Counselor Johnson

“Melissa, stop. You’re making people mad. You’re going to lose friends over this. Just keep your thoughts to yourself.” Ask any black person you know how many times they have kept their head down and their mouth shut so that they don’t make people mad. Especially people in authority. They’ll tell you about those times and they’ll tell you about the time(s) that they couldn’t keep quiet, too. This is a time I couldn’t just be quiet.  My calling, my purpose in life is to educate others and if you don’t know that about me, well, you just don’t know me. I don't just educate children at work, but I educate children at my church. I educate parents. I educate other educators. I educate friends and family. I also spend a great deal of time educating myself and learning from others. I don’t delete or block people that disagree with me or challenge me, because my heart wants people to learn and see things differently when they read the words I write or the things I say. I don’t hate those...

From Friday, May 30, 2020 The Psychology Behind Rioting From Your Friendly School Counselor Last night, I sat here talking to my husband about trauma and racism and police brutality and rioting and looting and I cried. I went to bed with a heavy heart and tossed and turned and couldn’t rest. I finally got up and went to sleep in the other room because I was so restless and I knew he had to be up at 5:30 this morning for work. This morning, I woke up with tightness in my chest as I immediately felt hurt for the people of this world. I looked at these pictures of what was my home city (Louisville) for more than a decade and I sobbed. The link to these pictures is in the comments.  I want to say upfront that I am not condoning, justifying, or encouraging rioting, looting, or violence. However, I do want to encourage my white friends to be empathetic. To try to understand it. To try to imagine what it might take to push you that far.  I teach my students several lesson...

From Thursday, May 28th, 2020 “Jesus loves the little children. All the children of the world. Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight. Jesus love the little children of the world.” I grew up singing this song in my all white hometown surrounded by great examples of Christian living. Love others, help those who are less fortunate, and work hard were all values instilled in me through the many adults in that hometown (family, teachers, church members). I went to a high school where there were no people of color. I went to church with only white people. We didn’t travel much as kids and there was no internet or social media back in the 80’s and 90’s. My only exposure to black people was on tv (Bill Cosby, Fresh Prince, Family Matters). In my history classes, I learned that the slaves were freed after the civil war and I learned a little about Martin Luther King, Jr. and that black people had the same rights as we do. They could vote, own property, work for a li...

Isolation, Uncertainty, Boredom, Grief, Anxiety, Stress, Fear...... TRAUMA This week, we learned that our students will not return to our school building this year.  Instead, we will finish the year through virtual learning.  They didn't get to say goodbye to their friends or teachers.  We didn't get to have our end of the year awards ceremony, kindergarten or 5th grade graduation, field day, and so many other annual traditions.  It's heartbreaking for our school family (kids, parents, teachers) and we are all grieving and grief is a process (more on that in another entry).  Right now, everyone is very focused on the present (and we need to be), but as a school counselor and the only full-time staff member at my school that works with students' mental health, I have to be planning for the day we return and the impact of current events on the mental health of my students. In the fall (or whenever we return), I will have 400+ young people returning to the h...

Parents, your mental health, sanity, safety, and family time are more important than your child's NTI/distance learning/virtual learning (whatever it's called in your state). Do what you can. Have your kids do what they can. But, if it's causing you stress, your child's anxiety, etc. it shouldn't. It's okay if you don't get to it.  Educators, if you think you are going to replace the learning kids would do in a physical school building with all of the staff we have in sch ool and all of the resources we provide kids to be successful, then you are greatly undervaluing what we do each day. You can't expect kids to perform at the same level working from home in high stress with siblings, sharing devices, parents working from home, people getting sick and dying, not being allowed to do the things they love, etc. Adjust your expectations.  Don't be the teacher (principal, counselor, school district, etc.) that your students and their families remem...

"Trauma Informed" has ben the topic of focus this year.  A majority of the professional development in our district has been centered around being more trauma informed.  Trauma used to be the counselor's area, only.  It was part of my training for my Master's Degree and when there's trauma, usually teachers and administrators turn to me for guidance.  But, now, we are training all educators to be more informed about trauma and I believe that helps us to serve our students better.  Not only the students that are processing major trauma, but all students.  It has started to inform everything we do from assessments, school programs, behavior interventions, etc. as we begin to look at everything through a trauma lens instead of labeling students as students with "trauma".  Especially, since we can't always see trauma and we don't always know which students are dealing with trauma.   Our state has passed legislation requiring trauma informed training,...