Peace Corps Samoa Term 2 - 2019

 

 

 The Power of a Pencil Sometimes inspiration can come from a book. During one meeting, Susie and her counterpart, Silivale, read “Malala’s Magic Pencil” (by Malala Yousafzai) with her GLOW club. The story shows Malala growing up in Pakistan and how she wishes for a magic pencil to solve her problems. In the book, she meets a girl who is sorting rubbish instead of attending school. So Malala learns that she can make change (like advocating rights for female education) without a magic pencil. After reading and discussing the book, the girls were able to 

share what they hope to achieve in their futures and illustrated a great visual reminder. Susie was able to “check out” the book on her iPad by using her public library’s app (from the U.S.).  

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samoaglow@gmail.com GLOW Samoa @samoaglow 

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Peace Corps Samoa Term 2 - 2019

 

Modified Healthy Meals   As a part of Zoe’s “Healthy Body and Minds” unit, her GLOW club modified common Samoan meals to be healthier. First up on the menu, CHOP SUEY! Their modified recipe included:  

• Less chicken fat • More vegetables • Less salt and soy sauce 

After preparing the meal, the girls did a taste test and had everyone share their thoughts and feelings. “The girls said that they felt much better knowing that they were taking care of their bodies,” says Zoe.  

Importance of Positive Self-Affirmations As a part of March’s Women’s History Month, Cinthea’s “Who Am I?” and Acrostic Poem activity led to a realization that “most of my girls aren’t used to being appreciated,” says Cinthea. She put together a spur of the moment activity that has transitioned into an ongoing occurrence during each meeting: each girl was given a piece of paper where they had to write one positive thing about one another and then each girl was able to read aloud all the positive compliments given to her by her classmates. “Now, every session we practice purposeful compliments as they enter the room and positive affirmations before the end of each session,” says Cinthea.    

“Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they 

become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your 

destiny.” ~ Lao Tzu 

  

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Peace Corps Samoa Term 2 - 2019

 

Discussing Healthy Relationships  In cooperation with our “Ending Violence Against Women and Children” pillar, Laika’s GLOW Club had a discussion about healthy relationships, especially friendships. Learning the characteristics of a good friend is an important lesson for girls at this age. Laika’s activity included a collaboratively created poster that included definitions for components of a healthy relationship (see photo) and a red flag/green flag scenario discussion.  

● Red vs. Green Flag Scenarios: Laika and her counterpart presented the girls with scenarios with good and bad characteristics and actions of friends. Girls were then able to label scenarios “good” and “bad” with red or green flags, accordingly. They then discussed the scenarios. 

 An Interconnected Web of Similarities With a simple skein of yarn, Alyssa and her GLOW Club had a physical reminder of how similar they all are. The girl holding the yarn would share something about herself (an interest or experience) and she was then required to throw the skein to another girl who shared identified herself as sharing the same interest or experience. “Eventually we created a giant web of things we had in common to represent how we are connected to each other; in our interests, 

actions, goals, and daily lives,” says Alyssa. “Empowered girls know the value of themselves, others, and that they are never alone in their experiences. They are the ones who acknowledge each and every person’s existence as it is and uplift and support one another.” 

  

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Peace Corps Samoa Term 2 - 2019

 

Counterpart Snapshots 

“My counterpart Pulou, assisted with the recruitment process for 

my GLOW club by speaking to the Women’s committee in the village to garner support. We had some 

girls whose parents requested more information. She took the 

time to explain things to the parents to help them in making the decision to allow their daughters 

to join. Pulou’s commitment to the club in its initial stages allowed for a strong bridge between the club 

and the community. Thanks to here work we not only have girls 

who are eager to learn but parents who are supporting our efforts.” 

-- PCV Juan 

  Malo lava to Fa’afetai Manaia, who recently became the Principal at A’opo Primary School! Fa’afetai worked alongside two PCVs (Sarah J. in 2017 and Lena in 2018) as a GLOW Counterpart at two schools before earning the new position of principal. She attended both the 2017 and 2018 conferences and hopes to continue sharing the GLOW mission in her new community!  

 

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