In Singapore, our three children services celebrate International Women’s Day in simple ways yet inspiring, creative and fun! Awareness raising needs to start from young…

“Any serious shift towards more sustainable societies has to include gender equality”     Helen Clark

The first group of chilldren who kicked off the celebration of the International Women’s Day on 6th March 2020 was Good Shepherd Student Care. And here is what they did : Sr Goretti conducted a session during their weekly Value Formation Class.

Good Shepherd Student Care

On 8th March 2020, almost the whole world took part in celebrating the significance of Women’s equality. As a part of this movement, Good Shepherd Student Care participated by conducting an International Women’s Day special theme in our weekly Value Formation class on 6^th March 2020.

Sr Goretti and our Primary 3 students discussed about women needing to stand up for their rights and dignity, despite the fact that these children are pretty young and in Singapore context, they might not have encountered any experience or totally understand this issue of  gender inequality.

Through this awareness talk, the children were made to be prepared and ready to strive for their equality now and in the future. They were told that when their rights is violated, it would cause inequality. One of the causes of the inequality issue brought up during the class was about domestic violence.

Sr Goretti presented the children a few real cases of domestic violence that happened via a video presentation. The children in turn expressed their concerns regarding the violence cases that had been done to many women out there. They also actively responded to the questions asked about how we must stand against those unfair treatments to women. Beside the talk about preventing domestic violence, Sr Goretti also delivered a message to all the girls to be confident about themselves. Regardless of their physical features, they must value themselves first before expecting other people to respect them.

A lesson learned…

At the end of the session, the children were encouraged to work on the International  Women’s Day poster. They were encouraged to write and draw creatively. Overall, the children enjoyed the class and it was truly an eye-opening experience for them.

Contributed by Ms Dewina Pangrastika,  Teacher, Good Shepherd Student Care

Another group of children aged between 6 and 15 at Ahuva Good Shepherd – Interim Placement & Assessment Centre celebrates…

We celebrated Women’s Day with a circle-time sharing, facilitated and organized by a staff, Ms Zin Zin. It began with each child recalling a female person in her life whom she is  grateful to, inspired by, or one who had a positive impact on her life. It was a simple session that could engage our current youngest resident,  6 year-old to our oldest, 15 year-old.

The sharing by the children were heartening. Eliza expressed her appreciation towards one of the staff for taking time to plan fun programmes so that the children would not be bored during this viral outbreak. This is the time when volunteers could not organise any activity and outing. They were all suspended as a preventive measure. Edith and Chloe also shared their gratitude towards a number of staff for  being kind all the time even when the children are not in their best behaviour. Their smiles and positivity have not gone unnoticed by the residents. Jean expressed her appreciation for her mother, for she accepted her unconditionally even when she struggled with her anger. Sally named an older resident in our centre for always bringing her joy and laughter. The most surprising sharing came from our youngest 6-year-old, Aida, who named a renowned artist, Frida Kahlo. She said that she felt inspired by Kahlo’s talent in art.

After the sharing, the children made a flower-themed craft as well as appreciation cards for the ladies whom they have named. Ms Zin Zin pointed out that in the midst of their residents are people who have  inspired her. She named one of the older residents, Roselle who was her co-facilitator of the activity.  She has tapped on her talent and interest in art.

The children were very excited and engaged throughout the celebration. The staff were delighted to  see during the course of the session, the children were able to identify more people whom they were thankful for. They then made appreciation cards for all of those wonderful women who had impacted them in a positive way.

Contributed by : Casmine Yeo, Assistant Residential Manager, Ahuva Good Shepherd – Interim Placement and Assessment Centre

And yet another group of the young at Ahuva Good Shepherd –Children’s Home celebrated through an emotional regulation drill.

International Women’s Day (IWD) is dedicated to celebrating women’s achievements in the social, economic, cultural, and political spheres. It is celebrated on the 8th of March every year. The day, collectively founded by women, also brings attention to gender parity and women’s rights. It’s also an important tool for policymakers striving towards gender equality.

This year, our girls in Ahuva Good Shepherd – Children’s Home (AGS-CH) celebrated International Women’s Day by engaging in an emotional regulation drill. The age range of the children who participated were 9 years old to 15 years old.

Before the emotional regulation drill was conducted, the girls were asked to share what they thought International Women’s Day was and what it meant to them. They shared some of the prominent women they knew about such as Hellen Keller, Mother Theresa and Serena Williams, what their achievements were, how they impacted the world and what it meant to them personally. Zita, 12 year-old shared how she aspired to become a person who will inspire the world like the aforementioned women.

During the emotional regulation drill, the girls did a “gratitude thermometer” where they were asked to think of a female figure in their lives to whom they are grateful towards. Then, they were asked to imagine a thermometer. Slowly, through the drill, they were asked to fill the thermometer with reasons as to why they were grateful towards those female figure in their lives. After some time in reflection, all the girls  shared with one another who the female figures  whom  they were grateful for and their reasons.

Heather, 12 year-old and Eva, 15 year-old shared how they are grateful towards the staff for always caring about them.

Terese, 9 year-old also shared about the things her class teachers has done for her and how she is thankful to them.

Xenia, 12 year-old spoke fondly of her mother and told us stories of how her mother has always looked after her.

After the reflection and sharing session, the girls were given art and craft materials. They then made thank you cards for the female figures they wanted to thank. They later send them to those respective women. Whilst making the cards, they continued to share about other women in the lives for whom they were grateful.

The whole session was very heart-warming and everyone realised how lucky they were to have all these amazing women who care for them.

Through this programme, the girls learnt more about International Women’s Day and its importance. They were also able to recognise important contributions made by women all around the world and how it affects them and all women in general. They felt inspired by what women around the globe had done. They expressed their gratitude to the women in the lives and how their actions have impacted them positively.

NB: Names given are pseudonyms

Contribution by: Soniya Selvaraju, Social Service Associate, Ahuva Good Shepherd – Children Home

Indeed,

“Any society that fails to harness the energy and creativity of its women are at a huge disadvantage in the modern world”  Tian Wei

And we need to begin with our young…

“Gender equality is more than a goal in itself. It is a precondition for meeting the challenge of reducing poverty, promoting sustainable development and building good governance.” Kofi Annan