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An 8 week curriculum designed to build positive self-image for girls entering middles school and to
increase girls sense of belonging in school and the greater community.
Kathlene Simpson
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Dedication
To all girls and women, believe in yourselves, love yourselves, and care for yourselves and each other.
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Acknowledgements
This project could not have been completed without the following people and organizations.
My colleagues in the Pacific Lutheran University Instructional Leadership Program who providedme with feedback, ideas, suggestions and challenged me to grow.
My professors who believed in me and inspired me to do this work. My children and family who supported me throughout the process. Anissa and Teresa for assistance, coordination, patience and support. The local Parent Teacher Association. The families and girls from my school. Heidi Larsson, MA LHMC for insight, opportunity and support. Rebecca Clark Regional CBNE Planner (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclearn and High-
Yield Explosives) for volunteering and sharing her career story.
Season and Dojo 3 for volunteering Zumba instruction and mentoring. Rochelle for volunteering to teach goal setting and mentoring girls. Shannon and the local Fire Department for volunteering to mentor and share career
information.
Teresa for mentoring girls and sharing her career story. Tina for mentoring girls and sharing her career story. Becky for supporting the group through ASB. Genie for sharing her knowledge and support. DAWN, Domestic Awareness Womens Network, for their support.
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Abstract
In this project I created an 8 week curriculum for girls. Girls Rock is a curriculum for girls
entering middle school. It is intended to:
Increase Community & Family Involvement Increase positive self-image Create a support system for girls and families Create a feeling of community Build a culture of respect and positive relationships
I studied the effects of the curriculum on the girls who attended most of the sessions
including those that attended the first group and the end group. I used pre- and post-
evaluations for the girls, I used post evaluations for the families, I used anecdotal
information from teachers and I collected academic achievement data in my study.
I created the Girls Rock curriculum to meet the needs of our school improvement plan
as well as to increase student connectedness with the school and the greater
community. Our school and our district have Improvement Plans which include Equity
and Access components. Girls Rock meets the need for a portion of the equity and
access needs in our community.
My motivation for creating Girls Rock was also impacted by my personal connection to
domestic violence, the loss of one of our own girls to a violent relationship while in high
school and my desire to be proactive in this work. Increasing girls positive self image
and positive relationships in their school and community reduces the incidence of high
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risk behaviors later in life such as dropping out of school, drug use, bullying and dating
violence.
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Introduction
Fred Nelsen Middle School has a school improvement plan (sip) which includes an equity
and access component. The intended desire is to:
Increase positive responses on parent surveys Increase positive responses by students on surveys including feelings of
belonging
Increase connections between students and community Each student will be valued, connected, and achieving---no barriers.
In order to meet the goal:
Each student will be valued, connected, and achieving---no barriers.
Students, staff and parents will respond to survey questions 75% of the time thatNelsen is a caring, respectful, learning community.
Strategy:
Implement programs that promote better citizenship, responsibility and respectwithin the school community.
Parent and Student surveys developed and implemented 10% increase on students feeling safe within our school community. 75% of parents called will respond I feel welcomed at my childs school.
FNMS is a middle school serving 6th
through 8th
grade students in western Washington.
The school district serves a diverse community southeast of Seattle. The school district is
unique in that the eastern edges of the district is composed of affluent neighborhoods and the
middle to western portion of the district has had a history of higher crime rates and ethnic
diversity. FNMS is considered the middle of these communities. We serve a large community
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of apartments, low income housing and upper middle class neighborhoods; a true melting pot
of the larger district community.
FNMS is considered the middle child in more ways that just the location within the
district. When comparing the three sections of the area and the three sections of the district
that the middle schools serve, there is a definite pattern that can be seen. FNMS is noticeably
the middle child middle school. When compared with the two other middle schools in the
district FNMS has the middle level MSP scores, the middle level of diversity, the middle level of
school discipline, and the middle level of attendance issues.
