For Elementary Counselors, Big Caseloads Require Getting Creative

When I had the opportunity to become the school counselor for a brand-new elementary school, I was so excited. The ability to create a new counseling program! In a new building, with an amazing new office, only half a mile from my house! And then I had the sudden realization: I would be the only counselor for 704 students.

The ideal student-to-counselor ratio, according to the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) is 250:1. While I have never had a caseload that small, I have also never had one as large as I do now. Luckily, I had time to prepare. Here are the ways that I’ve learned to be creative in supporting an entire school of students.

Planning

Putting a plan in place is an important first step to having a successful year with a large caseload. I had to acknowledge that I would not be able to provide the same type of support and experiences that I was able to provide for 450 students. Not only did I have to be OK with that, but I had to share it openly with the faculty and staff I support.

To do this, I set up meetings with faculty and staff during preplanning. During individual grade-level meetings, I explained how my support would look different while emphasizing that I was still there to provide the best possible support and interventions that I could.

I also wanted to make sure I was setting realistic goals and expectations for myself, and this became part of our conversations during those meetings. In order to set priorities for my new caseload, I sent out surveys to each grade level to assess primary needs.

Core Curriculum (Whole Group Lessons)

In the past, I provided 45-minute in-classroom social and emotional learning lessons every other week. There were times when I was called out of a lesson to address a student crisis, which meant having to reschedule the lesson. I realized I needed to find a creative solution to avoid this situation, so I approached the art teacher to see if she would be interested in co-teaching. We created an arrangement in which I co-teach with her once a week for a nine-week block with one grade level (my school includes grades 2–5).

The best part is that the art teacher and I were able to collaborate to create a yearlong project, intentionally including both art standards and ASCA Mindsets and Behavior standards. In real time, I was able to observe and give feedback to students about how they communicated, collaborated, and managed conflicts in the classroom. If a student need occurred during class, I was able to step out to address it without having to reschedule the lesson. And as co-teachers, we were able to provide instruction with real-world lessons and experiences.

Small Group Support

I also had to rethink how I was supporting small groups. Traditionally, I would create multiple groups for sessions on specific topics, such as anger, anxiety, and self-control. I knew I had to streamline the support, so I sent out another survey asking teachers what groups would be the most helpful. I used the data they provided to support the top four topics and decided to create only four groups the entire year: two in the fall and two in the spring. In the fall, both groups did four one-hour sessions. This allowed me to prep for one topic and home in on what teachers really needed support with.

Creative Support

I recognized pretty quickly that I would have to think outside of the box regarding what student support might look like. A new part of my job was to hand out snack bags every Friday for students with families that may be struggling financially. Initially, I was planning to distribute the bags to each classroom myself, but then I realized that I could use the task to help students learn responsibility and leadership skills. Students were able to pass out the 85 bags within 30 minutes, allowing me to use my time in other ways. I made sure to keep the list private: The classroom teachers knew who received the bags, but the students delivering them only knew how many bags to give to each classroom.

I also reevaluated my mentor program and realized that responsible students and adults could be mentors to students who may need a little bit of support. Our school resource officer and I created a mentor program in which students who needed a positive role model could meet with him and play games.

Self-Care

Managing a caseload this large also forced me to rethink what self-care really looks like as a school counselor. I had to become more comfortable asking for help, even when it felt uncomfortable or unfamiliar. This included leaning on administrators, collaborating more closely with teachers, and accepting support when it was offered. I quickly realized that trying to do everything on my own was neither realistic nor sustainable.

I also had to learn that saying no is OK. There are times when I simply cannot take on additional responsibilities or provide the level of support I did in the past. While that was difficult at first, saying no has allowed me to focus on the areas where I can have the greatest impact. Protecting my time became an important part of supporting students effectively.

Another necessary shift was establishing clear boundaries. With such a large caseload, I had to be intentional about scheduling, availability, and communication with staff. Setting boundaries helped create consistency and allowed me to manage expectations in a way that was healthier for both me and the school community.

Finally, I had to give myself some grace. I had to accept that I could not do everything and that the year would look different than in years before. Supporting 704 students requires flexibility, creativity, and ongoing reflection. Giving myself grace has allowed me to focus on what’s working, learn from what’s not, and continue showing up for students in the best way I can.