Group Counseling  
FMS counselors will be running a variety of groups this year to help your children to be successful in school.  These specific topic groups will be held once a week for 45 minutes and run for 7 weeks.  Groups will meet on a rotating schedule so that each class is only missed once.  Students can be referred for a group by a teacher, counselor, principal, self-referral or parent request.  If your child wishes to be in a group or has been referred by a staff member, a permission slip will be sent home for you to sign.  If you wish to refer your child, please call or email your child’s counselor indicating which group you are requesting.  As long as we have sufficient student participation,  the following groups will be facilitated this year:

Stress Busters (stress management)
Changing Families (dealing with a divorce or separation)
All About me (self-esteem)
Got Friends? (social skills and making friends)
Good Grief (dealing with a loss of a loved one)
Just Chill (anger management)
Positive Choices (learning how to make better choices and staying out of trouble)
Stick Together (bullying support)
Getting Along in the Family

Anti-Bullying Initiatives
FMS has undertaken a comprehensive approach to combat bullying in the middle school setting.  Each month, the counselors are infusing an anti-bullying component in their monthly classroom guidance lessons.  In addition, October will again be Farquhar’s official anti-bullying awareness, with the school’s Blue Ribbon Campaign.
Students can look forward to contests, campaigns and pledges throughout the year celebrating a bully free school.

The Farquhar agenda book also features an extensive anti-bullying section.All students receive information during the September classroom guidance visits on how to access their counselor privately to discuss bullying (or any other) concerns.  All of the counselors have forms available at their doors for students to request to see their counselor.   In addition, there is a “Help Box” in the Media Center where students can leave a note about a concern.  Finally, parents are urged to contact their child’s counselor and/or administrator with any concerns about bullying.

Cyber Safety Information from MCPS Click here for more information. An extensive cyber safety section has been added to the Agenda Book.