FNMS has changed dramatically over the last 5 years in many ways. Our students who
receive free or reduced lunch increased from 49% to 57%. Our white population decreased
from 44% to 35%. The black population decreased slightly going from 20% to 18%. Our Hispanic
population increased from 12% to 18% and our Asian population increased from 23% to 25%.
We have 2% that affiliate with mixed races and 1% Native American.
The OSPI report card states that only 7% of our population is ELL. This is a misleading
statistic. The first language of most of our Hispanic students is Spanish. We also have a very
high population of white students whose first language is Russian, Ukrainian or Moldavian. Our
Asian population is also more likely to be first generation Americans or immigrant Asian so
their first language at home is not English. The 7% ELL student statistic is a misconception
because this statistic is only related to the students that are currently receiving ELL services.
The students that have had 2-3 years of English Language support services are no longer
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included in this statistic but it does not mean that those students are fluent English language
students.
My students come from very different backgrounds, as the demographics suggest. Some of
my students have parents in prison or in jail; some of my students have parents that have
prestigious careers at Microsoft and Boeing. Some of my families have only one parent at home
and some of them live with their aunts, uncles or grandparents.
Some of the evidence I will look for to indicate there was a positive outcome that met the
needs of my students, their families and the SIP will be:
1) An increase of positive responses to the pre- & post-evaluations.2) Positive responses to the family evaluations.3) Increased academic achievement.4) Positive anecdotal evidence from colleagues in the building.5) Continuing positive responses to questionnaires for 4 years.6) A decrease in dating violence per a new questionnaire in 6 years.
I will gather the data, analyze it and make determinations based on the evidence. I will
follow these girls for the next 3 years and hopefully through high school to determine if
these girls continue to be positively impacted by the program. I will continue to modify the
measuring tools as needed throughout the process.
What Ive Learned from Distant Colleagues
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There are two different tracks for background research that support this project. The
first is research to support our SIP plan and provide evidence on how Girls Rock meets the
criteria that the research points to for effective family and community participation. The
second piece of the research is to show that Girls Rock may meet the requirements needed
to prevent later life intimate partner violence.
Marzano points to 5 school level factors that increase school effectiveness. Of those
factors, parent and community involvement is ranked number 3. Marzano states, Three
features define effective parental and community involvement: communication,
participation, and governance. (Marzano, Section 1, Chapter 5) Opening lines of
communication between the school and families, creating positive interactions and support
systems create an effective vehicle to increase family involvement. Inviting the community
to participate through mentoring, lectures and open forums also increases school
effectiveness.
Teachers and programs that communicate with families and encourage participation at
the school increase family involvement. (Epstein) Research suggests that increased family
involvement increases student achievement. Research also shows that family involvement
improves student attendance, feelings of well being, perceptions of the classroom and
school climate and increases student desires to complete higher level education. (Anfara)
There are thought to be many factors that increase susceptibility of women to stay in
abusive relationships. The risk factors that a girls group might be able to mitigate are low
self-esteem, difficulty with self-validation, poor body image, feelings of social isolation,
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feelings of not being able to leave or feeling trapped economically, taking on a care-taker
role and succumbing to life-stage event stresses. (Few)
Strong Women, Strong Girls founder Lindsay Hyde claims her program works. Most
parents feel their daughters have learned new skills (94 percent), increased their self-esteem
(88 percent), and strengthened their belief in themselves as a leader (80 percent). The mentors
also benefit: nearly 95 percent report greater self-confidence and empowerment. (Frasier
Hodder) In 2007 a study was released that showed a decrease in dating violence relationships
four years after high school students had completed the Connections: Relationships and
Marriage education curriculum. (Gardner) The American Psychological Association (APA) Task
Force recommends that schools, families and other organizations encourage positive
extracurricular activities that help youth build nurturing connections with peers and enhance
self-esteem based on young peoples abilities and character rather than on their appearance.
