Strong Girls, Healthy Relationships 12-hour Curriculum
This is a structured curriculum that provides a safe place for teen girls to talk about dating and friendships, their insecurities and the pressures they face, all within a Jewish context. JWI recognizes that while not all adolescent girls are participating in intimate relationships, they are continuously receiving subtle and explicit messages from friends, family, the media and pop culture about what it means to be ‘in a relationship.’ They need opportunities to talk about these messages and to articulate what they imagine for themselves. This program incorporates dating abuse into the discussion of healthy relationships.
The program is composed of six two-hour girl-only sessions that should be led by a female facilitator. Each participant receives a journal/workbook which is used throughout the curriculum for the exercises and as a place to record her own thoughts as she moves through the program.
Each session focuses on a different topic:
- Session One: The Language of Relationship helps participants develop the language to talk about relationships.
- Session Two: What Does the Word Relationship Mean to Me? explores how pressures and cultural messages might lead teenage girls to feel confused as to what it is that they want from a dating relationship.
- Session Three: What are Healthy and Unhealthy/Abusive Relationships? explores the dynamics of relationships using JWI’s film When Push Comes to Shove…It’s No Longer Love®.
- Session Four: The Role of Female Friendships helps teens to recognize the ways in which female friends serve as confidants and support in their lives.
- Session Five: Who Am I and What Do I Bring to a Relationship/Friendship? helps participants articulate who they are and the unique qualities they contribute to a relationship.
- Session Six: What Do I See For My Future? helps girls visualize their futures, and think about how to find the people who support them in achieving their goals.
Listen to Dr. Shira Epstein, curriculum writer, discuss why the Strong Girls programs are important and how to use them.
Testimonials
"This is the curriculum that I wish had been implemented when I attended a Jewish day school, participated in youth group, and attended Jewish summer camp." --Dr. Shira D. Epstein, Curriculum Author
"This curriculum is engaging and innovative. It weaves together activities and discussions about topics that are so relevant to girls today. Both participants and facilitators thoroughly enjoyed themselves throughout the sessions." --Ronit Sherwin, Executive Director, Nishma: The St. Louis Jewish Women's Project
"We saw real changes in the group dynamics even before we completed the curriculum. It was remarkable to see the 'cliques' of girls dissolve so they formed one united group." --Melissa Waksman, Camp Ramah Darom
Strong Girls, Healthy Relationships is made possible through generous support
from The Hadassah Foundation.