Mon, Aug. 29 - Fri, Sept. 2 from 1-4pm
When girls voice their ideas and opinions in a safe environment it:
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strengthens their confidence and self-esteem
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encourages them to express themselves more fully and critically
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helps them to think through their behaviour and choices
By examining cultural expectations in a safe and supportive setting, girls:
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gain greater awareness of their options
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strengthen their ability to make choices that are consistent with their values, interests, and talents
This half day summer camp for girls is designed to help girls step into the new school year with a more grounded sense of self.
Day 1: Being a Girl
Day 2: Body Image
Day 3: Relationships with Peers
Day 4: Building Resiliency
Day 5: Expressing My Individuality
WHO PARTICIPATES?
Pre-teen girls, and LGBTQ+ youth who identify with female.
WHAT IS A GIRLS' CIRCLE?
Girls Circle is a structured support group for girls that integrates relational theory, resiliency practices, and skills training in a specific format designed to increase positive connection, personal and collective strengths, and competence in girls.
Girls' Circle aims to counteract social and interpersonal forces that impede girls’ growth and development by promoting an emotionally safe setting and structure within which girls can develop caring relationships and use authentic voices. Girls experience a safe, welcoming and inclusive community that offers caring, support, healthy connections and skills to navigate relational and social-emotional challenges.
The Girls Circle does not aim to provide advice, but encourages girls to share experiences that are helpful to one another. To participate, girls need only have the desire, make a commitment to attend the meetings, and agree to follow the circle guidelines, i.e. respect, no put-downs or interruptions, offer experiences - not advice, keep the focus on oneself, and keep what’s said in the group private. Girls are free to share at their own pace.
About the Facilitator: Nancy has been working with girls and women for over twenty years. Her work as a Preventative and Developmental Counsellor for Girls ages 5-16, Life + Leadership coach, along with her graduate work in Counselling Psychology, lead her to the Girls' Circle Association in 2001. She has been a trained Advanced Girls' Circle Facilitator since 2001 and has lead over 100 Girls' Circle groups. Nancy also blended the "Being a Girl" Girls Circle curriculum with Feminist and Narrative Therapy theory and practice to explore girls actual experience of being a girl vs. societal expectations during her thesis research, working alongside the Status of Women Council in Corner Brook, NL.
THEORETICAL FOUNDATION
Relational-Cultural Theory, integrating complementary approaches:
• Resiliency Theory; Strengths/Assets-based
• Female Responsive; Female Identity development
• Gender-Transformative: critically explores cultural norms, and bias
• Preventative and Restorative
• Adolescent Brain Development
• Trauma-Informed, Trauma-Responsive
• Motivational Interviewing
• Rites of Passage
• Positive Youth-Development
ADDITIONAL OUTCOMES
From Pre/Post Evaluations - Find all reports under Research at: www.onecirclefoundation.org
Increases:
• School Attachment
• Educational Expectation
• Educational Aspirations
• Social Support
• Positive Body Image
• Self-efficacy
• Communicating with Adults
• Use of Condoms (if sexually active)
Decreases:
• Number of Sex Partners (if sexually active)
• Alcohol and Drug Use
• Self-Harm
Nancy will set a safe, creative environment and provide a week of age-appropriate themes and activities. Each day the facilitator leads the group of girls through a format that includes each youth taking turns talking and listening to one another respectfully about their concerns and interests. The circle participants express themselves further through creative or focused activities such as journaling, media, murals, poetry, yoga, drawing, collage, guided visualization and mindfulness activities.
Gender-responsive themes and topics are introduced which relate to the girls’ lives, such as being a girl, trusting ourselves, friendships, body image, goals, competition, social media, and decision-making.
Lead by Nancy Buckle, a Yoga Therapist, Holistic Counsellor, and Leadership Coach for girls and women. She who holds a Masters of Education in Counselling Psychology, has been facilitating Girls' Circle, Women's Circle, and Mother Daughter Circle groups for girls for over 20 years.
Location:
Live. Breathe. Grow. Studio
328 O'Connell Dr. (Veitch Wellness Center), 2nd Floor