Last week, Cusco was on serious party preparation mode getting ready for la Día de la Madre on Sunday. All of the schools spent the week leading up to the holiday preparing to put on elaborate celebrations complete with vibrant costumes, choreographed dances, singing and poems. In a culture which can at times seem frustratingly dominated by men, it was great to witness this entire week dedicated to celebrating the mothers in this society.

Mariciela explains to her mother before class how the incentive folders work.

To celebrate la Día de la Madre, we invited the mothers of our students at Los Nogales to attend class with their daughters on Monday. We thought this would be a great opportunity to involve the girls’ families in our program. As much contact as we have with all of our students on a weekly basis, we rarely get the opportunity to meet and interact with their families.

Yulisa and her mother

Class on Monday was a celebration of the relationship between these girls and their mothers. We were lucky enough to have several of the moms attend class and join in on a really fun game of volleyball. It was great to see the mothers taking on the role of coach, and helping the girls with their form on serving or passing, encouraging them to be energetic and work together as a team.

Mirelia gets ready to serve as her mom looks on!

We ended class with a mini fiesta, eating cake and drinking Inka Cola (a fluorescent, bubble gum-flavored soda that is a favorite among Peruvians). We were so grateful for the opportunity to get to meet some of the girls’ mothers and sisters, and to have the chance to celebrate this holiday with our own mothers so far away!

Mirelia and her mom and sister enjoy some cake after class!

Happy Mothers Day to all of the moms in the GSW community!

We are especially appreciative of our “veterans,” the girls who return year after year to participate in our sports program without missing a single class. Yesenia, a fifth grader, is one of our veterans from Los Nogales, and has recently introduced her younger sister, Ayda, to Chicas Dinamicas. Their enthusiasm for sports and being part of team on and off the court is unmistakable. In order to recognize these girls, we decided to take an opportunity to interview Yesenia and Ayda and introduce them to the GSW community. Please enjoy!

Interviewing two sisters, Ayda and Yesenia, from Los Nogales after sports class.

How old are you?

Ayda: 9 years old

Yesenia: 10 years old

How many years have you been coming to Chicas Dinamicas classes?

Ayda: This is my first year

Yesenia: 2 years

What is your favorite sport?

Ayda: I love football (soccer)

Yesenia: The sport with the long stick and the hook at the end.

Hockey?

Yesenia: Yes! Hockey!

What has been your favorite field trip?

Ayda: Rock climbing

Yesenia: Definitely, the rock climbing trip

What are some things you have learned from Chicas Dinamicas this year?

Ayda: I have learned more English and new sports.

Yesenia: This year I learned how to use a baseball bat and I have improved in soccer.

Having a fun time warming up for sports class at Los Nogales!

There are certain values we try to focus on in our classes. For you, what are the most important ones?

Ayda: I think it is important to support your teammates and help girls who are new to class learn the drills and sports.

Yesenia: I think it’s important to be a leader and be open to learning new sports.

Why do you like coming to Chicas Dinamicas classes?

Ayda: I have a lot of fun learning new sports and new English words.

Yesenia: I think it’s important to be healthy and learn new sports. Also, I like Chicas Dinamicas because during class I feel free.

Are you going to continue attending Chicas Dinamicas classes?

Yesenia and Ayda: YES!

Yesenia hanging out with some chicas dinamicas after school was dismissed.

Last week, we had the opportunity to take the girls from Virgen de Rosario on their first field trip of the school year. After an interesting week spent navigating Peruvian bureaucracy, we were able to attain entry for 17 girls and ourselves into Saqsaywaman, a site of Incan ruins located close to the center of Cusco. Despite it being a cold and rainy afternoon, the girls had a fantastic time exploring the ruins, and were so grateful for the opportunity to take a field trip with GSW!

Chicas Dinámicas from Virgen de Rosario pose in front of the rocks at Saqsaywaman!

After a quick and chilly picnic, the girls were excited to explore the site. Saqsaywaman is known for the enormous rocks that the Incans used to construct the site, and they are certainly impressive to see, especially when compared with the smallest of our third grade students.

