Mighty Girls club message proving a hit with pupils
Girls at a school in Bath have been leaving notes of kindness for their classmates as part an afterschool initiative which is sparking friendships and building confidence.
The Mighty Girls afterschool club is held at St Martin’s Garden primary in Bath.
The club provides pupils with the opportunity to nurture their love for each other while becoming champions of their community.
The organisation is led by the girls, who choose a theme they would like to explore each week and plan activities together.
One such activity is leaving notes of kindness and encouragement for their class.
Clare Brown, who runs Mighty Girls, said: “They made lots of little notes and hid them in the drawers of the children in their classes so when they start in the morning, there are little random notes of kindness, and they really enjoyed that.”
In another session the girls showered each other with compliments and recently took part in a cat walk, known as a ‘hype walk’ in which the girls took turns to walk up and down while the girls shouted words of encouragement.
The notes and hype walks are just two of ways the youngsters have been empowering their classmates and making friends, as well as improving their communication skills.
The community-minded youngsters have already held outdoor sessions including nature surveys of the grounds at the school and litter picks.
They have recently taken part in book clubs by reviewing and recommending books to their classmates.
There are also plans to learn traditional crafts such as sewing, upcycling clothes, as well as repairing items and cooking.
One of the main priorities for Mighty Girls is creating and boosting friendships particularly among Year Six girls.
It is funded through the pupil premium grant which provides services to improve educational outcomes. The club has become an overwhelming success with encouraging feedback from the children.
Clare added: “The club provides a space for girls to be able to share and talk about things that matter to them. The feedback from the girls is that the club is exciting, fun and encouraging.
“The main purpose is to boost friendships, empowering and encouraging girls to find their voices. We select a Mighty Woman of the Week. And I’m hoping as time goes on, they will start to recognise other sort of strong women in society that they can put forward.”
She said they recently spoke about Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani female education activist and the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate at the age of 17.
She added: “Malala is a fantastic role model for encouraging girls into education.”
Head teacher Becky Wilson said: “We’re delighted to see our pupils building even stronger relationships with each other. They are a credit to our school.
“The Mighty Girls Club is providing our girls with excellent opportunities to get involved in the community whilst taking part in confidence-boosting activities. It’s also providing them with extra-curricular activities which will really help their education outcomes.”
Mighty Girls is hoping to branch into other local schools and encourage older girls to attend the club and share their own experiences. Further information is available at www.mightygirls.co.uk.