Viking was proud to host its third annual Girl Power event on February 5th! Those in attendance had the opportunity to participate in a variety of activities led by staff members and special guests, including S.T.E.M. activities such as coding and interactive science demonstrations. Other activities included pilates, goal setting, team building, jewelry making, injury recovery, body safety, and more! Adults and children alike were able to exercise their physical, emotional, and social strengths while making friends and building an overall sense of self-awareness and self-confidence.
The event began with a wonderful speech from our guest speaker, Dani Tyler. An Olympic Gold medalist, Tyler spoke to all ages on the importance of believing in yourself. Her words of motivation set a positive tone for the rest of the day, and from there it was time to get started with the activities!
Representatives from the Kids Stem Studio led a fun and educational coding workshop! The students learned how to format a computer game on their laptops using a program called Scratch. Through this activity, they accomplished the task of learning a new skill and found how rewarding it can be to push through a new and complex assignment. They even got to see their creation come to life and play their game at the end!
Library Resource specialist Caroline Schaab led a reading activity for various age groups. By sharing empowering stories from books, students learned the value of self-confidence and how they can apply the same lessons to write their own real-life success story.
Science teacher Terri Hehn led science demonstrations for all levels. Participants explored the innovation of ice packs, and through chemical reactions were able to simulate a change in the temperature of the contents in a plastic bag. They also learned that science experiments don’t always go as planned, as the chemical reaction they tried to use to make a heat pack did not work. As strong critical thinkers, it’s our job to explore the reasons why something might go wrong and try again!
The Dance hallway was home to a variety of body movement workshops, including meditation and yoga with Julie Penn, pilates with Coach Angie, and Dance with Ms. Lynn and Ms. Jessica! Teenage and adult participants learned muscle control and relaxation poses, and younger students were taught to appreciate their bodies and the abilities they possess. This included the importance of personal space and what to do if another individual is invading that space in an unsafe way.
Jessica Caccavallo led activities regarding body safety and personal space. Students practiced the “NO – GO – TELL” rules and were taught tips on how to make empowering choices and get help if they or a friend are in trouble. They also learned to identify safe adults to talk to and got comfortable with having those kinds of conversations. Our bodies are our own, and we should expect other people to treat them with respect.
Amy Bell from Athletico led an injury recovery session, where students learned how to care for their muscles and get the proper aid in the event of an injury. This included using resistance bands, foam rollers, and massage tools, as well as how to determine when professional medical assistance is needed. For all that our bodies do for us, it’s important that we know how to keep it safe and healthy!
Creative outlets were also provided by Oak Park art teacher Michaela Ruff, Coach Kaylie, and Coach Marisa. These included Jewelry making, creating a collective body, and warm & fuzzy feeling keychain making! Each creation came out as beautiful and unique as the individual who made it, highlighting the importance of self-expression and artistic imagination.
Coach Marisa provided students with different colors of yarn to make their keychains. Each color represented a positive question about themselves, such as their strengths, things they love, and what their aspirations are. After sharing their responses, they were taught that their responses might change at different points of their life. It’s important to check-in with ourselves from time to time and look at how we view our self-esteem, and with these keychains everyone was able to go home with a beautiful reminder of what makes them special and what they value most about themselves.
In Coach Kaylie’s activity, students drew different parts of the body that help them do the things they love. They taped all of their body parts onto a single figure, and although a figure with three eyeballs and five arms may look silly, it was a great visual of all the different things our body is able to do!
Participants also got to showcase their talents in a circus activity led by performer Amanda Crockett. Group members cheered each other’s uniqueness as they performed their best dance move, acrobatic skill, or entertaining act!
Nicole Reynolds led a teamwork exercise as students were paired into small groups with the task of unlocking a “breakout box.” Through a series of clues and puzzles, they had to work together to achieve success and win their prize as a team, for which they were rewarded with a sweet treat! Each group beamed with excitement as they were able to open their box, learning to value the ideas and problem-solving strategies of those they were working with as they helped in completing a common goal.
Susan Fosco and Teri Jakuc led a team-building obstacle course. Through this activity, students found that it was quicker to accomplish something when working together than if they were to try and complete the course on their own. In addition, it’s more fun to work as a group and make friends along the way!
Personal trainer Beth Horn discussed ways to manifest one’s goals. Participants wrote down and shared their personal goals, then discussed ways those big goals could be broken down into smaller stepping stones. It’s never too early or too late to start working towards your dreams– the key is to do it little by little in a way that is obtainable!
Overall, Girl Power 2022 was a huge success! Thank you to everyone in attendance for making this year so memorable. Save the date for next year’s Girl Power event, taking place February 4th, 2023!
