VSCA Updates

College and Career Readiness in the Elementary Years

By Anne Henry

This school year, the Academic and Career Plan Portfolio (a provision of the Virginia Standards of Accreditation) for elementary school students goes into effect. Some may ask, “What need do elementary students have for college and career readiness?” School counselors know the value of K–5 career exploration and the variety of options for this exploration.
 
To be sure, there are many lessons to be found on college and career readiness in the elementary years. However, it’s time for us to move beyond the standard assessments and activities and get a little more creative. The Virginia Department of Education requires schools to make sure that students are developing the five C’s: critical thinking, creative thinking, communication, collaboration and citizenship. School counselors can utilize and develop activities that strengthen these skills in our students.
 
Virginia Career VIEW continues to be a fantastic resource for elementary college and career readiness. A part of the Virginia Tech Office of Education, Research, and Outreach, they stay on the cutting edge of both Virginia academic requirements and educational best practices. One of their activities, “Careers in Design,” is a creative way to explore career clusters. Students choose to be toy designers, graphic designers, fashion designers or interior designers. They explore the many facets of each career in a way that’s both challenging and appropriate for their developmental level. The activity allows students to make choices, use problem-solving skills and express themselves creatively. It’s just one of many lessons, games, and programs on Virginia Career VIEW that students find so enjoyable.
 
An approach that is tailor-made for developing the five C’s is project-based learning. School counselors can use project-based learning to help students explore careers and select areas of interest. At my school, fifth graders use an interest-based career assessment to begin a project-based learning unit on careers. They collaborate in small groups to research a career of choice, and then create interactive displays and games to show what they’ve learned. They use these final products to put on a career fair for K–4 students, thereby building citizenship and communication skills. This process highly engages students and provides an authentic assessment of student knowledge about careers.
 
As you look for activities that could be a part of an elementary student’s Academic and Career Plan Portfolio, I hope you’ll consider innovative resources and approaches. If we can find methods that truly activate the five C’s in our students, our college and career readiness lessons will resonate with them. School counselors have the opportunity to help students pave the pathway to their futures; let’s make that journey as creative, meaningful, and exciting as we possibly can.
 
Anne Henry is a school counselor at J.W. Alvey Elementary School and is VSCA Government Relations chair.  

VSCA Presents Spring Symposium on Student Anxiety

Evidence Based-Strategies and Counterintuitive Techniques to Help Students Experiencing Anxiety, with Jonathan Dalton, PsyD.
 
Students are riddled with anxiety – this is no secret. As school counselors, we need to understand why and, more important, what we can do about it. Join Dr. Dalton for this workshop to learn what to do and what works with students with anxiety.
 
Monday, March 4, 2018
8:30 – 3.00 p.m. (light breakfast and buffet provided)
 
VSCA Members: $100
Nonmembers = $115
Retired or Student = $90
 
Register at www.vsca.org on our home page. Inquiries and purchase orders may be emailed to info@vsca.org. Payment may be mailed to VSCA, P.O. Box 426, Manassas, VA 20112

Save the dates for our 2019 Fall Conference!

 

VSCA’s Powerful Legislative Day Presence 

School counselors from around the state converged at the state capitol to communicate their support for the Governor’s proposed budget allocation of $36 million to fund additional school counselors, and support for other bills aimed at increasing student access to much-needed school counseling support. With close to 100 school counselors visiting state senators and delegates simultaneously, this was the biggest advocacy effort directly supporting school counseling Virginia has seen in decades. (See photos, below.) VSCA thanks you for advocacy efforts and your participation. For more information on school counseling advocacy efforts in Virginia, please contact Anne Henry, government relations chair at vscaadvocacy@gmail.com.