We are excited to have Serena Mendoza join Kino as a part-time counselor this year! In addition to one-on-one meetings, Serena and Caroline hold a bi-weekly class for Junior High and High School students on social and emotional health, called Serenity. They have previously worked with domains of wellness, communication, boundaries, accountability, values and priorities, and more. Currently they are learning about disability and practicing self-advocacy. 

She's also started a kindness project with the primary kids. Each week they will gather as a group to share some kind acts they saw from their classmates. They then get a kindness card to take home and remember their classmates' appreciation. 

After the Thanksgiving break, Serena will also be running a series of small sessions for Junior High students called "Being Your Best You." They will cover good habits, study skills, and time management.  She's hoping to get some more small group sessions started for our soon-to-be graduates on life skills too. 

This week was our annual Halloween celebration! All the homerooms planned and set up lots of fun activities for the afternoon celebration, which included: a costume contest; werewolf games (on body outlines!); a dance party; a Mario-themed room with Wii games and snacks; a cake walk; face painting; and a costumed basketball contest. Thanks to Jennifer Shelton's sister, Heather Kelso, we also had a balloon animal artist! There were so many creative costumes, delicious snacks, and fun games.