Saturday, August 27, 2016

Helping Students Transition to a New School

I'm so EXCITED to be joining Heather Thomas The Helpful Counselor in her Blog Hop on Fun Ways to Welcome New Students to Your School! Transitioning to a new school can be overwhelming to students. Helping students feel comfortable in a new environment can help reduce anxiety and worry.  I work at a school where a lot of new construction is being built. Newly developed neighborhoods bring a lot of brand new students! Last year, it seemed we were getting new students EVERY week.

Meeting and reaching out to new students can make a HUGE impact. It shows them you care and that you are interested in their well-being.  To help students become more comfortable at my school, I created a New Student Brochure.

 I included a boy and girl version


I do my best to meet with every new student within the first few of days of their enrollment. I like to introduce them to a couple of students in their class and have them take the new student around to complete The New Student Bingo.  This gives the new student an opportunity to spend some time with their classmates and learn the layout of the school. Once all 9 squares have an X, they come back to my office for a small treat.

Parents are almost as anxious about a new school as their child. I have received a lot of positive feedback from parents emailing me and expressing their appreciation in helping their child feel accepted and welcome at their new school.

***If you would like a FREE copy of this New Student Brochure click HERE to download.***

I can't wait to read other school counselor blogs in the Blog Hop to see what great ideas they have that I can incorporate in my school counseling program! Click HERE to see other fun ideas!

 Fun Ways to Welcome New Students

Happy New School Year!