October 11 is the International
Day of the Girl Child, a day officially designated by the United Nations in
2011 to recognize the unique challenges girls face around the world.
The Day
of the Girl is a perfect opportunity to get students thinking – and writing
about – the need for such a day. Students can choose a question to answer:
Other websites
with information about challenges faced by girls and the Day of the Girl
include the Malala Fund, The Day of the Girl Summit and the United Nations International Day of the Girl Child
(with videos and web-stories).
On this day groups all over the
world highlight, discuss and take action to advance rights and opportunities
for girls everywhere. Many are groups organized
by young people themselves, including School Girls Unite, the
group that started in Kensington, Maryland, and lobbied hard for the Day of the
Girl designation. These are some of the
reasons:
A more
complete list, visit the Day of the Girl website.
1.
Why
do you think it’s a good idea to have a Day of the Girl?
2.
How
do you see girls treated differently or unfairly in your own life?
3.
What
action could you take as an individual, class or group to help improve the
lives of girls?
You may
also have students who would prefer to write about why there should be a Day of
the Boy or a Day of the ???
This
writing project can be expanded or adapted in many ways.
·
Have
students write their reasons for the Day of the Girl as a phrase or a 140-character
tweet.
·
Post
the students' tweets or phrases on a bulletin board, as in the photos here and
more on the Day of the Girl website.
·
Make
this a social studies project and encourage students to act on some of their suggestions.
School Girls Unite has an online action guide called Girls Gone Activist! How to Change the World through Education.
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