As school counselors, we use a lot of “stuff.” Items that you’ll use in individual counseling might be different from what you’ll use in classroom lessons which might be different from what you’ll use in a group, so on and so forth. Below, you’re going to find a list of items that can be incredibly helpful school counseling supplies that serve as tools for engagement and management in your class lessons. We are not calling “must-haves” because everyone’s budget is different AND you can totally rock a lesson with very little, but they are a few “nice to haves”!
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Tools for Engagement
Dry Erase Pockets
Unless you want or need students to take a worksheet home to their grownups, using a dry erase pocket can help cut down on the amount of printing and recycling you do! These can be used for most all worksheets including fill-in-the-blanks, scoot games, matching, etc. They provide a bit more engagement than a paper and pencil worksheet because kids tend to like using dry erase markers!
Dry Erase Boards
Again, kids love dry erase markers (and some also seem to really like erasing their work in one big swipe). Dry erase boards are great to have on hand for group work or as a different way for kiddos to respond to questions. You can do quick rounds of “What would you do?” where students write their answer (short sentence, single words, letters for multiple choice prompts) on the board and hold them up in the air. You can also use them for quick teamwork practice. Students can take turns adding to a drawing, one student can give directions while the other tries to draw what they’re saying, etc.
Dice
You might have some of these on hand or in a game already, or there are virtual options, but they are great to have available for roll-and-responds. These can be a quick, fun activity that encourages simple small group reflection and practice to add to the end of a lesson like in our Self-Esteem and Self-Talk lesson where after the kiddos participate in the lesson, they are able to practice the skill by answering questions, filling in blanks, or repeating affirmations. You can also use dice to randomly select the order groups present in.
Small Reinforcers
Having small reinforcers like stickers, hand stamps, special pencils, smelly chapstick, fun mini-erasers, school-wide tickets, etc., can help keep kiddos engaged during lessons. Use these alongside behavior-specific positive praise to reinforce the behaviors that will help everyone learn and have fun together. Little things like this can also be fun to use as little “prizes” during class-wide games, too!
Sticky Notes
Sticky notes are a hugely versatile supply to have on hand. The typically-sized sticky notes are fun to use as exit tickets or as a different way to have students respond to class-wide questions (or to brainstorm lots of ideas). There’s something more fun and engaging about writing their response and sticking it up on the board, versus raising their hand. You can also use the big sticky notes (like these) for carousel activities like the one highlighted in this responsibility lesson.
Tools for Classroom Management
Clicker
This little gadget is SUPER helpful if you like to use slideshows during your lessons. If you get nothing else from this list, get yourself a clicker! Having one of these handy allows you to move around the room in order to engage with and manage students, while still being able to switch between slides. Tip: Keep an extra battery in the little pouch that these usually come with to have a backup ready.
Chime
Structuring your lessons is an important part of classroom management. Having a chime (or another audible attention-getter) can help your lesson flow from one chunk to the next. One way to use them is for a transition signal, so students know when to move to the next station or center. Chimes also work great when you’ve asked students to share ideas with one another and you need to get their attention to give another prompt or move to the next activity. One benefit to the chime is that it gives students a chance to finish their sentences, vs. an attention getter that demands immediate silence.
Timers
Most kiddos (and even adults) benefit from knowing how much time is left in a class or activity, which is where a timer can come in handy! There are a few options when selecting a timer that works best for your classroom (visual or digital) and that might change depending on your personal preference, the size of the class or the activity you are running.
You certainly don’t need any of these items to lead an incredible lesson, but they can be fun and/or helpful to you and your kiddos!
2 Responses
Thank you so much for sharing your great ideas and materials. I research a lot and you provide some of the most concise and specific information. I so greatly appreciate you.
You are very welcome, I am so happy to be of service!