2013 Middle School Curriculum Guide - Wantagh School

Pupil Review
Analyze and interpret accumulated student data making recommendations and
individualized strategies to help students succeed.
Class Placement
Counselors, in partnership with parents, teachers and students, design an educational plan
for each student geared for success.
Child Study Team
The Child Study Team is a building level team that individualizes interventions of
referred ―at risk‖ students. The team includes counselors, administrators, special education
teachers, social worker, psychologist, reading specialist and nurse.
Grade Level Team Meetings
Counselors are valuable members of each grade level team. The counselors provide
valuable input on student background/history, interpret testing data and student records that may
impact on achievement, provide the link between home and school as a result of parent
discussions, suggest strategy, recommendations and follow-through procedures, suggest agenda
items, devise criteria for student placement with the teams, and follow-up with students and
parents as a result of team discussion.
Crisis Intervention
Counselors maintain an ―open door‖ policy and are available to all students, parents and
staff at all times during the school day.
Mediation
Counselors provide students opportunities to learn and practice peaceful resolutions to
interpersonal conflicts.
Guidance Curriculum
The counselors plan and teach a variety of lessons that are presented to all students on
each grade level throughout the school year. The curriculum is developmental over the course of
a student’s three middle level years and the format gives the counselors and students the
opportunity to work closely together in small groups.
-6th grade:
Units include The Helping Team, Self-esteem, and Perceptions/Harassment.
-7th grade: Self-Assessment and Self-Awareness are the topics with a strong
emphasis on how we impact upon each other’s self-esteem.
-8th grade: A two-week Career Exploration unit using the Self-Directed Search that
culminates in an on-line career research project.