(APA p. 41)
Clarifying My Project
The critical questions I hope to answer are:
Did the girls group increase participants feelings of belonging in the school community
and the greater community?
Did the girls group support positive responses by parents to questions involving the
climate at the school?
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Did the girls group meet the Equity and Access definition that each student will be
valued, connected, and achieving---no barriers?
Did the girls group positively impact student feelings of self-worth, coping abilities, body
image issues, and goal setting?
Based on data in my school, it was determined that the girls group should have a set
eight week curriculum for 6th
grade girls only and it should meet weekly in order to not lose
momentum. The group would meet after school every Monday for 8 weeks. The sessions
would be held in my portable.
I adapted a questionnaire from Girls in Real Life Situations: grades 6-12 (G.I.R.L.S.) for
the girls to complete before they started the program and to complete at the end of the
program. I asked parents/guardians to complete a questionnaire as well.
I determined that since the program would be a beginning of the school year program to
encourage healthy relationships, there would not be any limiting or initiating factors that
would purposefully include or exclude any 6th
grade girl that wanted to participate. The
school counselor, Genie, and I thought there would be about 10-20 girls interested in
participating.
I will use academic records to determine if there was an impact on student
achievement. I will use anecdotal notes and feedback from colleagues and parents to
determine if the group was successful. I will also follow the girls for 6 years to determine if
there were impacts to their academics, sense of belonging and self-esteem. I will do this by
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providing questionnaires each year to the girls. I will also compare their data with that of
their peers using a random control group.
The Story of My Research
I am a 6th
grade math teacher at a middle school. I serve a diverse population and
students that are at high risk of not completing school. I have a deep desire to encourage girls
to excel in mathematics and life. I am a survivor of an abusive relationship and I am passionate
about educating and preventing violent relationships. I think that the best way to do this is to
help girls feel good about themselves and help them to realize they should be treated
respectfully. Increasing their self-esteem, showing them how to take care of themselves,
helping them to feel good about their appearance, encouraging a support system of girls,
helping them to feel connected to their peers, the school and other adults and helping them to
set goals and follow their dreams are all ways in which I believe I can make a difference.
I researched several girls group curriculums, read lessons and discussed ideas with
colleagues. After investigating previous support groups in the school, it was determined that I
would create an 8 week course for girls. I aligned my curriculum to the school and district SIP
for Equity and Access. I also aligned my curriculum to the needs of my students as well as my
personal desire to increase self-esteem, body image and provide a support system for the girls
in my school. From past data at my school, the school counselor, Genie, and I decided that an 8
week session would have the most success. I determined the following needs and desires for
the girls in conjunction with the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) and Genie.
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We set the following agenda for the 8 weeks:
1) Introduction: Peace Corps Building Self Esteem for Girls: What I can do activity2) Positive Self-Image: Powerpoint, Music, Discussion, Nails, Bracelets, & Friendships3)
Dreams & Goal Setting: TreasureMapping activity4) Nutrition, Body Image & Zumba
5) Career Day6) Family Networking Day7) Our Community8) Checking In
The girls group started with 19 girls on the first day and 2 PTA volunteers. The first 19
girls in the group were the girls that I have published the data for; I will track these same 19
girls over the next 6 years. There were over 50 different girls that participated in the group
for most of the lessons; this was 29.76% of our 6th
grade, female population. I had the
original 19 girls fill out a survey on the first day of the group and again on the last day of the
group. I modified the survey from the G.I.R.L.S. (Taylor) curriculum by deleting questions
that were not appropriate or applicable for this group. I also added questions that would
address the school and district SIP goals. [A] I have included a spread sheet of the data from
the questionnaire in the appendix. [B]
I completed the first lesson with 19 girls. [1] We started with a connection building
activity. I had the girls stand shoulder to shoulder while I read questions. When the question
identified them, they stepped forward and looked around to see who else also identified
with the question. This activity was intended to help the girls understand that they arent
alone. After this activity, I lead a discussion about our connectedness. The girls then wrote 3
things that they thought they couldnt do, then they ripped the paper up and threw it in the
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air. This exercise was intended to show the girls that the group was going to help them
break negative beliefs about themselves. Then the girls created a name poem using positive
adjectives for each letter of their name. Finally, the girls shared their name poem posters
with the group. All of these activities were intended to help the girls get to know
themselves and their peers. They were also created to increase their positive self-image.
