by right-clicking on a row and selecting “insert row below”.)

Award or recognition	Year(s) of achievement	Description of award
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12

Paid Work Experiences (please indicate self-employed ventures, such as babysitting, tutoring, lawn mowing, etc.-add more rows by right-clicking on a row and selecting “insert row below”)

Dates (most recent first)	Employer	Hours/week	Duties

Classes that have helped you prepare for work or further education (Pathways, Dual Enrollment, Work-Based Learning, etc.)

Name of class	Year(s) of involvement (highlight)	Description of class	How has it helped prepare you for work or further education?
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12

Athletics/Band

Sport (state JV, Varsity, or Club) or Band	Year(s) of involvement (highlight)	Positions or instrument played	Awards or recognition received with year
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12

Out of School Activities that have helped you prepare for work or further education (travel, community service, church activities, workshops, etc.)

High School Extracurricular and Community (Specify which extracurricular activities, events, and volunteer work you have participated in outside of classes and sports that have helped you prepare for work or further education. This can include travel, community service, church activities, training and workshops, school clubs, local organizations, etc. make sure to indicate what, if any, leadership positions you have held in these activities. Add more rows by right-clicking on a row and selecting “insert row below”).

Name of organization or event	Year(s) of involvement (highlight)	Description of activity and positions held	Hours of service and participation
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12
	9     10     11     12

Write in this section like they are mini essays. We want to hear your voice and feel your personality come through. The more details, the better!

Which extracurricular activities have meant the most to you and why?

What words immediately come to mind that best describe you?

Do you have a unique skill set you wish to share? (Consider unique skills like computer programming, tutoring, carpentry, arts and crafts, cooking, etc.)

Character (Reflect on your personal character and experiences)

What hobbies and personal interests do you have?

What obstacles have you overcome during high school?

Name some personality traits and characteristics that best describe you, and explain.

Anything else you think we should know, or that you’d like to share?

Proof-read your work. Check for grammar and punctuation errors. Then follow directions above to save and send to your LOR writers. Remember, allow your writer enough time (2-3 weeks) so that you can get the best letter possible. Waiting until the last minute to submit your Brag Sheet will result in either being turned away or a meager LOR. And a meager LOR never got anyone anything! 😉