1. Spend time reading every day. Research shows that kids who read daily are more likely to be good readers, and successful in school. Turn the TV off and read together!
2. Visit the library. Set aside time every week for a family trip to the library. Have each member of the family choose books to check out. You’ll be setting a great example for your child on the importance of reading.
3. Make reading easy. Have bookshelves where your child can reach and choose books on their own. Books high on a shelf, away from their reach, won’t encourage reading.
4. Read aloud to your child. Research shows this is the most important thing you can do to encourage your child’s reading success.
5. Use tried and true teacher tips. Teachers shared the following tips on reading and increasing reading comprehension: 
   • Stop before the end of the story and ask your child what they think will happen next.
   • Have your child guess the next rhyming word in a poem.
   • Have your child related the story to a personal experience they might have had.
   • Ask your child how they might change the story, or ending.

6. Give your child a wide range of experiences. Take your child to the zoo, on a picnic, or to the park. A child who has seen and touched a sheep, for example, will learn the words sheep, wool, and of course baa, and hold more meaning for them.
7. Relax bedtime rules occasionally. Once a week let your child stay up as late as they want, as long as they are reading in bed. Odds are, they’ll fall asleep soon anyway.
8. Look for unusual places to read. Make reading fun. Read outside on a blanket under a tree or make a tent inside on a rainy day. Just have fun!
9. Have a family contest. Take pictures of family members and their favorite place to read and see who has the most unusually spot.
10. Have family DEAR time. Scheduling a time when the whole family will Drop Everything And Read lets your child see that reading is just as important as ball practice.
11. Squeeze reading into a busy day. Reading can happen almost any time and any place. At breakfast, read the cereal box. During bath time, read aloud a book to your child. Keep a stack of books in the car for those times your sitting in a parking lot, or waiting at a ball field for a sibling’s practice to be over.
12. Start a family library. Books can be enjoyed over and over. Half-price books or yard sales are great places to find good deal. Books also make great gifts. You can also trade books with neighbors and friends and expand your choices.
13. Invite a “guest reader”. Ask friends, neighbors and other relatives to read to your child too. Even siblings can read to the younger ones.
14. Make sure a book is on your child’s reading level. Teachers will tell you to use the “rule of thumb” when choosing a book. Have your child read a page and hold up one finger for each word they don’t know. If you hold up all 4 fingers and the thumb before the end of the page, the book is probably too hard for them to read alone. You can use this book for a read aloud one.
15. Turn your whole house into a reading lesson. This is good for beginning readers. Label everything your child sees or uses: door, wall, sofa, light, etc…
16. Limit TV time. Studies show that kids who spend more than 10 hours a week watching TV do worse in reading than kids whose parents set limits on the amount of TV they can watch. Use TV tickets that your child gives you to watch a favorite show. This will teach that reading is important and planning ahead.
17. Find creative ways to practice reading. It doesn’t always have to be a book. You can cook together and have your child read the recipe aloud or look for certain words as you are driving down the road.
18. Make your child a reading detective. Write clues that send your child from one part of the house to another. In nice weather, you can send your child outside, too.
19. Try a newspaper scavenger hunt. Give your child a list of things to find in a magazine or newspaper. This could include things like: a picture of a famous athlete; the temperature for the day; a cartoon; movie title, etc…
20. Play alphabet/word concentration. Use index cards to write letter or word partners onto and turning them upside down to play “concentration”.
21. Schedule a reading dinner. Announce the meal before hand and everyone comes to the table with a favorite book, or one they are currently reading. Everyone takes turns telling what the book is about, and their favorite parts.
22. Teach your child to find information. This also teaches them independence. It’s a lot easier to just ask someone for the answer, but if they have to look it up themselves, they will remember not only the answer but also the skill for doing so.
23. Be a good example. Even if you’re not a good reader yourself, or don’t enjoy it, it is important to set a good example for your child. Listening to books on tape in the car, or doing family trips to the library will help in this.
24. Write a letter to a favorite author. Have your child write and send a letter to the author and tell why they like their books. You might be surprised and even get a reply!
25. Sometimes books get boring. Get a magazine subscription for your child to Highlights or Ranger Rick, anything that may peak their interest. Not only will it be fun to read together and do some of the fun activities, but your child will love getting their own mail!

When it comes to their children meeting with a school counselor, some parents are reluctant to support such a decision. They may fear the child will share"family secrets," which will then be spread throughout the school. Or that all the teachers in the faculty lounge will learn of their child’s specific problems and hold it against the student.

In fact, such concerns couldn’t be further from the truth.

A student’s right to privacy and confidentiality is the basis for an effective counseling relationship. Confidentiality ensures that school counselors won’t share students’ disclosures with others except when the student authorizes it or when there is a clear and present danger to the student and/or to other persons.