The second lesson had 32 girls in attendance, the original 19 with 13 more and 2 PTA
volunteers. I had a powerpoint slide show running when the girls came in. I made sure the
girls had an opportunity to watch the slide show all the way through. [2] I played the song:
What Makes You Beautiful by One Direction and I had the girls watch a video created by
Dove about how models look the way they do in advertisements. I lead a discussion about
media distortion, inner beauty, what the girls thought about the slide show and I let the
girls talk about their own feelings about beauty. I then encouraged the girls to discuss
ways that they could encourage each other to feel good about themselves, how to be a
friend to each other and ways we could support each other. The girls then made friendship
bracelets, braided their hair with embroidery thread and/or painted each others nails.
These activities were intended to help the girls begin to building a support system within
the school community, find ways to celebrate themselves, and start to see how the media
distorts our cultures views of women.
For the third lesson I invited a woman from the community to help the girls create
Treasure Maps. I had 41 girls in attendance. This was the last time we met in my
classroom because the group had gotten so big. This activity helped the girls learn how to
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set goals in order to reach their dreams, put those goals on a board, and visualize their
dreams in order to help achieve them. [3]
For the 4
th
lesson, I invited a local Zumba instructor to teach the girls how to exercise
and have fun. [4] For this activity I had 3 Parent volunteers and 50 girls in attendance. We
spent 20 minutes exercising then we took a break for a discussion. I lead a discussion with
the girls explaining how important exercise is for emotional health. I taught the girls that
endorphins are released with exercise, what endorphins are and how exercise can help you
when youre angry, frustrated, or sad. I also explained how much fun exercise can be when
you have a friend and how important it is to encourage each other. Then we spent 10 more
minutes exercising. We ended the session with a discussion about healthy eating habits and
exercise.
Career day was the 5th
lesson. [5] I had 2 PTA volunteers and 48 girls in attendance. I
asked several women from the greater community to attend our group to discuss their job,
what they had to do to get there, and what it was like for them when they were in school. I
had 4 women, with different types of jobs, attend the career day. I started the afternoon
with the question: What would you like to do when you are older and what do you need to
do to make that happen? I asked the girls to think about this for a few minutes and then
asked for just a few responses. Then I introduced our guests. Each of the women spent 15
minutes talking about their careers and answering questions from the girls. We then invited
the women to join us for our snack and closing discussion. This is when I asked the girls
what they had learned from our guests. The girls had their own learning around this. I
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facilitated the discussion and asked leading questions in order to help the girls see that they
could do anything in life, that all the women in our panel had struggled with fitting in at
some point in their school career, and that they all worked toward their goal differently but
they did keep their goals in view.
Our Family Networking Day was the 6th
lesson. [6] I had 2 PTA volunteers, 50 girls in
attendance, 12 adult family members and 4 siblings. For this activity the girls invited the
women in their lives to our group. I introduced the day by having the girls introduce their
guests. Then I had the girls explain what our group was all about to the family members. I
let the families and the girls know that I hoped this would be a start to the girls and families
feeling connected to each other and the school. I mentioned that this was an opportunity
for families to get to know each other and create a community between their girls and
themselves. Those family members that were comfortable with sharing information were
given the materials to exchange phone numbers, emails and other contact information. I
encouraged the girls to introduce their friends to the parents in attendance and I
encouraged networking and small discussions. I closed the activity by reminding everyone
that I hoped this was the beginning of friendships and family connections that would last
throughout their girls secondary school careers and potentially into their adulthood.
The final day of lessons I had the girls tell me everything we had done over the 7 weeks.
