Counselor’s Corner

Our School Counselor, Mr. Best, can be found right in the center of Middle School — available to support all students in the following ways:

PreK – 5th grade students will receive monthly Social-Emotional Learning classes and Grades 6 – 8 will be invited to participate in optional small groups with parental permission.
Students may participate in “Weekly Check-In’s” in which Mr. Best pulls students individually in order for them to discuss their concerns, stressors, or achievements! Please submit a Consent of School Counseling Services form to jbest@hspiritschool.org.
Mr. Best will collaborate with your students’ outside therapist, psychologist, and other mental health professionals in order to ensure that each student’s overall therapeutic needs are met.
Parents are more than welcomed to schedule meetings with Mr. Best to ask for resources, discuss concerns or gain insight in order to help their child succeed throughout the academic school year.

Please feel free to reach out to Mr. Best if he can be of assistance

See video to learn more!

Mr. Best graduated from Western Kentucky University with a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Criminology. From there, he went on to complete his Masters at the University of the Cumberlands in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and became board certified as a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC). Mr. Best loves working with children of all ages and seeing their overall therapeutic and academic growth. Outside of Holy Spirit, he loves spending time with his family and helping clients through his Private Practice.

Forms for Counseling Services:

Minds in Motion:

Students in grades PreK through 2nd take part in the Minds in Motion maze program. You can watch a video about the maze here: https://youtu.be/cW7rEzBje7o

Kids and Cell Phones:

Some guidelines for deciding when your child is old enough to have a cell phone: https://www.commonsensemedia.org/cell-phone-parenting/whats-the-right-age-for-parents-to-get-their-kids-a-cell-phone
Here are some cell phone safety rules to consider before you give your child a cell phone: https://www.commonsensemedia.org/cell-phone-parenting/what-are-the-basic-safety-rules-for-cell-phones
Your child got their first cell phone recently? Here are some first cell phone rules for responsibility: http://www.ahaparenting.com/ages-stages/tweens/Cell-Phone-Rules-Safe-Responsible-Kids
Maybe your child already has a phone and you are looking for a way to add a little more structure to the way they use it, you might try a cell-phone contract. Here is a sample one: https://www.verywell.com/a-sample-cell-phone-contract-for-parents-and-tweens-3288540

Social media, cyberbullying and digital safety:

http://www.stopbullying.gov/cyberbullying/what-is-it/index.html

Safety (Internet filters)

http://www.toptenreviews.com/software/security/best-internet-filter-software/

Parent & Teacher Guide to the Internet

Social Skills:

The importance of social skills:

“Lack of prosocial behavior during early childhood is the single best predictor of mental health problems during adulthood.” – excerpt from “Teaching Parents to Teach Their Children to be Prosocial” by Linda K. Elksnin and Nick Elksnin.
http://www.ldonline.org/article/6036

Teaching friendship skills to your children