Musings and Ramblings: Girl Power

I was reading another blog post today on a food blog. The blogger hadn't written about food, but was reflecting on time with her grandma. She categorized the post as musings and ramblings. I loved that. I'm totally snagging that category to use from time to time. That being said, you should go read her post. It filled me with love and a longing to see my grandmothers and great aunt again. What I wouldn't give for another day...

When I thought of what I wanted to write about, what was currently on my brain, I thought of our magnet poetry wall at school. I moved it from a spot in the middle of the room over a shelf to the giant magnet wall near the door. Students have been creating poems, phrases, and more for the last few days. I was entertained to see the combinations they came up with - some bizarre, some entertaining, some powerful.

On some photos, I think you'd have to click on it to see the word combinations. 

These poems, these phrases, had my heart. As I read deeper, that feeling grew. See, when I moved to middle school I gave a lot of thought to what message I wanted to send my students. Thinking back to my own time at that age, many moons ago, I wanted to talk to them about kindness. About looking out for others. About understanding the wider world is so much bigger than our tiny town. And I also wanted to talk to girls about empowerment. About being in charge of who you are. About not tearing other girls down. About speaking up when you need to, not being afraid to use that voice. In that vein, we've had a lot of conversations. I've bought several new books recently. 

I just ordered the Girl Rising DVD. Hoping it is one to share with students that want to see it over lunch hours. As I read more of the poetry, I began to realize that they are getting the message that I wish I had heard more of during these years. My favorite I found on the wall was this:

No, I don't want them to have to scream to be heard, but I'm glad to know that they will if they need to. These girls know they are powerful, strong, and that their opinions matter. I'm glad they get that at 7th grade. I hope they remember that as they grow older.