[7] There were 3 PTA members in attendance and 51 girls. I facilitated and encouraged the
girls to share what we had learned over the course of our group. I made sure that they hit
the main focus items of each lesson as well as the over-reaching goal of building friendships
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and a community of belonging. I provided photos of each of the girls that I had taken
throughout the weeks. I also provided small group and large group photos. The girls chose a
photo to frame and created a foam frame for their photos. I also let the girls know my
hopes for them throughout the year and beyond: taking care of each other, making sure
they kept a network of friends that would encourage them and be positive, and to believe in
themselves. I told the girls we would meet one more time in the spring for a reunion.
Each girl created at least one photo frame to take home.
In March I had a checking in day [8]. I had 30 girls attend. We had a small discussion
about how things were going, if they were still making sure that each of the girls from the
group was included in the school community by always having someone to sit with at lunch,
walk home from school with, attend other school clubs with, and encouraging each other
socially and academically. I passed out the questionnaire again and had the girls fill it out. I
also passed out a parent survey that I asked the girls to get filled out. I encouraged the girls
to discuss some of the good things that had come from the group, questions they had or
things that they were having trouble with. I asked the girls if they felt like the group had
been a positive experience. Each of the girls felt the group had been a very positive
experience for them. They each had made new friends; they told me how they always made
sure the girls from the group were included in school activities. Some of the girls told me
how they were being invited to activities outside of school like birthday parties and other
outings because of the connections they had created in the group. I have included the girls
post-test data in appendix B. I have included the data from the parent survey in appendix B.
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Reflection and Questions about my Research
The Girls Rock group was an idea that sprang from my passion about domestic violence
prevention. I believe that if we teach our children to feel good about themselves, to have
positive self-images, to build positive relationships with their peers, role models and the
greater community that they will have the belief in themselves that they deserve to be
treated with respect and care. Feeling like your isolated or you dont belong to your
community is one of the hardest hurdles a middle school student has to face. Building
positive relationships with each other, the school community and the greater community
helps children feel like they matter, that they have someone in the world that cares about
them, that they are connected. It builds confidence in themselves and their ability to be in
positive relationships.
Few and Rosen point to two types of vulnerability which are linked to women who stay
in abusive relationships: Relational Vulnerability and Situational Vulnerability. According to
their study there are 5 sub-categories of relational vulnerability: (a) external orientation, (
b) socialization to violence, ( c) socialization to abuse of power, (d) caretaker identity, and
(e) cultural factors.
The study points to several relational factors which influence women to stay in abusive
relationships. Some of the vulnerabilities come from the womens family of origin: They saw
abuse of power and violence in their families so they felt it was the norm, they became the
caretaker in their family of origin so they wanted to rescue their partner too, and their
cultural beliefs influenced their decisions to stay. The need for external validation is
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something that could be influenced greatly by the Girls Rock curriculum. Teaching our
children that they are valuable and how to help them feel this way on their own is one way
to help our children avoid abusive relationships.
The other vulnerability that Few and Rosen pointed to was Situational Vulnerability.
Situational vulnerability can happen to anyone, you suddenly lose a job and you dont know
how to pay the bills or buy food. You lose your best friend and you feel lonely so you hang
on to the relationship that you do have. This type of vulnerability is something that would
occur in adulthood but giving children the tools now can help them be resilient adults.
Helping children learn how to cope with stress, how to set goals to achieve their dreams,
and teaching them how to build healthy relationships all help lay the foundation for them to
combat situational vulnerability.
