Tips for Achieving Your New Year's Resolution

 

A new year is upon us and with that comes a lot of talk about resolutions, goals, and aspirations. Setting small goals that are realistic and achievable is a great way to build towards making a bigger change and fulfilling that resolution set on January 1^st.

But what exactly is a resolution? It can most simply be defined as the act of determining upon an action, course of action, or procedure (dictionary.com). Basically, it is making the decision to take the necessary steps to reach a goal. Resolutions do not have to be all about making a drastic change, such as losing 50lbs. They can be about working towards something smaller you want to achieve, such as living a healthier lifestyle, saving money for a vacation, meditating for 10 minutes every day, or spending more time with family. 

Betterhealth.gov states that in order to successfully achieve goals, it is important to be realistic, be specific, and to choose a goal that is meaningful and important to you. You don’t want to choose something that is going to add more stress to your life or that is so daunting you feel overwhelmed when planning how you will achieve it. Also remember not to be too hard on yourself!! No one is perfect and everyone has set backs; move at a pace that is right for you and celebrate little victories. So you were exercising every day for a week but then you took a week off…you have not failed! Changes cannot be made overnight. Research has shown that it takes anywhere from 21-66 or more days before a new behavior becomes automatic (huffingtonpost.com). Try keeping a log of how long you have been working towards a goal and if you have a setback, check how many days it has been since you started. Only 23? It’s still early! Commit to the process and stay confident. 

Here in the School Counseling Center we have become determined to reach individual daily step goals. By tracking our steps we have developed a little healthy competition and are able to support each other in reaching our goals. Having other people involved in a goal can help you stay on track and provide you with some cheerleading when you need some extra motivation.

Be well!!

Nipmuc School Counseling Center News

Wellness Week: One of the goals in both the School Counseling Center and Student Health Office is to work with students to create individualized wellness plans and live healthy lifestyles. Recent Metro-West Health data shows that school-related issues (grades, homework, and tests) are the biggest source of stress for Nipmuc students. This year’s wellness programming got underway with our first Wellness Week, which was a huge success! From December 7 - 11, students and faculty participated in a variety of activities to promote wellness practices, including a “no homework day.”

Take a look at the video below to see Wellness Week in action!

Feedback from students has been overwhelmingly positive. Over 90% of the students surveyed believe that wellness programming in school is important. We’re all looking forward to the next Wellness Week in March. If you have any ideas or want to get involved, please get in touch with one of the school counselors or nurse by calling 508-529-2140.

Coming up in January…

January 6: Scholarship Presentation for Seniors: During Advisory, seniors will attend a presentation to learn about college scholarships and how to apply for them. Some scholarships are already available on Naviance (“colleges” tab → “scholarship list”).

January 12: Incoming 9th Grade Informational Night: The evening will begin with a 30 minute presentation highlighting key points about our school. After that session we will introduce students and parents to Nipmuc through a fair, tours, and a feature of student work.

January 13 & 20: Counselors Begin College Search Process with Juniors: Counselors will meet with juniors on their caseloads during two advisory sessions. We will discuss how to start the college search process and what goes into applications and decisions for next year. A similar presentation for parents will take place on February 2nd (more information to follow).

Wellness Happenings Around Nipmuc

Wellness Week starts on Monday (Dec. 7) and 

The School Counseling Center and Student Health Services

 are buzzing with excitement and anticipation! 

We would like to give you a quick overview of what to expect next week so you can share our excitement about all the wellness happenings around Nipmuc...  

This Wednesday (Dec. 2) during advisory sessions, students will take a quick survey that will gauge how well students are managing their stress and what wellness practices they are currently using. One of the goals of Wellness Week is to help students identify one or more wellness practices that they can use to help manage their stress and regulate their emotions.

Students will be using Sched.com to sign up for an activity of their choice which they will attend during advisory sessions on Wednesday and Friday of next week (Dec. 9 & Dec. 11). The School Counseling Center has worked hard to organize sessions that include a wide range of wellness practices that highlight art, exercise, finding inspiration, music, nutrition, and relaxation/stress management. 

Activities in these categories include:

Making a Worry Stone

Regulation Emotions with Glitter

Relaxation through Coloring

Cardio Dance/Active Stretching

Weight Lifting

Recreational Games

Walking Outside

Yoga

Zumba

Motivation Speaker: Michael Wilson

TED Talks

Listening to Music

Jam Session

Singing

Making Healthy Smoothies

Therapy Dogs

Meditation

Reading

Video Games

and Writing

 To gain more information on these activities, please visit our Wellness Week website!

Along with attending these activities on Wednesday and Friday there will be wellness events happening other days of the week:
Monday: Peer leadership will be starting Wellness Week with a Positivity Day where positive post-its will be placed around the school.
Tuesday: Free granola bars will be provided in the lobby during breaks as a healthy snack option
Wednesday: No homework day!
Thursday: A guided meditation will be offered during both breaks in the Gathering Room.

Students should be on the lookout for an e-mail asking them to sign up for Wellness Activities on Sched.com and as always, please feel free to contact/visit the School Counseling Center or Student Health Services with any questions! 

Be Well! #WarriorWellness

Nipmuc Schooling Counseling Center - December News

For a short month, we have a lot going on in the School Counseling Center this December!  There are college application deadlines, resume work, Wellness Week, Breakfast with the Counselors, and more.  Read on for the details!

December 1: ASVAB: Nipmuc is administering the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB).  Students thinking about joining the military should definitely take the test, but any other students are welcome as well.  Interested students should see Mrs. Grady in the School Counseling Center by November 24th.

December 5: SAT

December 7-11: Wellness Week: The School Counseling Center and Student Health Services at Nipmuc have joined forces to help students and faculty reduce stress, improve health, and learn about wellness.  This week we will have an additional advisory session as well as a number of other small activities dedicated to wellness.

December 8: Breakfast with the Counselors, 8am-9am:  This workshop is for parents of sophomores.  We will focus our discussion on supporting healthy decisions.  Katherine Ware from Family Continuity will be joining us to give a clinical perspective.

December 9: Transcript Request Forms Due: Any seniors who are applying to colleges with a January 1st deadline must submit Transcript Request forms by December 9.

December 12: ACT

December 28: Deadline to register for January SAT (January 23rd)

Ongoing in the month of December:

Resume building for juniors: On November 18th, counselors met with all juniors to talk about the importance of creating a resume.  Student can use the resume builder on Naviance to help them get organized.  Mrs. Hennessy in the 21st Century Learning Center is available by appointment to help perfect completed resumes.  By the end of junior year, students should have their resumes ready for use.

Scholarships on Naviance for seniors: Although we’re a few months away from the busy scholarship season, there are some scholarships available now.  Seniors should check the scholarship list on Naviance once a week to see updated opportunities.  Mrs. Hefez is the scholarship coordinator and she can answer any questions you might have.

December 24 - January 3: Holiday Break

We hope you all have happy and safe holidays and look forward to a great 2016!