Strategies for engaging girls

Criteria 7. ii)
Make it personal
I phrase my examples in the first person. For example, when teaching 12 PCC
(Personal Care and Community) I showed my all female class a sample Job
Description and sample Employment Contract. When referring to it, I said When
YOU get a job, you will sign something like this. Its important to know what is in
your Employment Contract so if your employer takes advantage of you, you
know what your rights are.
Give them context
Telling fictional or real-life stories gives the learning a context. In a Year 10 Art
class at Kelston Girls College, I read out loud the story of Paikea and the whale,
then showed them an image of the meeting house at Whangara. Most of them
knew the movie Whale Rider but didnt know the origin of the story, or that it
existed outside the movie. One girl said Ive been there Miss, thats where my
Mums from. She felt very special when I pointed out to the class that we had a
possible descendant of Paikea in our class. I followed this up with finding out
what the iwi of the area was (Ngati Porou) and giving her some printouts of
kowhaiwhai patterns from the Marae, which she used as a basis for her art
project.1 Other students used Islamic or Indian patterns as well as Maori and
Pacifica inspired designs.2

Encouragement Little Miss Perfect

Sometimes girls can be hyper-critical. They get discouraged when they make
mistakes and think that they are stupid. Sometimes they go quiet, give up
trying or act up so they dont have to participate. The hyper-critical girl can find
this preferable to be being seen to be wrong.
Sometimes I play a creative ice-breaking drawing game called Head Body Feet
or Exquisite Corpse. This quick collaborative exercise encourages bad
drawing as long as it is quick, crazy and imaginative!
Then we do a blue-sky what if? mind map, which I model an example of first. I
include outrageous, unlikely scenarios to encourage outside the box thinking. (I
1 PRT Standard 10. work effectively within the bicultural context of Aotearoa New Zealand i.
practise and develop the relevant use of te reo Mori me ng tikanga-a-iwi in context

2 PRT Standard 9. respond effectively to the diverse language and cultural experiences, and the
varied strengths, interests and needs of individuals and groups of konga
approaches to address the needs of individuals and groups of konga

iii. modify teaching

find it handy to do this at the Brief Development stage of the Technology

Curriculum.)
By having fun and throwing around ideas I hope to get these girls to relax
enough to forget about how they think others might see them.
I give these girls specific feedback when they experiment or take a chance.
Youre going in the right direction with that answer, and if you put Hand
Washing at the END of your Personal Hygiene chart, then that would be perfect.
In the end they take pride in being imaginative, rather than correct.

The Shy Girl

The shy introvert who would rather die than speak up in class may still want to
contribute. I include collaborative written or online tasks as well as hands up
with the answer. She may prefer working alone or working in a pair can feel
safer than a larger group where she can fade into the background. I have had
students write their ideas on Post-it notes, one helpful student gathers them and
I stick them in categories on the board. The shy girl still feels that her ideas are
valued. Praising her work rather than saying her name allows her to feel proud. A
personal chat, greeting, or small responsibility can create a rapport to help the
shy girl feel safe.
The Queen Bee
Some girls value popularity and social status within their group above all, and
even see the teacher (esp a female teacher) as a threat to their place in the
hierarchy. They still want to be seen as good girls and be top of the class, but
use techniques such as eye rolling, sarcastic tones and low talking under the
teacher to assert themselves. They know just when to stop so they dont get into
trouble. They dont want teacher approval they want the approval of their
peers. I have learnt that showing anger or sarcasm doesnt work here they can
out-ice the teacher.
I have used a number of techniques, including give and take as a Queen Bee is
nothing without her entourage, I suggest they would be able to work better if
they are seated separately, and allow them to stay together if they display a
respectful attitude.
I use the stuck record approach of referring to the school rules. I have even
printed them off and made them write examples of each one, which I can make
them refer to later.
I am persistently nice to them (as I am with all students), so they eventually
realise that I cannot be fazed by their bad behaviour. I express disappointment
and regret rather than anger that they have transgressed the rules.