For Schools & Early Childhood Programs

School Mental Health Consultation

Bringing trauma-informed, attachment-focused expertise directly to educational communities across the Denver metro.

Early Childhood (Birth–8) K–12 Schools Crisis & Trauma Response Professional Training Caregiver Workshops
Mental Health Consultation

What is Mental Health Consultation?

Reflective, relationship-based consultation for preschools, ECE programs, licensed child care centers, home-based programs, charter, STEM, magnet and public schools as well as home school programs. Serving children birth through age 21. Grounded in the Consultative Stance framework.

At Turtle Shell, consultation isn't about showing up as the expert with all the answers. It's about coming alongside your team — curious, collaborative, and genuinely interested in what you're already seeing. This approach, rooted in the field of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation (Johnston & Brinamen, 2006), is called the consultative stance — and it's the foundation of everything I do in schools and ECE programs. The work doesn't happen to your staff. It happens with them.

Turtle Shell works alongside teachers and directors as a reflective partner — not as a clinician coming in to evaluate children. The goal is always to strengthen what your team is already doing.

A note on direct services: Turtle Shell's consultation is a staff and program consultation service. Turtle Shell does not assess, diagnose, or provide direct clinical treatment to children or families. When direct clinical referrals are appropriate, Turtle Shell will work with school faculty to help connect families with the right resources.

Consultation services include:

  • Classroom Observation With staff feedback and reflective debrief
  • Reflective Team Consultation Individual and team consultation with teachers and directors
  • Conscious Discipline® Informed Classroom and program-wide support
  • Trauma-Informed Environment Design De-escalation practice guidance and environment planning
  • Child-Specific Consultation With parent/guardian consent on file
  • Care Planning Participation In a consultation capacity
  • Program Policy Consultation Social-emotional learning and family engagement
  • Professiona Development & Learning Behavioral health workshops that provide necessary professional development hours (PDH) & skills to teachers and staff
Tiered service

Four-Tier Consultation Model

Schools can engage Turtle Shell at any tier or across multiple tiers simultaneously. Each tier has a distinct focus, scope, and FERPA consent requirement.

1
Student-Level

Student Consultation

Focused on a specific identified student. Turtle Shell consults with the student's teacher(s), counselor, or support team to provide suggestions on how to best support the student.

Guardian consent required

2
Classroom-Level

Classroom & Educator Consultation

Focused on the mental health climate of a specific classroom and on the educators as a professional partner. No individual student is discussed by name.

3
School-Wide

School-Wide Consultation

Focused on working with administrators on MTSS/PBIS alignment, policy, disability-inclusive culture, and administrative mental health planning. No student-level data involved.

4
Crisis Response

Crisis Consultation

Post-critical-incident response planning and recovery support. May include brief supportive contact with students in group settings during the acute phase.

How tiers work together: A school might begin with Tier 3 (school-wide policy work), add Tier 2 when a teacher requests classroom support, and layer in Tier 1 when a student with complex needs is referred for consultation. Tiers are parallel tools, not sequential steps.

Investment

Flexible, Transparent Pricing

Retainer arrangements are recommended for programs wanting ongoing support and include priority scheduling. All services are delivered in person across the Denver and Boulder areas.

Ongoing Consultation

ECE Monthly Retainer Scope negotiated per program size
From $600/mo
K–12 Monthly Retainer Scope negotiated
From $800/mo

Hourly & Day Rates

Hourly Consultation 2-hour minimum per visit
$250/hr
Half-Day Onsite Up to 4 hrs + prep & documentation
$900
Full-Day Onsite Up to 7 hrs + prep & documentation
$1,600
IEP/504 Meeting (Tier 1) Prep, attendance & debrief
$350

Professional Development & Learning

60/75/90/120 Min Workshop Includes prep & materials
$400/$500/$600/$800
Half-Day Training 4 hrs, prep, materials & Q&A
$1,200
Full-Day Training 6 hrs, prep, materials & facilitation
$2,000

Crisis Consultation

Annual Crisis Retainer Priority access + defined response hours + 1 prep session/yr
From $2,000/yr
Per-Incident (non-retainer) Half- or full-day
$700–$1,400
Scholarships available: Fee reductions of 25% for qualifying nonprofit ECE programs and Title I schools. Travel included within 30 miles of Thornton, CO.
Ready to explore a consultation arrangement? Turtle Shell serves early childhood programs and schools across Denver, the northern suburbs, Boulder, and surrounding areas. Reach out to schedule a free 20-minute introductory call. Get in touch →

Other Ways Turtle Shell Can Support You

Beyond school and ECE consultation, Turtle Shell Therapy Institute offers trauma-informed therapy, EMDR consultation for clinicians, and continuing education trainings.

Therapy & Clinical Approach EMDR Consultation CE Trainings Get in Touch
The Growing Shell Initiative

For the programs that need this work most

Schools, ECE programs, and educational organizations facing budget constraints may apply for the Growing Shell Scholarship — one award at 75% tuition and one at 50% tuition each academic year.

Learn About the Scholarship → See all Growing Shell programs

"Feel comfortable inside and outside of your shell."

Turtle Shell Therapy Institute · Denver & Boulder, Colorado