Blog / March 1st, 2023
Activities spotlight – March
This month has International Women’s Day on the 8 March. Celebrate during the month and explore this year’s theme #EmbraceEquity.
WAGGGS has been a partner of International Women’s Day since 2017 and has produced an activity pack for ages 6 and onwards. Pick and choose activities from the pack, including some that are easily adaptable for 4 and 5 year olds as well.
Find the pack here on the International Women’s Day website.
Below are some of our favourite activities for each section from our own units, alongside UMAs you can incorporate into your International Women’s Day celebrations.
There will also be an International Women’s Day 2023 badge available from Girlguiding or your local trading depot. It could be your unit’s first badge in the new brand design and will be launched in the online shop to buy from 8 March.
Rainbows
Warm-up and explore fair play with the 15-minute fun and fair UMA from pack 5.
Want to challenge a stereotype? Find out what it takes to be an astronaut with the 30-minute Astronaut academy UMA from pack 6.
Some time left? Print the inspirational colouring sheets from the International Women’s Day website or they could draw their own inspirational women.
Brownies
From the age of 7 children’s gender stereotypes can be fully formed. Open the conversation using the understanding gender – at work activity from the WAGGGS activity pack (page 4).
Want to take it further? A ‘Shero’ is a female hero, a role model who inspires girls. A Shero can be a family member, friend, community leader or famous role model. Take ideas from the activity on page 16 of the WAGGGS activity pack for inspiration.
Guides
If your group are younger or newer to the idea of equity have a go at the UMA equal everything in pack 3. Here they will start to explore if equal is always fair.
You could then introduce them to the theme for this year’s International Women’s Day with the first section of this short video explaining what equity means.
To relate the theme to their everyday lives try the 20-minute understanding gender – gender lightbulb activity from the WAGGGS activity pack (pages 5 and 6).
Want to take it further? Create a full exhibition from the Shero activity from the WAGGGS activity pack. Or if your unit wants to focus on climate change, the gender and climate change activities – we’re all in this together (pages 18 to 24) or powerful chain (pages 25 to 27) could be just what you’re looking for.
Rangers
If equity is a new idea for your unit you could start with the UMA equality vs equity in pack 7. A practical way of exploring if equity can promote equality and fairness for all.
This short video introduces this year’s theme by explaining equity and how this translates into action understandably for the Ranger age group
Next, you could take a look at the 30-minute understanding gender – stereotype buster activity in the WAGGGS activity pack (page 7). Or if your group likes to debate then check out the gender and climate change – speak up for women activity (pages 28 to 31).