Here is a great story proving that slime can make more than just a mess. Kateri Rivera-Parker is one of our current Americorps members serving at Girl Power! I think all of us can relate to this candid story about creative ways to successfully deliver social and emotional learning exercises, which is much needed for today’s positive youth development. Thanks for the awesome story, Kateri. Keep that creative energy flowing at your site!
During my service at Girl Power! the staff and I have had a rough time with some of the behaviors of the girls in the program. However, with that difficult behavior I was very proud and excited to see the progress and effort put forth by the girls to grow. I was glad to hear a lot of input from the girls in one of our talk circles. Each one talked about the ways they have been bullied and how they have been the bully and how that made them feel in the short term and long term. We also discussed better ways to resolve difficult solutions they may be faced with.
As an incentive for working together, the other staff and I planned a day the girls would make the all beloved slime. We planned all the details, but were still a bit nervous if we would end up with a giant mess of slime to clean afterwards, however the risk was worth it these kids LOVE slime. The day came the girls were excited to get started. The other staff member and I had everything ready and waiting for the girls to start. I went over the rules of kindness and respect with the girls. We must be kind to others and not fight, and if someone asks for help to help them and to respect the space and materials we are working with to keep the working spaces clean. Slime day was a hit! All the girls made slime and helped each other. The working spaces were cleaned and we all had a group chat at the end to talk about what worked and what didn’t when making slime. They talked about what they learned about what each ingredient did in the formulation of the slime. It was a super fun day for all the girls and for me!
–Kateri Rivera-Parker, True North Americorps Member at Girl Power!