In addition to my desire to combat domestic violence, I also wanted to create something
that would be valuable to my school, the district and the greater community. In the Renton
School District, we have a District Improvement Plan and a School Improvement Plan for Equity
and Access [C] which states that Each student will be valued, connected, and achievingno
barriers. The following District indicators were used to determine the success of the Girls Rock
group:
Achievement gaps based on income and race/ethnicity are reduced in each contentarea
Students and parents are involved in the educational process
The following School Level SMART Goals were used to determine the success of the Girls
Rock group:
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Students, staff and parents will respond to survey questions 75% of the time thatNelsen is a caring, respectful, learning community
The number of Fs will decrease by 20% each comparable quarterThe following School Level Strategies were used to determine the alignment of the Girls
Rock group with our school SMART goals:
Implement programs that promote better citizenship, responsibility and respectwithin the school community
Provide interventions for all students in needThe following School Level Activities were met through the Girls Rock group:
Develop a survey for students and parents Contact Parents Create a system for collecting and tracking information Create programs for studentsThe school also has a table of desired evidence to show that we have met our goals. I
used the following criteria to create data collection plans to determine the effectiveness of
the Girls Rock group:
Feedback from Department leaders
10% increase on students feeling safe within our school community 85% of students will respond affirmatively to the activity Students will learn about our schools community and feel welcomed Student participation in the intervention or activity 75% of parents will respond I feel welcomed at my childs school Participants will have no failing grades and will reduce tardies and absences by 40%.
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Conclusions
The Girls Rock group research shows a positive impact for students, families, the
community and our school. Specifically when compared with the research on what makes
women stay in chronically abusive relationships, the research shows that the Girls Rock group
laid a foundation to combat the needs for external validation and helped the girls feel confident
in their ability to fight situational vulnerability.
External Validation: According to the Girls Rock questionnaire, the girls that participated
in the curriculum increased their feelings of self worth, increased their positive feelings about
body image, increased their ability to see themselves as positive contributors to the world and
felt that they knew what they wanted and how to get it. [B, sheet 5 & 7, chart 4] All of these
factors will contribute to these girls being able to self-validate in their later life.
Situational Vulnerability: According to the Girls Rock Pre-Test & Post-Test [B, sheet2 &
chart 3], the research shows that the girls that participated in the curriculum increased their
ability to understand their emotions, their feelings and they also increased their awareness of
what makes them happy. All of these skills will help them cope with stress in the future. On the
Girls Rock Student Survey, the girls answered that the group helped them to learn about how to
be respectful, how to encourage being respected, how to be successful academically and how
to be a better citizen. All of these skills will help these girls build healthy relationships now and
in the future. They will also help these girls set goals and achieve them which will further
decrease their vulnerability to life situations.
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The Girls Rock group, when compared with our district and school improvement plans,
positively impacted the girls and met the requirements of several components of our SIP goals.
Achievement gaps based on income and race/ethnicity are reduced in each contentarea
According to the research, the girls who participated in the Girls Rock group increased
their academic achievement in Mathematics, Science and Social Studies. [B, sheet 7]
Students and parents are involved in the educational process
I had 29% of our sixth grade girls involved in the group and of those girls, I had 18% of
those girls parents involved with the family networking day. I also had 100% of the girls parents
respond to my survey. The only other groups at our school who have this type of attendance
are our sports teams.
Students, staff and parents will respond to survey questions 75% of the time thatNelsen is a caring, respectful, learning communityI surveyed students and parents to determine if they felt that our school was caring and
respectful due to participation in the Girls Rock group. [B, sheet 1 & 2, chart 3 & 5] According to
my research, the parents and students responded positively over 75% of the time that they felt
welcome at our school, that they felt like our school valued them, and that they felt respected
at our school.
The number of Fs will decrease by 20% each comparable quarter
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Academically, the girls who participated in the core group of Girls Rock increased their
grades in Mathematics, Science and Social Studies. None of the girls received Fs on their report
cards.
The Girls Rock group met the SIP in implementing programs that promote better
citizenship, responsibility and respect within the school community. The group also provided an
intervention for 6th
grade girls to feel like they belonged to the greater school community. The
group also met the plan in developing a survey for students and parents, increased contact with
parents, created a system for collecting information and system for tracking information.
