West Woodland Elementary Counseling and Social Work Office

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School Counseling and Social Work Services

Thank you for your interest in the West Woodland counseling office. The West Woodland counseling office is here to support a safe a welcoming school experience for all students. Our school counselor provides support for students and families in times of crisis, helps address barriers to learning, and delivers short-term direct services to support student well-being.

Meet the Counselor

Ms. Angel

My name is Ms. Angel (Angel Dawson) and this is my third year as the Counselor at West Woodland. I have worked to support children, families and community in Seattle since 2002 and have master’s degrees in clinical social work as well as elementary teaching.

As a school counselor, I support students in their academic, social, and personal development. I help support students in school by providing individual and group work, family/staff consultations, referrals to outside agencies, crisis interventions services, food support, and classroom lessons. I encourage families to be involved in their students' educational journey.

With over 500 students, I must manage my caseload based upon student and family resources, access to care outside of school, acuity of symptoms, and family support (or lack thereof). For all students, I am available to consult about a concern and direct families to appropriate resources or referrals. For students with Apple Health/Medicaid insurance, we have a partnership with SOUND where an assigned clinician can see students at school for weekly counseling. We also have a masters level counseling intern this year who provides support to 4th and 5th grade students.

I encourage families with concerns about their child to schedule a session to come in and meet me to brainstorm supports at home, at school, or in the community. I can be reached at andawson@seattleschools.org or call 206-252-1589. I am at West Woodland Monday-Thursday this year.

Meet the Masters-Level Counseling Intern

Ms. Channon

Channon Agor is a master’s level counseling intern from the UW School of Social Work supporting students at West Woodland Tuesdays, Wednesdays, & Thursdays for the 2019-2020 school year.
Channon Agor is an island girl from Hawaii living in the big city of Seattle. She has a passion for working with youth through the various challenges in society. She has experience with children of all ages in different capacities, including case management, art therapy, and life skill groups. She is currently a second-year Master of Social Work student in the Children, Youth, and Families concentration at the University of Washington. When she needs time away from her work and studies, she likes to go for a run around Green Lake. Channon will be working directly with fourth and fifth graders both individually and in group settings. She is beyond excited to be a part of West Woodland this school year.

Resource and Counseling Supports at School

If you are interested or have questions please contact Ms. Angel

School-Based Counseling with SOUND

Though a community partnership with SOUND if your student has Apple Health or Medicaid for their health insurance, they can access supportive school-based supportive counseling at West Woodland for 30 minutes each week. Once students are connected, counseling can continue over the summer and supports are available to parents and guardians too.

Weekend Food for Kids – Ballard Food Bank

Hungry children cannot concentrate, pay attention, or perform well in school. The nutrition provided by a weekend backpack program helps children from families who and need assistance with food. Thanks to a partnership with the Ballard Food Bank, we are able to provide a weekend bag of groceries to participating West Woodland students every Thursday.

Our awesome parent volunteers pick up food bags on Thursdays and then Ms. Angel packages the bags and puts them into student backpacks while students are out at recess. There is no income documentation needed for this free program. Accommodations are also available for dietary restrictions. Also, for families in the Ballard Food Bank service area, weekend bags of food are in addition shopping at the food bank once per week for your family.

Support for Families Experiencing Homelessness

If your family is in a temporary or inadequate living situation due to loss of housing please contact Ms. Angel, as your child may be eligible for certain educational rights or services.

For more information on Seattle Public School supports for students experiencing homelessness:

https://www.seattleschools.org/departments/homeless_program

Gender diversity and LGBTQ families

West Woodland works to create a climate where everyone feels they belong. We are a welcoming and affirming community for LGBTQ families and families with students who are questioning around gender or relationship identity. We offer community meet-ups each year for LGBTQ families to connect and build community, including attending the annual district dinner. If you are interested in joining the email list for these meet-ups, please contact Ms. Angel. Events are also advertised in the weekly Wildcat Chat.

In our classrooms, teachers regularly talk to students about how to support and celebrate the differences in our school. School is also a place where we strive to respect one another and learn to work together regardless of differences. Learning about gender diversity is part of this work.

