Student Services
SMS School Counselors
Kimberly Ponder
Natalie Parrott
Chrisy Blankenship
SMS School Social Worker
Suzanne Hensley
Resources for Parents/Students
ADD/ADHD
National Resource Center for AD/HD- http://www.help4adhd.org/
The National Resource Center for AD/HD website has articles and information regarding AD/HD, diagnosis and treatment, dealing with the legal and school systems, educational issues, and living with AD/HD.
Attitude Magazine- http://www.additudemag.com/
Attitude is a magazine that contains information for students with ADD/HD and their parents. The tab entitled "Parenting ADHD Children" covers many aspects of being the parent of a child who has ADD/HD.
American School Counselor Association- Parent Information- http://schoolcounselor.org/content.asp?pl=327&sl=130&contentid=130
The ASCA website provides this section for parents with links to many useful articles relating to student transitions, college planning, test taking, as well as many other areas.
Bullying
Olweus Bullying Prevention- http://www.olweus.org/public/index.page
Dr. Dan Olweus is a pioneer of research on bullying problems. In conjunction with Clemson University a bullying prevention program was created based on his work. This website contains a vast array of helpful information on bullying from research based practices to state and federal law.
STOP Cyberbullying- http://www.stopcyberbullying.org
Cyberbullying is a growing problem among adolescents as technology progresses. This site gives the reader information on what cyberbullying is, tips for prevention, as well as the law surrounding cyberbullying.
No Bully- http://www.nobully.com
Provides resources for parents, teachers, administrators, and counselors on bullying. Under the parent section there are some useful tips to assist parents in handling situations in which their child is being bullied.
Bullying at School and Online- http://www.education.com/topic/school-bullying-teasing/
As a part of Education.com, this site offers information regarding bullying both at school and online. It contains articles on many different areas of bullying such as what to do if your child is being bullied, why bullying is difficult to deal with, and prevention ideas.
Child Abuse/Neglect/Exploited Children
Break the Cycle- www.breakthecycle.org
Break the Cycle is a site dedicated to breaking thy cycle of domestic violence through education and prevention in the realm of dating violence. Middle school is a time of transition in which many students become interested in dating. It is important that students be aware and know how to deal with date violence, especially as they transition on towards high school.
Child Welfare League of America- www.cwla.org
CWLA is focused on providing resources and support to children and youth who have experienced abuse, neglect, family disruptions, or other incidents which threaten their well-being.
College and Career
College Foundation of North Carolina- www.cfnc.org
CFNC is designed to help students and parents plan, apply, and pay for college. The site contains a career section with an interest inventory and other planning tools. It also provides an online application for colleges. CFNC is a free service of the state of North Carolina.
College Board- http://www.collegeboard.com
College Board is best known for administering the SAT. However, there are many other helpful tools on their website for students and parents. Students can find out more about the SAT, explore colleges, and plan for the future using tools such as the "College Matchmaker" application. Parents are able to find out more information about researching, planning, and paying for their student's college education.
Divorce
Kids in the Middle- http://www.kidsinthemiddle.org/
Kids in the Middle is an organization designed to assist families with children through divorcees. There are pages for children, parents, and professionals. These contain information such as a kids bill or rights, dos and don'ts, as well as a book list for children dealing with divorce.
Divorce Info- http://www.divorceinfo.com/children.htm
Divorce Info is also developed to assist families through divorces. It provides pointers and resources to make a child's life easier while going through a divorce.
Kids First Center- http://kidsfirstcenter.org/
Kids First Center provides information and support for families experiencing a divorce as well as a Kids Corner for children. The resource center contains recommended reading as well as tips for parenting during this tough time.
Drugs/Alcohol
National Institute on Drug Abuse and Alcoholism- http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/
This website includes news, research, resources, and data on alcohol and related problems. Also, under the "Publications" tab there are teacher resources and curriculum material related to drug and alcohol prevention,
The Cool Spot- http://www.thecoolspot.gov/
The Cool Spot focuses on peer pressure, alcohol, and underage drinking. The website is geared toward teens, but also contains a corner for teachers with lesson plans on peer pressure and alcohol. The student section of the site is highly interactive and contains facts, prevention, and health information as related to the peer pressure and alcohol.
The Anti-Drug- http://www.theantidrug.com/
TheAnti-Drug.com provides parents articles written by experts in the drug prevention field, science-based drug prevention information and studies, and support from other parents. The resources contain parenting advice, drug information, as well as current news, trends, and studies in the area of prevention.
Eating Disorders
Body Positive- www.bodypositive.com
Body Positive provides articles, forums, and tools to assist individuals in developing a healthy body image.
National Eating Disorders Association- www.nationaleatingdisorders.org
The National Eating Disorders Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting individuals and families affected by eating disorders. The organization's website has an "Information and Resources" section that provides information and resources to educators, parents, coaches, and others involved in the lives of students.
Internet Safety
FBI Guide to Internet Safety- http://www.fbi.gov/publications/pguide/pguidee.htm
This guide is created by the Federal Bureau of Investigations in order to expand parent's knowledge on keeping their children safe online. It provides signs your child may be at risk as well as how to handle situations involving online safety.