Feedback from Department leadersThe 6
thgrade vice-principal, the school counselors, the School Academic Success
teachers, the Academic Liaison/Community in Schools staff and the 6th
grade teaching team all
reported positive feedback from the girls, staff and parents for the girls group.
10% increase on students feeling safe within our school community84% of the girls who participated in the Girls Rock group said that they felt safe at our
school.
85% of students will respond affirmatively to the activity and that they will feelwelcomed
Over 85% of the girls said that the group helped them feel like an important part of the
school, that it helped them to feel connected to the school and that they felt like the school
staff cared about them.
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Participants will have no failing grades and will reduce tardies and absences by 40%.None of the core members of the group had failing grades on their report cards.
The research shows that the Girls Rock group increased the girls feelings of self-worth,
increased positive body image, increased their feelings of belonging and increased their grades
in Mathematics, Science and Social Studies. The group met 8 out of 10 of the SIP goals listed for
the district and the school. The overall notes from parents, staff, administration, families and
the community were positive. There were girls from every demographic included in the group.
Follow Up
There are several changes I would make if I were going to do this again. I would have
included a pre-group survey for the girls and the parents that would have aligned with the SIP
for the district and the school. I would have changed some of the questions so that parents and
students could have responded particular questions as not applicable. Several parents made
notes on the surveys that said their daughter was already responsible or was already successful
academically before they participated in the group. (See the specific questions below.)
Do you think Girls Rock helped your daughter be successful
academically at Nelsen?
Do you think your child has learned how to be more responsibledue to her participation in Girls Rock?
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I would also add a component for the girls that would give them the tools to access help
with specific question, problems or concerns. [Supplemental Lesson B] I would also add a lesson
that would help the girls with conflict resolution and being a good friend. [Supplemental Lesson
A]
I was surprised at the huge increase in positive body image. This was a wonderful surprise
and made me feel like I had made a huge difference. I believe that even though I hadnt set out
to specifically increase the girls feelings about their body image, it happened anyway. This
would be consistent with the APAs suggestion that ANY group for girls will positively impact
body image.
I would like to continue to follow the girls from the original Girls Rock group for the next 6
years. I would like to survey the girls to determine if they still feel connected to their school and
the community. I would like to know if they have continued their friendships, if they still feel
good about themselves, if they remember what the girls group taught them and if they stay out
of violent relationships. I have devised a new survey to determine this. I will give the survey to
the girls that participated and select a group of 20 girls that did not participate in the group to
compare the results.
This project was one of the most fulfilling activities I have ever participated in with my
students. I am hopeful that I will be able to continue this throughout my teaching career. I have
decided to expand the program so that the boys will also have a group at our school. In
addition, I have requested that we start the group before school starts so that our 6th
grade
students and families have a support system to start the year off with. Hopefully this will
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increase family involvement throughout their childrens secondary education years and will
increase feelings of belonging for our students.
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Rhonda L. Williams
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Scott P. Gardner and Rila Boellaard
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Joyce L. Epstein and Susan L. Dauber
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Published by:National Council on Family Relations
Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40005254
What Research Says: Varieties of Parent Involvement in Schooling
Vincent A. Anfara Jr. and Steven B. Mertens
Middle School Journal, Vol. 39, No. 3 (January 2008), pp. 58-64Published by:Association for Middle Level Education (AMLE)
Article Stable URL:http://www.jstor.org/stable/23048139
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Appendices
Data
A. Girls Rock Pretest/Post-testB. Pre-test & Post-test DataC. District and School Improvement Plans
Lessons
1. Lesson 1: Introduction2. Lesson 2: Positive Self-Image with powerpoint and video3. Lesson 3: Dreams & Goal Setting4. Lesson 4: Nutrition, Body Image & Zumba5. Lesson 5: Career Day6. Lesson 6: Family Networking7. Lesson 7: Our Community8. Lesson 8: Checking In9. Supplemental Lesson A: Friendships10.Supplemental Lesson B: Who ya gonna call?