Our teachers have received training from Seattle Schools in talking about gender diversity in a way that is age-appropriate and supports all kids and families. The focus is on how people identify themselves in a way that feels true for them. You can help support your student at home by answering questions they may have and by encouraging open dialogue about your family values and beliefs as well as reinforcing messages they will receive at school which focus on respect and kindness, being inclusive and resisting and reporting bullying.

As families, you may find it helpful to seek resources and information for yourselves and for your kids. Below are a few online resources you may find helpful. As always, please feel free to let me know if you have questions. Thank you for being engaged families who care deeply about the safety and well-being of all our students.

Gender resources for families*

Gender Spectrum: www.genderspectrum.org Gender Spectrum’s mission is to create a gender-inclusive world for all children and youth. To accomplish this, we help families, organizations, and institutions increase understandings of gender and consider the implications that evolving views have for each of us.

Welcoming Schools: http://www.welcomingschools.org/ Welcoming Schools provides training, and resources to elementary educators to embrace family diversity, create LGBTQ and gender inclusive schools and prevent bias-based bullying, and support transgender and non-binary students.

Social and Emotional Learning

RULER

RULER stands for Recognizing, Understanding, Labeling, Expressing & Regulating emotions. RULER is the social emotional literacy curriculum taught and practiced school-wide at West Woodland.

For more information you can visit:

https://www.seattleschools.org/academics/curriculum/social_emotional_learning_skills/ruler

Kelso's Choice

The Kelso’s Choice social-emotional learning curriculum features a problem-solving frog named Kelso who empowers students to solve small conflicts that arise. First students learn to tell the difference between a small problem that they can use strategies to address on their own, or a big problem where an adult’s help is needed. Then students learn and practice nine accessible strategies for independent problem solving. Our goal at West Woodland is to teach students several positive ways to deal with minor conflict situations.

By learning and practicing Kelso’s Choices, we believe students will develop effective problem-solving skills that they can use again and again; reducing the stress and number of conflicts they experience.

Find out more at: https://kelsoschoice.com/free-resources/for-parents/

Online and Community Resources

*This is not a comprehensive list. This list is not endorsed by Seattle Public Schools. Please take part in research to determine what might be the best option for you and your family. If you are in search of a specific resource, please contact Ms. Angel directly.

Urgent Needs

Crisis Connections can direct you to community support with housing, food, or financial assistance. You can call Crisis Connections at: 2-1-1, 1-800-621-4636, or 206-461-3200. Or online the Crisis Connections website has a great directory for resources and community support:

https://www.crisisconnections.org/get-help/community-resources-online/

For emergency needs: King County Crisis Line is available 24-Hours a day at 866-427-4747 or dial 9-1-1.

Other community resources:

Ballard Food Bank: https://www.ballardfoodbank.org/

Parenting Support

Puget Sound Adlerian Society Parenting Calendar: http://psasadler.org/
A great online resource for parenting classes, support groups, and parent education events in the local area.

SENG: Supporting Emotional Needs of the Gifted: www.sengifted.org/
A resource to help families of academically advanced students meet emotional needs and challenges.

Sound Discipline: www.sounddiscipline.org/parents/ Helps families and schools build respectful relationships with children using Positive Discipline approaches. Workshops and training available for families and educators.

Parents Helping Parents: https://www.php.com/
A nonprofit parent-directed family resource that provides guidance, support, and services to children with special needs and their families.

Parent Toolkit: http://www.parenttoolkit.com/grade-levels/elementary-school/elementary-school Parent Toolkit is a one-stop resource developed with parents in mind. It is produced by NBC News Education Nation and supported by Pearson. It includes information about almost every aspect of your child's development.

Grief and emotional support

Grief Support (loss of a loved one):

Safe Crossings http://safecrossingsfoundation.org/find-support/for-parents/

The Healing Center https://healingcenterseattle.org/

Camp Erin https://washington.providence.org/services-directory/services/c/camp-erin

Wild Grief https://wildgrief.org

Art with Heart https://artwithheart.org

Books that Heal: http://booksthathealkids.blogspot.com/A bibliotherapy blog with children’s books on various topics to help address emotions, development, and life’s changes and challenges.