Mrs. Law's Lexington Junior High Blog

Our first grading period has officially ended! For the seventh grade students and parents, this probably came a lot quicker than you expected. All of the elementary schools are on 9-week grading periods, or quarters. The junior high and high school are on 6-week grading periods, or hexamesters. This comes with positives and negatives. If a student starts the grading period out with some poor grades, it is more difficult to bring that grade up, because there are not as many grades and a shorter amount of time. However, on the positive side, your end of year average is based on 6 grades, rather than 4 - giving you MORE opportunity to get the grades you want. However you look at it, the beginning of each grading period is important. The first two weeks of each grading period determine if you spend the rest of the time digging yourself out of a hole, or more simply, maintaining a good grade. Here are some important dates to keep in mind: 9/27/2019 - 1st grading period ended 10/...

Breathing is important.   Obviously you need oxygen and it happens without any thought - on average we each take about 960 breaths per hour (or 16 per minute).   And yet, it is something that we often don't do well... especially if we are stressed or upset! When you are under a great deal of pressure, your body responds - again, without you having to think about it.   Your breathing often changes and your muscles get tense.   It is an automatic reaction that your body does to prepare you for whatever danger is coming your way - think of it as your body going into an early "fight/ flight/ freeze" response.   But that is a challenge because your stress and frustration are not the same the need to run from a lion or whatever other danger might have necessitated a fight, flight or freeze response and so we have to take back control over our body. I have to acknowledge something.   I hate the concept of breathing as a stress reliever!   I. HA...

As the school counselor, I have a lot of conversations about resources available in our area. There are more than you realize! There are agencies and caring individuals for nearly everything a person could need assistance with. Housing, employment, food, clothes, counseling, crisis, medical, etc. The list of resources can actually become quite overwhelming. Instead of listing ALL of these things separately, there is one simple way to find it all. FIRST CALL 211 First Call 211 is a free, confidential community service. Our mission is to provide useful information to the public and to connect members of our community with services that meet their needs. Assistance can range from simple issues, to much more complex issues, and our up-to-date database allows us to search through local services and match those in need to the proper agencies for help. Website  https://www.mrcpl.org/services/first-call-211 By Phone (2-1-1) Alternate Line: 419.522.4636 Toll Free: 877.79...

This week is National Suicide Prevention Week.  This link takes you to a short 3 minute video clip with information related to suicide .  It's intended audience is for the parents of teens, but it applies to kids too.  I am going to ask you to stop now and watch it.  Please. I recognize that the video is simple, not overly emotional, but wow does it hit on so many of the key messages related to suicide.  Most of all, the importance of asking.  The feeling of being alone with your thoughts, your feelings, your loneliness, your hurt, your pain, and not being able to see any way out is a key risk factor for teens having thoughts of suicide.  So ask.  Ask the people around you, "Are you okay?" Ask, "Are you having thoughts of killing yourself?"  Ask, "How are you feeling?"  And then listen . If the answer is yes, then it is time to act.  Get your family member or friend support and help.  Something needs to change...

Procrastination  is a problem that MANY students battle. Every year I meet some students who are "master procrastinators." The reality is that some people don't mind putting everything off until the last possible second and then working like crazy to get everything accomplished before the deadline, but this can result in a lot of unnecessary stress. Procrastination certainly doesn’t mean that you are lazy or incapable, but it is often a sign that something is getting in your way of completing your tasks and responsibilities. If you are interested in learning strategies for gaining control over your tendencies to procrastinate, it is important to remember that there are no quick fixes. As with most things in life, what works for one person will not necessarily work for someone else so it is important to find a strategy that will work effectively for  you . I doubt that any of these suggestions will be ideas that you have never heard of before, but it comes down to dec...

  Over the first two weeks of school I work diligently to introduce myself to all students, explain my job, what I do, how to see me, etc. While doing this, I also make a point to work in some character education:) This year, I found an incredibly interesting article listing all of the academic benefits of kindness. For years we have preached to the students that kindness matters, be nice, treat others with respect, etc. We do this because we want them to be good, decent people, who care about others. However, the academic benefits of kindness have been largely overlooked! Here is the list I recently shared with our students: THE BENEFITS OF KINDNESS! Improved concentration Increased serotonin (feel-good, mood balancer) Less stress Improved focus Greater creativity Increased cognitive function Increased collaboration Improved self-esteem Greater empathy and peer acceptance More meaningful connections with others More healthy and productive collaboration with oth...