Lesson Plan
Creating a Counseling Culture
Students will learn the basics of individual counseling concepts and build a classroom culture of trust, empathy, and self-awareness through interactive activities.
Establishing trust and self-awareness helps students feel safe sharing and seeking support, laying the foundation for future counseling and healthy peer relationships.
Audience
7th Grade Class
Time
30 minutes
Approach
Interactive warm-up, guided discussion, collaborative activity.
Prep
Teacher Preparation
10 minutes
- Review Welcome to Safe Space Slide Deck.
- Print copies of What Makes You Feel Heard? Discussion Guide and Classroom Agreements Worksheet.
- Familiarize yourself with the Trust Builder Warm-Up prompts.
Step 1
Warm-Up: Trust Builder
5 minutes
- Have students form a circle.
- Read aloud each prompt from Trust Builder Warm-Up.
- Students respond with a thumbs-up/thumbs-down or quick word to indicate agreement or experience.
- Emphasize nonjudgmental listening.
Step 2
Presentation: Safe Space Introduction
10 minutes
- Project Welcome to Safe Space Slide Deck.
- Define individual counseling and its purpose.
- Highlight key counseling skills: active listening, confidentiality, empathy.
- Invite brief clarifying questions.
Step 3
Discussion: Feeling Heard
5 minutes
- Distribute What Makes You Feel Heard? Discussion Guide.
- In pairs, students read questions and share personal examples of when they felt truly listened to.
- Ask a few volunteers to share insights with the whole group.
Step 4
Activity: Classroom Agreements
8 minutes
- Provide each student with Classroom Agreements Worksheet.
- In small groups, they brainstorm 3–5 norms for a supportive, trusting environment.
- Groups post their agreements; discuss overlaps and refine into a class list.
- Teacher records final agreements visibly in the room.
Step 5
Wrap-Up: Reflection
2 minutes
- Ask students to write one word describing how they feel about having a “safe space” in class.
- Collect responses to gauge comfort level moving forward.
Slide Deck
Welcome to Your Safe Space
• A whole-class introduction to individual counseling concepts
• Building trust, self-awareness, and open communication
• Interactive activities ahead!
Welcome students and introduce the purpose of today’s lesson. Emphasize that this slide deck will help them understand individual counseling and how we’ll build a trusting class environment.
Objectives
By the end of today, you will be able to:
• Define individual counseling and its purpose
• Identify three core counseling skills
• Understand the importance of confidentiality
• Prepare to discuss what makes you feel heard
Walk through each objective to set clear expectations. Encourage students to ask questions if any point is unclear.
What Is Individual Counseling?
Counseling is a one-on-one conversation with a trained adult who helps you:
• Explore your thoughts and feelings
• Find new ways to solve problems
• Build coping skills for challenges
Explain that counseling is a supportive conversation to help people work through thoughts and feelings. Invite students to share what they think counseling might look like.
Core Counseling Skills
- Active Listening: Paying full attention, reflecting back what you hear
- Empathy: Understanding and sharing another person’s feelings
- Confidentiality: Keeping shared information private
Describe each skill briefly. Ask for a quick thumbs-up if they’ve ever felt listened to or understood.
Confidentiality
• What we share here stays here
• Builds a safe environment for honest sharing
• Exceptions only if someone’s safety is at risk
Emphasize why confidentiality matters for trust. Reassure students that what they share remains within this room unless there’s a safety concern.
Why Counseling Matters
• Supports mental and emotional well‐being
• Teaches healthy ways to handle stress
• Strengthens communication and relationships
Highlight the benefits of counseling for emotional health and relationships. Encourage students to think of times they wished they had someone to talk to.
Next Up: Feeling Heard Discussion
• In pairs, use the discussion guide to share examples of when you felt really listened to.
• Be honest and respectful.
• We’ll regroup to share insights afterwards.
Transition smoothly into the paired discussion. Explain that they’ll now explore what makes them feel truly heard using the What Makes You Feel Heard? Discussion Guide.
Warm Up
Trust Builder Warm-Up
Purpose: Quickly gauge comfort and build a nonjudgmental listening environment through simple thumbs-up/thumbs-down prompts.
Instructions:
- Have students form a circle.
- Read each statement aloud.
- Students respond with a thumbs-up if they agree or have experienced it, thumbs-down if they don’t.
- Emphasize that there are no right or wrong answers—this is about self-awareness and respect for everyone’s experiences.
Prompts:
- I feel comfortable talking about my feelings with someone in this class.
- I know a classmate I can trust if I need to talk.
- I feel safe sharing a personal thought in a group setting.
- I have taken time recently to listen to someone else’s concerns.
- I feel respected when I speak in front of others.
- I’m willing to share one thing about myself with the group today.
After: Highlight that noticing what makes us feel heard and safe is the first step in building our classroom “Safe Space.”
Discussion
What Makes You Feel Heard?
Purpose: Students explore what it feels like to be truly listened to and identify key listening behaviors.
Time: 5 minutes
Instructions:
- Organize students into pairs.
- Assign one partner to share first, while the other practices focused listening.
- After each question, switch roles so both partners have a turn to speak and listen.
Discussion Questions
- Think of a time someone really listened to you without interrupting. What did they do? How did it make you feel?
- What specific actions (words, body language, tone) helped you feel heard?
- Which of our core counseling skills—active listening, empathy, or confidentiality—did the listener use? Give an example.
- Based on this experience, what is one thing you can do to help a friend or classmate feel heard?
Whole-Group Share (2 minutes)
- Invite 2–3 pairs to share one insight from their conversation.
- As students share, record common themes on chart paper or the board (e.g., “eye contact,” “nodding,” “not interrupting”).
Follow-Up Prompts
- Why is feeling heard important for building trust in our classroom “Safe Space”?
- How does knowing that what you share stays confidential affect your willingness to open up?
Activity
Classroom Agreements Activity
Purpose: Students brainstorm and co-create class norms that foster trust, confidentiality, and a supportive environment.
Time: 8 minutes
Materials:
- Classroom Agreements Worksheet (one per student)
- Chart paper or whiteboard and markers
Instructions:
- Divide students into small groups of 3–4.
- Distribute one Classroom Agreements Worksheet to each student.
- In your group, discuss and list 3–5 norms that will help everyone feel safe, respected, and heard (e.g., active listening, confidentiality, kindness).
- Record your group’s agreements on chart paper or sticky notes.
- Post all group lists around the room.
- As a class, review each group’s suggestions, identify common themes, and refine them into a final list of 5–7 classroom agreements.
- Teacher writes the final agreements visibly in the room and, if desired, collects student-signed copies as a commitment.
Follow-Up Reflection:
- Why is each agreement important for maintaining our “Safe Space”?
- How can we remind one another to uphold these norms throughout the year?
- What steps should we take if someone forgets or breaks an agreement?