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My book of the month is Ugly: The Memoir By Robert Hoge.  This book impacted me on so many levels and left me with so many points that I look forward to sharing with my students this upcoming school year.  When I saw the book on the shelf, during the Scholastic Book Fair, I stopped to pick it up because the word UGLY jumped out at me.  Immediately my mind thought of my students that exhibit signs of low self-esteem so I just knew the book was about that! Has to be, right?  👎 Wrong!   After reading the back of the book I had so many ideas going through my head.  I thought about how I could use the book to teach students about the importance of having empathy, diversity, and accepting people who are different from them!   While I read the book I allowed Robert's words to take me on his journey throughout his childhood.  I could feel his pain as he described his experiences.  He mentioned that for every kid who accepted him there ...

In our busy lives we have so many things to do and at times we may feel there is not enough time in a day to get everything done. So what do we do? We find ourselves cutting out important things like the gym, gatherings with family and friends, or even taking the time to make a healthy meal. We sacrifice these things just to finish what we feel needs to get done. We do not hesitate to put self-care in the backseat, even forgetting about it at times. But that behavior will come back to bite us. How? Neglecting ourselves by not investing in self-care result in our emotional, physical and mental faculties revealing how much they do not appreciate being ignored (manifesting in anxiety, anger, poor health, depression, etc). Our body needs to know that it is important and that we cherish it.   When we practice self-care we:  boost our self-esteem,  establish boundaries that keep us attentive keep ourselves motivated maintain a healthier lifestyle help to reduce...

This afternoon I came across a video that was shared in a Facebook group and I spent twenty minutes really taking in a wealth of excellent information that I must share with you.  I am a firm believer that it takes a village to raise a child.  When a challenging kid is in our path how do we respond?  Do we send them to another classroom because we need a break from them? Do we change their color chart? Do we send them to the office? Or send a note home?  There are other ways that educators have found to address challenging kids in an effort to have them understand they have stepped out of line.  But in the end do we get the result that we need in order for the student to be successful?  Are we getting to the root of "why" the student is doing it and not just looking at "what" the student is doing?  The following video sheds light and gives pointers that I hope you take away and implement in the upcoming school year and beyond. I mentioned at the b...

When is the last time that you held the door open for the person behind you? Or, helped someone get an item off a shelf in the grocery store?  Or, help someone who has fallen on the floor?  In today's life we are so busy that we often don't take time to stop and observe the more important things.  And those important things are often not being taught to our children.  It is so important to show our young ones the importance of being kind and their role in creating a kind climate. As educators we have the opportunity to demonstrate what kindness is to our students.  We also can show them by way of activities and interactions. During Kindness Week try one of the following activities in your elementary school!  If not one of the following do something positive to change the culture in your school.  Whatever we do as educators let's do something to ignite change by way of kindness! Bingo Game! Bundle of Kindness Games Bucket Filler Activit...

2018 is moments away.  For those of us in education it is almost time to cross the threshold of our schools and welcome our students back!  So they have been home from a few days to two weeks, depending on where you live.  What's the first thing you do AFTER reviewing rules and expectations? I talk about goals for the new year.  The conversation is not limited to the school year because I want students to think beyond the current school year.  We talk about things we did last year that proved successful and things that didn't.  We talk about behaviors that need to be left in the last year and behaviors we can work on in the new year. We talk on skills we need to sharpen to make sure we reach our goals. I use A New Year, A New Me resource (which can be found below). A New Year, A New Me  is the perfect activity for grades PreK-6.  It encompasses whole group, teamwork and individual work.  Students will have fun and enjoy talking about bein...

As an educator we have the tendency to be self-less. We find ourselves at times over-extending ourselves, which can ultimately lead to burn-out.  We look for ways to be a part of the change in the life of someone that has not tapped into their potential.  We seek unexplored avenues to uncover the greatness that we envision for the future.  We put in over time knowing compensation is not an option.  We make ourselves visible after hours and on weekends to show up for the game of a student that needs to know that someone cares.  We reach out to our co-workers as we collect more data to strengthen the plan that has yet to be set in motion.  We advocate for the one with no voice because their thoughts matter.  We seek a deeper understanding of how this could be happening to someone that should be enjoying their innocence not have it ruined by experience.  We are constantly looking to save our students, so to speak. Even as we leave work and we turn o...

I am going to keep this short and sweet.  YNot Counseling is hosting its first official give away beginning Monday, August 7th!  What's being given away, you ask?!  Patience, patience my dear! 😊  YNot Counseling will be giving TWO people the opportunity to get ONE of the following resources:   "All About Me" Card Game  or  "All About Me" Pennant, Dice, and Comic Strip .  All you have to do is click the All About Me link below and follow the directions!  Then go to my Facebook page and comment which resource that you want!  It's that simple!!! YNot Counseling First Official Giveaway!

Stop by YNot Counseling on teacherspayteachers and get your personal copy of   Keep Your Hands On Your Own Things !     It is the perfect follow up activity. This resource includes a 20 card scoot game with recording sheet, All About Honesty Comic Strip, and five coloring sheets with messages about the importance of being honest. Get your copy today! Thank you for stopping by!  Mrs. Casper 😁

I am compassionate about what I do.  I enjoy working with the youth, helping them and seeing them succeed.  When I went into daycare in 2002 my main focus was to assist families that would not have access to education before starting their child/ren in public school.  My motto was, "Helping Your Child Get Ahead of the Curve".  My curriculum consisted of Beginning ASL and Spanish, multicultural lessons and activities, field trips, and individual assessments so that I could create lessons around the needs of the student.  I LOVED what I did and I LOVED to see the looks of satisfaction on the faces of the parents at the end of the year program where their child was performing.  When I closed my daycare I was satisfied because I know I provided a great service to every child that crossed my threshold.  I began working in a public school setting in 2013.  The district I was in was awesome to say the least!  The students had what they needed at the...

When I began the 2016-17 school year I was up in arms about what I would do in the classroom with the students at my school.  I am in a K-6 school so I needed meaningful activities.  Since it was my first year as a school counselor I turned to the internet; scouring countless websites, reading numerous articles, joining many Facebook groups...and the list could go on.  As I implemented the lessons shared by experienced/seasoned counselors in September I recognized the disconnect between the lesson and the students.  I began to question myself and my delivery.  I had to take a step back and really examine the community I was working in and the lessons I was bringing to them.  After downloading several TPT resources and finding they weren't quite what I was looking for I decided in November to start creating my own resources.  And so the birth of Inspirational One's Counseling Corner began.  Who's that, you ask?  Well, I'll tell you.  It w...

So it is official! YNot Counseling will begin blogging in an effort to reach the masses.  So what does that mean for me?  More commitment to YNot Counseling. What does it mean for you?  Blogs about the counseling life. :-) Seriously, it is my hope that through this blog you will get to know the person behind YNot Counseling, Mrs. Casper. I will be sharing my experiences, my resources (CLICK LINK BELOW and enjoy some freebies), and more!  So get on the YNot Counseling ride and buckle your seat belt...it's going to be an adventurous ride! Teacherspayteachers Store:  https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Ynot-Counseling Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/ynotcounseling/ Twitter:  https://twitter.com/YNotCounseling Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/ynot_counseling/ Pinterest:  https://www.pinterest.com/YNotCounseling/ynot-counseling/