And, should parents to be called in to meet with the school counselor as well, in a collaborative effort to help the student, parents must also realize that confidentiality is the hallmark of a school counselors’ work. When students enter into a counseling relationship with their school counselor, the school counselor will educate the student about the purposes, goals, techniques and rules of procedure under which they may receive counseling. This disclosure notice, which the school counselor will explain in terms appropriate to the student’s age and cognitive ability, addresses the limits of confidentiality, such as the possible need to consult with other professionals, privileged communication, and legal or authoritative restraints. Consulting with other professionally competent persons is essential in the school setting when this is in the student’s best interest. The parents/guardians are informed of the confidential nature of the counseling relationship between the counselor and student. Information is kept confidential unless disclosure is required to prevent clear and imminent danger to the student or others, or when legal requirements demand that confidential information be revealed.

As counseling with a student progresses, it may become beneficial or necessary for the school counselor to consult and collaborate with parents. Either the parent or the professional school counselor may initiate the collaboration process. It’s the school counselor’s responsibility to reach an agreement with the student about what information to share with the parents. Unless, of course, there is a clear and imminent danger to the student or others.

The school counselor and parents need to build a relationship of mutual respect and trust to make the best decisions about the child. Trust means that what is shared is confidential and related to the child. The relationship between parent and school counselor develops through working together. With a primary obligation to the student, confidentiality is balanced with an understanding of the parents’ legal and inherent rights to be the guiding voice in their children’s lives.

While respecting the rights and responsibilities of parents/guardians for their children, the school counselor works to establish a mutual relationship with parents/guardians to maximize a student’s development. In addition, school counselors respect students’ values and beliefs without imposing their own personal values on the situation. School counselors also adhere to laws, local guidelines and ethical standards of practice when assisting parents/guardians experiencing family difficulties interfering with a student’s effectiveness and welfare. School counselors are sensitive to diversity among families and recognize that all parents/guardians, custodial and noncustodial, have certain rights and responsibilities for their children’s welfare. School counselors also make reasonable efforts to honor the wishes of parents/guardians concerning information regarding the student, and, in cases of divorce or separation, exercise a good-faith effort to keep both parents informed with regard to critical information, with the exception of a court order.

Confidentiality is limited and is much more difficult to guarantee in group counseling than in individual counseling. Group counseling, which involves a number of students working on shared tasks and developing supportive relationships in a group setting, presents different issues. Group counseling is an efficient way of to deal with students’ problems and concerns, allowing individuals to develop insights into themselves and others. However, confidentiality is much more difficult to maintain, and school counselors will disclose these limitations as part of the group counseling process.

The limitations of confidentiality don’t include information of possible abuse or harm to a child. By law, school counselor must report any case of abuse or neglect to the appropriate authorities. School counselors inform parents/guardians or appropriate authorities when a student’s condition indicates a clear and imminent danger to the student or others. This is done after careful deliberation and, where possible, after consulting with other counseling professionals. The school counselor will attempt to minimize the threat to a student and may choose to: 1) inform the student of actions to be taken, 2) involve the student in a three-way communication with parents/guardians when breaching confidentiality or 3) allow the student to have input as to how and to whom the breach will be made.

Confidentiality of information received in the counseling relationship is protected to some degree by federal and state laws, policies and ethical standards. Counselors have a responsibility to protect the privileged information received through confidential relationships with students, parents or guardians and with staff. Such information is only to be revealed to others with the student’s informed consent, consistent with the school counselor’s ethical obligation. In some situations, school counselors must also respond when subpoenaed in court. If reports are required, the school counselor makes every effort to limit information to what is relevant to the legal proceedings.

Student records and release of personal data is protected under confidentiality in accordance with prescribed laws and school policies. Student information stored and transmitted electronically is treated with the same care as traditional student records.

Confidentiality of records and access to confidential information is a concern of school counselors. School counselors have a responsibility to maintain the confidentiality of records and encourage school administrators to develop written policies concerning the ethical and legal handling of all records in their school system.

Published by the American School Counselor Association1/1/2008
Brenda Melton

1. Get a good night's sleep
2. Eat a healthy breakfast - not a lot of sugar!
3. Dress in comfortable clothes
4. Have necessary supplies ready (sharpen pencils, etc...)
5. Read and listen to directions carefully
6. Read each question carefully
7. Answer all of the questions
8. Mark your answers carefully
9. Budget your time - don't spend too long on one question- come back to it
10. Show all of your work
11. Write neatly - don't scribble or doodle
12. Include details
13. Defend your reasoning
14. Review your answers - check your work, go back to difficult questions to finish