The girls were eager to show us the rock slides, and we had a great time running up the hill and sliding down the slides. Another favorite were the caves. Saqsaywaman includes a small network of caves that the girls were excited to explore. While some of them were scared to enter the small, dark caves, grabbing our hands and claiming they weren’t going to go in, soon they were having a great time running through the caves and waiting at the end to jump out and scare us.

The girls had a great time on the slides!

Camilla was entertaining everyone with her antics on the slides.

In addition to getting to explore Saqsaywaman, Wednesday was also Project Manager Kelly’s birthday! The girls were thrilled to get the chance to celebrate with her. They also got to try brownies for the first time, and they were a huge hit.

All the girls were so excited to celebrate Kelly's birthday with her!

Field trips are always fun, but more than that, it is such a rewarding experience to get to interact with our students away from their schools and our normal class setting. Seeing the girls light up and enjoy themselves as much as they do, even when it is cold and rainy, shows us the positive impact that GSW is having with them and how much they benefit from the chance to participate in the program.

A typical day for GSW Project Managers always involves carrying large bags of sports equipment via Cusco’s public transportation. As females donning athletic wear and bags of bats, balls, and jerseys, we always draw attention from locals and tourists alike while making our way from school to school.

Jessie carrying one of our big bag sports equipment and waiting at the bus stop. Friday is our busiest day when we teach at 3 different schools throughout Cusco and have to take 4 different buses.

This past week at all of our schools we have been working on a unit of baseball, a relatively uncommon sport in Peru that is quickly becoming a favorite among our students. While passing through a neighborhood square to arrive to sports class at Santoni, a tourist from Canada was surprised to see us carrying bats, bases, and baseballs. From his interest he approached us and asked, “What sort of project are you doing in Peru that involves baseball?”  “We are a group that teaches life skills to girls through sports. It’s an important mission, and we are really enjoying the work and our girls have so much fun during our classes,” we explained.

Santoni girls ready to play some baseball!

He responded, “Wow, I didn’t know the kids here had time for fun.” His response is one we will never forget because in many ways it is true. As we spend more time with our students and build stronger relationships with these young women we learn more about their home lives and the personal responsibilities that they each have. The more we learn, the more we are impressed.

Luz Marioli from Santoni steps up to bat.

He responded, “Wow, I didn’t know the kids here had time for fun.” His response is one we will never forget because in many ways it is true. As we spend more time with our students and build stronger relationships with these young women we learn more about their home lives and the personal responsibilities that they each have. The more we learn, the more we are impressed.

Diana, a fourth grader from Santoni, is new to Chicas Dinamicas and never misses a class.

For Ivonne, a fifth grader from Santoni, her weekends often consist of waking up early to do the laundry, helping her mom sell chicken at the market all day, and completing her homework and studies for the school week to come. For many of our students at Pacca, a rural school located an hour outside of Cusco, a typical day consists of rising at 4 am to start helping their parents with work on the farm. The young mothers of Casa Mantay are of course just as busy as they are simultaneously working jobs, attending school, and caring for their children— an incredible amount of responsibility for someone who is only 16 years old.

Virgen del Rosario students listen intently for instructions from Jessie during their new favorite game of "Simon Says" (Simon Dice)

Indeed, these girls are busy with school work, family duties, etc., but it is for these reasons that GSW has such an important role for these young women. Classes with Chicas Dinámicas allow girls to practice sport without fear of judgment, develop critical thinking and communication skills, and learn the value of teamwork. Overall, our classes create a safe space for young women to learn skills outside of their traditional roles that will empower them as they develop emotionally and professionally.

This week we had the opportunity to take the girls of Los Nogales on their first field trip of the semester. Thanks to the amazing crew at Andexplorer, we were able to introduce 25 girls to the new sport of rock climbing, and a fantastic time was had by all!

The whole group at the bottom of the rock wall.

