Facilitators, ask your girls to turn to page 41 in their books to read and discuss the following:

What is body image?

What do you see when you look in the mirror?

How do you feel about your body? your weight? your shape?

What do you think society says about people who look like you?

Develop an affirmation or a short poem you can recite when you begin to feel self conscious. For added bonus write it in your notes, screen shot it, and make it one of your phone's screen savers so you can access it quickly and discreetly.

Bonus Activity:

Ask your girls to close their eyes and raise their hands if they have experienced the following thoughts:

I feel uncomfortable in my jeans

I feel uncomfortable showing my arms

I feel self conscious about my body when I go out with my friends

I wish different parts of my body were bigger

I wish different parts of my body were smaller

Sometimes, I don't go out with my friends because I don't like how my clothes fit me.

At the end of this activity, tell the students how many of them experience the same thoughts and encourage them to give positive affirmations to themselves and each other. For example, don't be too cool to tell your friend that her hair looks really good that day or don't be afraid to tell yourself that you love your glossy lips or thick eyebrows. Remind the girls that everyone needs a confidence booster every now and again.

*Note: Please use your discretion to know if your circle will be able to handle the bonus activity. This activity is not suggested for circles that have experienced previous conflicts; although the activity is designed to bring girls together it can easily be turned into something to "tease" other girls about later. If think your group cannot handle this, you can alternatively read the statistics on pages 43 and 44.