Entering a new school can be intimidating, particularly as a middle school girl. Figuring out how to express yourself, exploring new activities and making friends can feel overwhelming. This is how Katie, a Grade 6 student at Lawrence Grassi Middle School, felt upon moving provinces.
As physical activity rates across Canada continue to decline, young girls are often the most affected. Only 8% of girls are meeting the minimum physical activity requirement, and there is a clear connection to the gap in programs that are designed to provide a welcoming, engaging, and strengths-based space where girls can foster connection, participate in movement, and build confidence. This is where Movement & Mindset, a girls’ program under Everybody Plays, designed in partnership with Right from the Start, became the entry point to belonging for many of the girls involved.
Katie joined Movement & Mindset and was timid entering the first session and quietly engaged in the activities with minimal conversation with her peers. She highlighted to the facilitators on a slip of paper that she was looking for friendship from the program. Each session, her confidence began to steadily increase. She was connecting with her peers in the movement activities, sharing her experiences through artistic expression and building friendships within the group. By the end of the program, she reflected, “ It made me feel like I belonged here after leaving the province I was born in. It helped me love art. It made me like school”.
Katie began to flourish through the opportunities to play, move and create alongside fellow middle school girls. This deepened sense of belonging is something that all young girls deserve the opportunity to experience.
