Children With Aspergers

I just started working with a student who is diagnosed with Aspergers. Through working on this case I've really come to appreciate the importance of structure in the lives of my students. Taping a set schedule to the student's desk, giving breaks at set times each day and creating a behavior chart has worked wonders. I also learned that the approach needs to come from home and the school. If the students expect to be rewarded at home in addition to school the desired behavior seems to come more quickly.

Career Cafe

Yesterday marked the debut of Career Cafe at my school. This was something I stole from Danielle Schultz over at SchoolCounselorBlog. It was a huge hit. I received rave reviews from both staff and students. Thank you Danielle for this lending me this great idea!!!

Career Café is an opportunity for students in 6th - 8th grade to meet individuals from the community and learn about their careers. Students are invited to Career Café based on the results of a career interest inventory administered by the school counselor. Career Café is comprised of one 45 minute session and serves approximately thirty students in 6th - 8th grade each week.

Speakers share their career journey with students, including how they became interested in their current field, what education/training they needed, what they do in a typical day at their job, and any advice to students considering a job in their field.  

This week's guest speaker was a business banker and next week we are scheduled to have a nurse.