Session 11

Today we implemented our new check in process. Prior to our meeting I asked L1 if she wanted to decide on a check in for the day, she responded with the idea of a color to represent how each person is feeling.

We decided as a group that each of us would say aloud a color that we felt represented our mood for the day and then at the end of group we would say one word that described the feeling. The following are our check in colors:

H3 - yellow

S1 - purple

L1 – bluish/greenish

H2 - white

K – yellow

We then shared about who the “I believe” charms from last session were given to. It was interesting to see how many gave a charm to someone in their family and the reasoning behind their choices.

T seemed very excited to report that she gave on charm to her Mom and one to her older sister. She mentioned that her older sister reacted emotionally; she hadn't realized how much T thought of her. T shared that she was glad to be able to give them something representative of her feelings for them, it made it easier for her to express this.

L1 gave one charm to a friend who was moving to a different school. L1 reported that her friend liked it and that it helped her feel ready to move on to her new school. L1 gave her second charm to her bunny who had been acting sad recently. She told us that she thought that giving him the charm helped him feel better; he acted interested in it and more social again. She puts it on his cage each day.

K gave it to her mom who put it on a necklace and had been wearing it daily. The second charm went to her dog, he wears it on his collar. She shared the meaning of it with her family so that they would understand why it was important to her.

H3 gave them to his Mom and Dad, who he also explained the meaning to. He felt that both of his parents appreciated the charm and really liked it.

H2 gave one to L1 who she considers to be a good friend and the other to one of our staff members who she described feels like an Aunt to her. H2 then shared that she had also given hers away to her teacher. I asked her to share about her decision to do this, I was especially curious because she often shares that she doesn't connect well with her teacher and feels she is struggling in class. She told us that on the last day of school before break “everyone” was giving the teacher gifts and H2 hadn't gotten her anything. She felt bad about this and left out, so she wanted to give her something too.

S1 had left the previous session early and wasn't able to hand out her charms yet but said she had a good idea of who she wanted to give them to.

We moved on to reading chapter 15 and 16, which members of the group read aloud. When it came to the question of whether they had ever been bullied and how it felt I was happy to hear that a couple group members were able to say that they hadn't felt bullied before.

S1 is becoming consistently more open with the group in sharing. She told us she had been bullied before and it felt embarrassing to her and she worried it would happen again. I am hoping through this program that S1 will be able to view herself as others do and that her confidence will improve. She has so much to offer but may sometimes sell herself short. I think it takes a lot for her to share with the group and feel very fortunate to be a part of this process for her!

H2 told a story about that day when a boy that bothers her in class disrespected her boundaries by hitting her. She told us that she ignored him and tried not to take it personally. I, as well as the rest of the group, encouraged her to always tell an adult. I’m not sure if she will use this suggestion, she often shares that she feels adults won’t do anything. Although I can’t control what happens at school I will be checking in with her to make sure she is feeling safe and at least communicating these things with her mom. Our staff team may be able to support her in rebuilding her trust in adults by consistently responding to and working to prevent any type of bullying in our programs.

We wrote responses to a few more questions and saved them for discussion at our next session. Everyone shared a word that they felt represented how they felt that day and that corresponded with the color they shared earlier.

H3- “pretty happy”

S1 -“tappy” which she explained meant tired and happy

L1- sad and excited

H2- happy

K- fappy which meant to her funny and happy

T- left early