Appropriate Use of the Internet - ASCA- http://schoolcounselor.org/content.asp?contentid=284
This ASCA article provides parents with information regarding setting up rules concerning the appropriate use of the internet for their children. It is intended to make the internet a safer place for students to learn, play, and grow.
Safe Kids- www.safekids.com
Safe Kids is a website dedicated to internet safety and civility. It provides parents advice and tools concerning cyber-bullying, cell phone safety, social network safety, as well as other topics.
Net Smartz- www.netsmartz.org
NetSmartz is a resource created by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to engage students in learning about online safety. It is designed as an interactive, educational resource intended to instill the basic rules of online safety as well as help children recognize dangerous situations.
Learning Disabilities
LD Online- http://www.ldonline.org/
LD Online focuses on helping children and adults with learning disabilities reach their potential. The site features helpful articles, multimedia, monthly columns by experts, first person essays, children's writing and artwork, as well as other resources for children and adults.
National Center for Learning Disabilities- http://www.ncld.org/
Provides information through articles, publications, and resources to assist students with learning disabilities and their parents. It contains a plethora of information concerning your child's rights, current legislation, and providing a learning environment to meet individual needs and challenges.
Friends of Quinn- http://www.friendsofquinn.com/
Friends of Quinn provides resources and support for families of children with learning disabilities. It provides information for parents about what to do if they think their child has a learning disability, study strategies for students, as well as current information about disability law.
Loss/Grief
GrievingChild.org - A Service of The Dougy Center- http://www.dougy.org/grief-resources/
The mission of The Dougy Center for Grieving Children is to provide a safe place where children, teens and families grieving a death can share their experiences as they move through their healing process. Under the resources page there are links for kids, teens, and young adults.
Mommy's Light Lives On- http://www.mommyslight.org
A resource designed for children and teens who have experienced the loss of their mother. It provides information on common feelings, thoughts, and behaviors as well as resources for the individual who has suffered the loss.
Mental Health Issues
National Mental Health Information Center- http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/
The National Mental Health Information Center provides news, publications, and resources on mental health topics. It is a service of Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services division of the US Dept. of Health and Human Services.
National Institute of Mental Health- Depression in Children and Adolescents-http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/depression/depression-in-children-and-adolescents.shtml
This information is from the National Institute of Mental Health which is a part of the National Institute of Health. The site provides information pertaining to signs, symptoms, treatment, and research in the field of depression in children and adolescents.
Parent's Med Guide- http://www.psych.org/share/parents-med-guide.aspx
The Parent Med Guide is a useful tool provided to parents by the American Psychiatric Association. It provides information to parents regarding medication for the treatment of both depression and ADHD in children.
Self-Injury/Suicide
Self-Injury
Self-Injury Information for Parents- http://aces.nmsu.edu/pubs/_i/I-104.pdf
This article, written by Bruce Jacobs, Ph.D., outlines what parents need to know about self harm. Provided online by New Mexico State University, it addresses why adolescents engage in this behavior, warning signs for parents, and what to do if you think your child is harming his or her self.
ThisSite.org- Recovery, Advice, and Support-http://www.thesite.org/healthandwellbeing/mentalhealth/selfharm
Self-injury can be a frightening topic for parents and teens. The above link provides information on what self-harm is as well as information on recovery and support.
Suicide
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention- www.afsp.org
The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's site contains resources on facts related to suicide, prevention, education, research, news, as well as many other topics. The site contains warning signs as well as what to do and what not to do if an individual is showing these signs.
CDC- Suicide Prevention- http://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/suicide/
The Center for Disease Control offers news, fact sheets, podcast, and other resources related to suicide and suicide prevention.
Study Skills/Test Taking
Baker College Test Taking Tips Page- https://www.baker.edu/departments/lss/testtaking.cfm
This site contains tips for true/false questions, multiple choice, essay and number problems. It also includes general test taking strategies. Although it is from a college level, many of the tips are practical for middle and high school students.
How to Study- http://www.how-to-study.com/
How to Study provides hundreds of free articles on studying and student achievement written by experts in the field. The articles cover language arts, math, test taking, studying, as well as many other helpful categories.
Test Anxiety
Test Taking Tips- Reducing Test Anxiety- www.testtakingtips.com/anxiety/index.htm
This site contains a list of tips to assist students who are experiencing test anxiety. Many of the test taking tips which are addressed in this article are also useful tips for all students.
Helping Children Overcome Test Anxiety- http://schoolcounselor.org/content.asp?contentid=283
Helping Children Overcome Test Anxiety is an article from ASCA parent resource center. This article focuses on ways parents can assist their students in dealing with the anxiety that often comes from test taking.
Transition Information
The bellow links are to articles on the American School Counselor Association's page for parents and deal with transitions both to and from middle school.
The Transition to Middle School: Tips for Parents
Note: The above websites, organizations, and resources are to be used as a reference guide only. This collection is not exhaustive, but is intended to provide parents, students, and teachers resources to learn more about each topic. SMS is not responsible for, nor does it endorse, the ideas, products, opinions, or other information contained within these links. Please contact the SMS counselors if you have any questions or concerns.