A good child counselor is often vital in assessing your child's conditions and to give good counsel (advice).
It can be the key to unlocking his potential and with that, future success.
Having mentioned that, how does one know which counselors are good? In all reality, it isn't only about paper qualifications.
The truth is child counselors work in a very large scope.
In other words, you will have to discern the area of expertise or specialization the counselor is trained in.
In most instances, good child counselors also happen to be excellent child psychologists.
They are well-trained and specialized in fields such as early childhood education as well as special education for special children.
They are able to recognize and identify the areas that need to be worked upon such as communication, structured learning and other child development activities.
Child counselors are often able to help give you a proper and accurate diagnosis of the condition affecting a child.
When selecting the counselor for your child, you could go for one with at least a Masters or its equivalent in the field of child psychology.
In addition, the counselor in question should be experienced in the sense that he/she should have had dealt with a range o psychological, emotional as well as behavioral cases.
This is because the range of problems affecting children is extensive - everything form trauma to stress to autism, to down syndrome, attention deficit syndrome (ADD/ADHD) and the more common speech and communication problems.
A good child counselor will be able to give an accurate diagnosis of the problem and its recommendations to overcome the problem.
Often, the one-to-one counseling sessions have proved to be a major help for them in overcoming these disorders.
In addition, there is a host of child development activities and therapies to help control or cure these problems.
This is especially important since the majority of these cases are unique on its own; meaning to say each and every child will require a different approach.
Another factor that is often overlooked by parents is the personality of the counselors in itself.
What this means is, in order for the child to have any chance of success and progress, the child needs to be totally at ease with the counselor or might have difficulty in opening up.
Always remember that your child's health and future is in the hands of the child counselor that you have decided to go with.
Parents are encouraged to accompany their children for the first few sessions with the counselor in question.
Often, children with extreme disorders have formed a bond with their parents or/and guardians that they cannot be without them for too long a period.
For that matter, as a parent, it is your responsibility to be there for your child even when you decide to go for professional help.
To be able to engage the services of a good child counselor, you should be prepared to conduct some research - look through the local community bulletins and papers; talk to other parents or/and surf the net.