Q: I teach in a district making budget cuts. We are trying to keep our middle school guidance counselor. She is really good, but never toots her own horn. Our school has 550 students! Can you help us make a case for her?

A: With that student-to-counselor ratio, members of your district should be doing everything they can to keep her happy. One counselor for every 250 students is the recommended ratio.

First, make sure everyone knows exactly what your school counselor does. As a teacher, you know she's critical, but too many folks have an outdated notion of the role.

"Today's counselors offer much more than the 'guidance' of (our) grandmothers' day. They provide a broad range of services and skills," says Darcie Jones, Program Assistant for Counseling at Oregon's Salem-Keizer Public Schools.

In response to burgeoning student needs, the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) redefined the profession in 2004. ASCA publishes standards that describe the many facets of a licensed professional school counselor. There are national and state standards, too. (Go to schoolcounselor.org and your State Education Department website.)

"A licensed professional school counselor is a skilled advocate uniquely trained to understand the social, emotional, interpersonal, academic and career skills necessary for kids to stay engaged in school," says Jones. "As community resources dwindle, the counselor often functions as the architect of structural supports a student needs to succeed."

A school counselor is a collaborative school team member, says Jones: "A big-picture thinker who can partner with the entire school staff, parents and outside resources to address issues that may affect student outcomes. As instruction becomes more data-driven, school counselors help collect and interpret data to make sure students aren't falling through the cracks."

Middle school counselors have an especially critical role as students transition from childhood to adolescence, says Jones: "They teach coping strategies and ways to understand oneself, navigate peer relationships and develop effective social skills. They provide academic support such as goal-setting, decision-making and teach organizational, study and test-taking skills.

"They provide responsive supports such as individual and small group counseling, referrals to remediation to make up for lost learning, and individual, family and school crisis intervention."

Research shows that comprehensive counseling programs boost student success. Students at schools with such programs do better on standardized tests and are more likely to go on to higher education.

Studies also show that students who feel valued and safe in their school -- a key goal of a comprehensive school-counseling program -- are more likely to perform well in all academic areas.

"Because they have a broad perspective, many school counselors have an important impact on maintaining a positive school climate," notes Jones.

With more children slipping into poverty each year, Jones says that "school counselors are more involved than ever in garnering basic resources children and families need such as food, clothing, dental and medical care and adequate shelter."

But perhaps the best way to keep your school counselor is to have the budget cutters shadow her for a day. While she attends to confidential matters, they can sit in the hallway and catch their breath!

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)

Q: My daughter is a single working mom with a 3-year-old son. I think he should enter preschool. She wants him home with me even though I'm sickly. She says a child's IQ is what it is and preschool isn't beneficial. She's making me feel guilty. Is it true that IQ is fixed at birth?

A: Overwhelmingly, experts agree that intelligence is not fixed at birth.

As for the benefits of preschool, there is considerable evidence showing positive, long-lasting effects for 3- and 4-year-olds enrolled in early learning programs.

Studies also show that while kids from lower socioeconomic groups may have lower IQs than their better-off counterparts, the gap is due to differences in educational opportunities. Their IQs rise as their learning opportunities expand.

Researchers have also shown that children who have had preschool are more ready for kindergarten. They tend to repeat fewer grades, have higher rates of high school graduation, and exhibit more pro-social behavior throughout their school years.

But quality matters. If the educational program is just baby-sitting, your grandson could be better off with you, assuming you're not giving him a daily diet of TV. But if the program has well-trained teachers, is organized around environments where teachers and children interact, and offers developmentally appropriate activities to help him build a strong foundation for kindergarten, then encourage your daughter to register him.

Your daughter may be interested in a recently published paper by New York University researchers Joshua Aronson, Clancy Blair and John Protzko at the NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. They analyzed hundreds of studies to determine the overall effectiveness of various early childhood interventions involving children from birth through kindergarten.

The researchers discovered that enrolling an economically disadvantaged child in an early education program could raise his or her IQ by more than four points. Preschools that include a language development component boosted children's IQ by more than seven points.

They also found that a technique called interactive or shared reading -- when parents actively engage their children while reading with them -- raised children's IQ by more than six points.

The technique helps children develop vocabulary, knowledge of the sounds of language, and a habit of home reading, says early literacy expert Anne Van Kleeck, author of "Sharing Books and Stories to Promote Language and Literacy" (Plural Publishing, 2006). She suggests these basic steps when reading with your preschooler:

Look for children's books that engage him. Ask him simple questions, such as, "What is in this picture?" Repeat words and phrases. Ask him to label objects and events in sequence. As you progress through a book, ask him more complex questions about specific things in the story. Ask open-ended questions, rather than yes or no questions, and expand on his explanations. If he says, "The boy is afraid," ask him why. Reinforce correct grammar and syntax. If your grandson says, "The dog go home," say, "Yes, the dog went home."

To give your grandson a great start, enroll him in a quality preschool program and read with him every day after school. You'll put him on a path to lifelong learning.

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)

Q: My son's second-grade teacher wants me to bring our dog Bella to class to "listen" to students read. Bella, a tranquil 8-year-old Labrador retriever, is a trained guide dog whose owner died recently. The teacher says Bella can help some kids read better. The principal has approved, and my son is excited. Is this a crazy idea?

A: No, not at all. The folks at Intermountain Therapy Animals have certified Reading Education Assistance Dogs (R.E.A.D) and their owners throughout the nation for more than a decade. R.E.A.D. dogs are registered therapy animals that volunteer with their owners or handlers as a team. They work in schools, libraries and other settings as reading companions for children. The research results show gains for many young readers.

R.E.A.D teaches the dogs to look at the book while a child is reading it, focus on the reader and tune out classroom distractions. To learn more about the training and guidelines, go to therapyanimals.org/R.E.A.D.html.

You wouldn't want to take a dog like Marley from "Marley & Me" to class, but many schools welcome pets that are certified as "Good Citizens" by organizations such as R.E.A.D. and Pet Partners (petpartners.org) and their local affiliates.

Because Bella is a trained guide dog and comfortable in social settings, she will probably fit right in the classroom and have no problem listening patiently as a child plows his way through "Captain Underpants."

Double-check with your principal to make sure that there are no children with serious allergies whom Bella might encounter. You'll have to provide a certificate from a veterinarian that Bella is in good health and has had required vaccinations. Also, inquire about insurance. (Some training organizations offer it to owners of certified dogs.) Work with the teacher to set a specified time that Bella will be with students, and remain with her during this time.

"I can totally understand why this teacher would want Bella to listen to second-graders," says Kristen Ball, a Connecticut fifth-grade teacher who often takes her Tibetan terrier, Livvy, to class. "The elementary school years are critically important in the lives of young readers. They need lots of practice to become fluent readers, yet many are still nervous when reading aloud to peers and adults.

"Dogs relax kids. They just start reading and don't worry about making a mistake. Plus, reading to a dog is fun! Even my fifth-graders become more animated and confident because they know the dog won't care if they stumble over a word."

Ball said that Livvy helps kids with high energy because they can pet her throughout the day. During one school year in particular, Livvy gave a daily boost to a boy in Ball's class who had a serious medical condition.

Ball has noticed something else dogs can do for kids: help them focus.

"Some students are very distractible, but when Livvy is relaxing at their feet, they focus on their tasks better," she says. "There is something magical about a dog's presence that calms kids and makes them very happy."

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)