Monthly Theme Ideas To Keep Your Counseling & SEL Lessons Focused
As a school based counselor, I have to admit that I’ve always been a little jealous of classroom teachers. While I have absolutely LOVED my role, I’ve always wished that things were a little more… clear. My husband taught math for 10 years, and like many other classroom teachers, he had a curriculum map to follow. It told him when to teach fractions, what time of year to teach decimals, and what to teach after he was done with long division.
In the SEL and counseling world, this type of structure doesn’t really exist. Of course, ASCA has mindsets and behaviors to cover, but there isn’t really a cut and dry schedule to follow. As someone who has a high enneagram 1 score, I like organization and plans, which makes this aspect of counseling difficult for me.
Of course I love the freedom to be able to meet kids where they are and to adapt to the needs of the school, but I’ve always wished that someone would just tell me what to teach and when to teach it. I know I’m not alone, which is why I wanted to share a schedule that I’ve found helpful.
Below, you’ll find the calendar of my counseling & SEL monthly theme ideas. You’ll also find an explanation of why I cover that specific theme when I do. Please note that this isn’t meant to be a limiting list - it’s meant to inspire you and to give you a structure that you can take and make your own. If you’re not sure whether or not a monthly theme is right for your school, check out this post where I explain why I love having a monthly theme and how you can promote it!
Monthly Theme For August: Coping Skills
The beginning of the school year can feel like a blast to the system. The often structure-less days of summer are replaced with early wake up times, rules and expectations, and academic demands. This can bring up so many emotions in kids, which is why it can be helpful to talk about coping skills right off the bat. Teaching students ways to manage their emotions at the beginning of the school year can help your students learn (or re-learn) the skills they will need to adjust to the school year and navigate the challenges that the upcoming months may bring.
Looking for a way to review? Grab this free coping skills Google game!
Monthly Theme For September: Self Control
Similar to my reasoning for August, September still has that back to school feel. This is the perfect time to teach, and remind kids of self control strategies that will help them all year. Self control also ties in with many of the behavior expectations that are being taught at this point in the year, such as controlling voice volume, sitting in your seat, etc.
Some of my favorite self control books are:
Clark The Shark by Bruce Hale
Lacey Walker, Nonstop Talker by Christianne Jones
We Don’t Eat Our Classmates by Ryan T. Higgins
Monthly Theme For October: Bullying Prevention
October is National Bullying Prevention Month. This makes it the perfect time to help kids learn about what bullying is, the types of bullying, and how they can stand up for themselves and others.
Here are some great resources on bullying:
Monthly Theme For November: Mindfulness
November seems like it’s the start of a whirlwind. Kids are looking forward to Thanksgiving, then we’re back for a few weeks and then off for the winter holidays. Introducing mindfulness techniques, and talking about how to use them, can be a great way to help students manage the feelings of excitement or anxiety during this month. These mindfulness books will lead to meaningful conversations about what mindfulness is and how we can practice it.
Monthly Theme For December: Kindness
With the holiday busyness and a temptation to focus on receiving gifts, this is the perfect time to encourage kids to look outward and think about how they can be helpful to others. For more ideas about how to encourage kindness during the holiday season, check out this post.
Monthly Theme For January: Growth Mindset
New year, new me! For many people, January is all about goal setting and learning to overcome the challenges that may keep us from meeting our goals. Plus, at this point in the year, academics are becoming more rigorous and students may need some extra reminders to not give up when it gets hard. These growth mindset books are perfect for your lessons this month!
Monthly Theme For February: Diversity and Inclusion
It’s Black History Month, and Valentine’s day, which makes it the perfect time to talk about loving and caring for others, and celebrating the things that make us different! Common Sense Media has a great list of tools and resources to support diversity and inclusion in schools!
Monthly Theme For March: Self Esteem
March is full of pressure to perform, as we head into the thick of testing season. Plus, the warming weather means more shorts and short sleeves, which can be hard for students who struggle with body image. This makes it a great time to focus on the things we love about ourselves, and that make us great - no matter what our test scores are. Your students will love these videos as they learn about, and develop, positive self esteem!
Monthly Theme For April: Friendship
By the time April rolls around, the kids have been in class with the same people for almost an entire school year. This means that some strong friendships have formed, but cliques, exclusion, and relational aggression may have made an appearance as well. April can be a great time to give a refresher on why it’s important to be a good friend, how to have healthy friendships, and even how to make new friends.
Check out these friendship resources from the Counselor Chelsey shop.
Monthly Theme For May: Conflict Resolution
Friendship is so important that I like to spend two months on it, although this second month I like to focus on conflict resolution - which is perfect for the relational aggression that pops up a lot during this time of year!
Kelso’s Choice is a great resource for helping kids learn to work through their problems on their own. They have some great freebies here that you can get when you sign up to get their e-mails!
If you’re doing summer school or your district has a different schedule than August to May, you could do Social Problem Solving for June and Feelings for July!
My hope is that these idea will give you a great place to start with your counseling or SEL monthly themes. If it still feels overwhelming, don’t worry! I did all of the work for you when I created my SEL Topic Of The Month resource. It includes a no-prep lesson, daily question calendar/list, letter to families, list of additional resources, and certificates for 12 different social emotional learning topics.
