Course Overview

This one-day training introduces school social workers, school adjustment counselors, and school counselors to the foundational skills of Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), a brief, evidence-based approach that fosters hope by activating students’ agency and helping them create actionable plans for success. Participants will learn how solution-focused conversations are inherently trauma-informed, emphasizing strengths and resilience while avoiding re-traumatization. Core skills include negotiating goals collaboratively, crafting questions that enhance hope, using scaling questions to measure and build progress, and employing techniques like “amygdala whispering” to help students regulate intense emotions. The training also explores “VIP mapping” to foster stronger connections with students, families, and educators.
Through interactive learning that includes live teaching, role-plays, video observations, and case discussions, participants will gain confidence in shifting from problem-focused to solution-focused conversations. This approach empowers school counselors, school social workers (SSW), and school adjustment counselors (SAC) to promote social-emotional learning, resilience, and measurable progress within their schools.
Participants wishing to earn 10 PDPs may submit a demonstration of a professional learning project.

Last Updated: December  2024

Target Audience: Social workers, psychologists, mental health counselors, educators, adjustment counselors, behavioral health practitioners, and medical professionals appropriate for all levels of knowledge.

1. Describe how solution-focused conversations promote social-emotional learning and foster transdisciplinary collaboration with educators, mental health clinicians, and families in educational settings.
2. Identify the core skills and tenets of solution-focused conversations, including their trauma-informed applications.
3. Explain the key differences between solution-focused and problem-focused conversations, emphasizing paradigm, order, and language shifts.
4. Discuss the principles of solution-focused “languaging,” including the use of root verbs, positive vocabulary, and appreciative language to instill hope and agency.
5. Apply solution-focused techniques such as amygdala whispering to counterbalance intense emotions in educational contexts.
6. Demonstrate using solution-focused questioning techniques, including direct compliments, coping questions, amplification of positive differences, and scaling questions to enhance agency and create actionable plans.
7. Implement solution-focused VIP mapping to identify and strengthen connections with students, families, and educators.
8. Demonstrate solution-focused goal negotiation skills, including the best hope question, imagining a satisfying week, and the miracle question to facilitate collaborative planning in educational settings.
9. Describe how the solution-focused safety assessment approach differs from problem-focused risk assessment in addressing student needs.

This course consists of the following components. The program must be completed in order, and your certificate of completion will only be given once all components are complete.

1. Live lecture
2. Course Evaluation
3. Certificate of Completion

Participants will be assessed in the following manner:

• Class Participation: Participants are invited to clarify things they do not understand, pose questions, offer ideas, and broaden perspectives. Participants are encouraged to participate in exercises and discussions.

5.5 CE Credit/Clock Hours are available for this live course.

Please see our Continuing Education Information page for information about CE credits, clock hours, and our accreditations and approvals for psychologists, social workers, and counselors.

Participants should check with their professional licensing boards to ensure that a specific course will be accepted for their continuing education requirements.

To receive continuing education hours, the participant must attend the entire online presentation with their camera on, engage in all activities, and complete the course evaluation.

Upon successfully completing the course, participants will be given instructions on downloading and printing their Certificates of Completion.

No conflicts of interest or commercial support are present for the CE program, instructor, or presentation.

Our complete list of policies can be viewed here.