Ψ School Psychology
WHAT DO SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS DO?
School psychologists help children and youth succeed academically, socially, and emotionally. They collaborate with students, educators, parents, and other professionals to create safe, healthy, and supportive learning environments for all students that strengthen connections between home and school.
SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS CAN HELP BY:
- Completing psychological assessments (e.g., cognitive, academic, adaptive, behavioural, social-emotional) and providing written reports for school teams and parents/guardians.
- Diagnosing various childhood and adolescent mental disorders and learning disorders.
- Providing materials/resources to schools such as social stories, modified learning materials, and parent/teacher friendly articles on various topics.
- Providing small groups interventions (e.g., social skills, emotional support, self-regulation, life skills).
- Providing individual interventions (e.g., executive functioning support, CBT strategies, psychoeducation) and monitoring success of interventions through data collection.
- Offering consultation to school teams and families (e.g., goal setting, classroom observations, intervention monitoring, behaviour planning, communication with doctors or outside agencies etc.).
- Consulting with schools and families regarding grade retention and grade promotion.
- Partnering in the VTRA (Violence Threat Risk Assessment) Team to conduct risk assessments.
- Attending Student Specific Planning (SSP) meetings to assist with goal development.
- Assisting with behaviour plan development.
- Providing class-wide education on certain topics.
- Offering or organizing workshops for staff or parents on a variety of topics.
- Conducting PATHs and assisting with the transition from school to the community.
- Liaising with outside services (e.g., private clinicians, doctors, provincial organizations).
- Making referrals to outside services such as adult services and community mental health.
- Reviewing, developing, and implementing divisional policies pertaining to appropriate educational programming.
- Promoting school connectedness and family-school partnerships.
RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
Anxiety
- https://anxietycanada.com
- What to Do When You Worry Too Much: A Kids Guide to Overcoming Anxiety (Book) by Huebner, D. (2006) – Interactive self-help book for children aged 6-12 and their parents using CBT-based strategies to target anxiety.
- Apps:
- Smiling Mind: https://www.smilingmind.com.au/
- MindShift: https://www.anxietycanada.com/resources/mindshift-cbt/
- BreathR: https://keltymentalhealth.ca/breathr
Learning Disabilities and Delays
- https://www.ldamanitoba.org/helpfulresources (Learning Disabilities Association of Manitoba)
- https://www.gov.mb.ca/fs/imd/index.html
ADHD
- https://caddac.ca/ (Centre for ADHD Awareness, Canada)
- https://www.russellbarkley.org/books.html
- https://www.efpractice.com/ (Executive Functioning Support and Strategies)
Challenging Behaviour
- https://livesinthebalance.org/our-solution/
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuoPZkFcLVs (Video: Rethinking Challenging Kids)
Parenting Resources
- The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child’s Developing Mind (Book) by Daniel J. Siegel & Tine Payne Bryson – practical information about cultivating healthy emotional and intellectual development using strategies that foster healthy brain development and a sense of calm when faced with day-to-day struggles
- No-Drama Discipline: The Whole-Brain Way to Calm the Chaos and Nurture Your Child’s Developing Mind (Book) by Daniel J. Siegel & Tina Payne Bryson – explores the link between brain development and effective ways to deal with misbehaviour
Autism Spectrum Disorders
- https://asdmb.ca/ (Autism Spectrum Disorders Manitoba)
- https://autism.org/well-structured-classroom-autism/
Private Psychology Services
If you are looking for psychology services available outside of school please visit: