glamour girls

for the past 4 weeks, i have been running a group each tuesday during the school hours called "glamour girls". it is for 14 8th grade girls at preparatory school, which will be followed by a second round of the same group for 13 more 8th grade girls. the group is designed to allow the girls a place to discuss "girl stuff" as they are getting ready to transition from middle school to high school. and a way for a school that has absolutely no health curriculum to inform their students about things they need to be aware of. 

the center has a had a glamour girls group in the past, so i was able to borrow some ideas from there, but most of what i am doing i was able to create on my own. its been a fun project for me to explore the health education side of things and get me to try it out in preparation for looking into public health in the future.

when we first talked about starting the glamour girls group with the girls at the school, i thought it would definitely be a challenge, especially after hearing what my mom had to say about how i was in middle school. 14 girls who are 13 and 14 years old in a room with someone who is not much older than them talking about "girl stuff". awesomeeeeee, recipe for disaster, etc. etc. etc.

but as these 4 weeks have passed by, i couldnt have been more wrong about it! i really love tuesday afternoons when i get to work with the 8th grade girls and have really enjoyed my time with them. we have been able to talk about self esteem, healthy relationships, peer pressure and alcohol, and teen pregnancy so far, and i think that it has been going really well. the girls seem to be interested and have been asking really good (and hilarious) questions about all the topics so i am happy with it. we still have two weeks left, which will be spent talking about gossip and bullying and an end of the group party.

especially this past week, the girls really helped me remember why i am doing what i am doing. i feel like giving the girls a place to ask questions and feel comfortable talking about things that are often pushed to the side really has made a difference for them. one of the girls has even reached out and asked to talk on an individual basis about some things that she is dealing with.

so today i am thankful for these 14 8th graders and their presence in my life. i am looking forward to continuing to work with them and to also be able to work with the other group of 8th graders coming up. tuesdays might just be my new favorite day of the week!