When we told the girls last week that we would be taking them rock climbing, most of them had no idea what the day would entail. Upon arriving at the rock and seeing the harnesses, ropes, and helmets they would be wearing, their questions were replaced pretty universally by fear. The girls were understandably intimidated by and scared of the task ahead of them, a few of them saying that they didn’t want to climb, and that they wouldn’t be able to do it.

Kelly, one of our fourth graders from Los Nogales, getting strapped into her harness by our awesome volunteers from Andexplorer!

Four hours later, they had proved themselves wrong! All of the girls had the opportunity to climb two separate routes up the rock, and it was amazing to watch them transition from being terrified of what they were being asked to do, to making their way to the top of the rock, and begging for more chances to climb. After making their way down, the girls cheered on their classmates, shouting out suggestions to help the girls that were climbing find their way to the top.

Carla works her way up the wall!

Overall, our rock climbing trip with Los Nogales was an unforgettable experience for everyone involved. The chance to watch the girls be presented with a new challenge, and employ the confidence necessary to tackle it was inspiring. We can’t wait to take another school rock climbing with Andexplorer!

We were so lucky to have Director Uriel join us for our field trip! The girls were very excited to see him get his chance to climb.

We are very happy to announce the launch of the GirlSportWorks Leadership Development Program! Sarah and Paula are two former GSW students who have been selected to be the first participants in this new program. These young women graduated from Los Nogales and are continuing on to secondary school, which is the US equivalent of high school, and they are very excited to stay on with the Chicas Dinámicas team.

Sarah and Paula graduate from primary school at Los Nogales and sign their contracts to join the Leadership Development Program!

The Leadership Development Program has been created and designed to offer one-on-one leadership training and professional experience to former students of the GSW sports program. Sarah and Paula went through an application process during which they had to demonstrate and articulate their capability to be leaders and explain their desire to continue as members of GSW.  During this process each girl participated in her very first interview. When they entered the room to answer the questions with GSW’s Project Manager they were timid and unaware of what an interview actually is. However, they embraced the challenge in a true show of their commitment to Chicas Dinámicas and love for sports.

As participants of the Leadership Development Program they have been given the title of “Teacher Assistant” and serve as assistants during Los Nogales sports class on Mondays. During their first month, Sarah and Paula have done an incredible job within their roles—taking attendance, setting up cones for exercises, explaining sports drills, and mentoring younger girls in sports and GSW values—proving themselves to be invaluable assets to the Project Managers. In fact, many of the younger students have expressed their excitement for the return of Sarah and Paula as class leaders affirming our selection of these two young women and creating a closer link between student and teacher.

Sarah and Paula award the "Coneja Colaboradora" to the girl who collaborated with her teammates the most and the "Peluchin" to the girl who accelerated the most in the sports exercises of the day.

In addition to their sports class roles, these girls will partake in leadership projects and workshops to develop their skills as teachers, mentors, and administrators. Their first project takes place next weekend as they will be helping GSW PM’s organize and lead a rock climbing field trip in partnership with the program “Escalando Esperanzas” (Raising Hopes) for the Los Nogales students.

The responsibility and commitment that Sarah and Paula have demonstrated so far really shows the meaning and place that GirlSportWorks has in their lives. We are excited to move forward with them and to continue to build this new program in the coming years.

In our second full week of classes here in Cusco, accompanied by warm weather and a lot of sun, we continued working through our volleyball unit with all five schools, seeing marked improvement among the girls. Volleyball is one of the most popular sports in Peru, and the girls were really excited at the opportunity to develop their skills and learn new games and techniques.

A student at Virgen de Rosario learning how to pass the volleyball.

One of the skills that we have been working on and seeing a lot of improvement has been serving. When we started with volleyball, a lot of the girls didn’t know how to properly serve the ball, and would either toss it over the net or send the ball flying twenty feet behind them. By the end of the week, there was visible improvement in both their serving and confidence. As we started playing full-sided games, the girls were eager for their turn to serve and more often than not were successfully sending the ball over the net and inside the boundary on the other side.

The son of one of our students at Casa Mantay helping us to carry the volleyballs to the field.

Another thing we focused on in our classes this week was communication and teamwork. At the end of class, we would play a game that made the girls rely on working together and strategizing to accomplish a goal. In one of these games, the girls had to cross a field of “lava” with their team. In order to do this, they could only step on the jerseys, or stones, allotted to their team. If one of them stepped off of the stone and into the “lava,” they had to return to the beginning and start over. As we watched the teams work through the race, we could see them adapting their strategies together in order to reach the finish line. At one point, in between races, we asked them to articulate their team’s strategy, and it was interesting and gratifying to hear the different approaches formulated and voiced by each team. It was especially exciting to see the younger girls challenging the older girls.

Students at Virgen de Rosario working together to cross the "lava."

The girls at Pacca play a different game, where they had to work together to put themselves in order of height with blindfolds and without being able to speak.

The emphasis on communication and teamwork this week was a great way to re-establish the goals of GSW with the girls. As we finish up with volleyball, we hope to see these skills exhibited on the court.

GirlSportWorks is back in action for the 2013 academic year! The rainy season is coming to an end and the streets of Cusco are bustling as more tourists make their way to Machu Picchu and children return from vacation to start their new school schedules.

This means GSW programs are restarting and we are excited to welcome a new Project Manager, Jessie Curran, to the team. As an avid skier and basketball player, Jessie brings years of sports and coaching experience to GSW, and most recently, she joins us after spending six months in Buenos Aires as an English Teacher.

Jessie sharing a meditation moment before beginning class at Los Nogales

Initiating GSW sports and English classes is an exciting process and consists of meeting with school directors and parents, and visiting classrooms to hand out info sheets and permission slips for enrolling in the program. After a brief introduction and description of our program, it is encouraging to witness girls gasping with excitement and enthusiasm as they hear about this opportunity to learn new skills, play new sports, and make new friends.

Getting to know the new first graders at Pacca

Monday, March 11^th celebrated International Day of the Woman, making this week the perfect time to start up our first round of classes. It was exciting to reconnect with our returning students at Virgen del Rosario, Pacca, Casa Mantay, Santoni, and Los Nogales who are older and typically more outspoken. It was especially rejuvenating to connect with the new students just entering the grade when they are old enough to enter into the program.

At our primary schools, our girls end each sports class by sharing their highs and lows of the day using the Kimochi doll that alternates between a happy and sad face. “Today, I am happy because Chicas Dinamicas has returned and I can finally be a part of it,” was a sentiment echoed by many of these new, younger girls. One girl even mentioned how hopeful she was that Chicas Dinamicas would help her adopt a healthier lifestyle.

Finishing up a fun game of volleyball with our girls at Casa Mantay

For some of our new students at Casa Mantay and the newest incoming class at Pacca, Quechua is their first language and communicating in Spanish is a challenge. For these girls, it was their first time passing a volleyball and participating in an organized sport. Going through this first time experience with these girls has inspired and refocused us on GSW’s important mission. So many invaluable lessons are learned from sports—communication, leadership, teamwork—and the experience of this first week reminds us of the important work to be done.

This past week GirlSportWorks officially finished off another school year with a grand end of the year combined party with students from Los Nogales and Santoni participating in different relay races. To allow the girls to interact with their peers from different schools and to create a bigger competition, we brought Santoni girls to the Los Nogales court where some parents and teachers from both schools gathered to spectate.  The girls were especially excited for this event because former Project Manager Megan Connolly (2011-2012) made a return visit on this day to see the girls and cheer them on. In all, the day brought great joy and sense of GSW camaraderie to students, Project Managers, and community members alike.

Los Nogales girls pose with former GSW Project Manager Megan Connolly aka "Profe Margarita"

First, we asked all the girls to get into pairs, and it was great to witness some girls from one school seek partners from girls in the other. In fact, Yudith from Santoni and Ester from Los Nogales, proved to be one of the most competitive teams of the day winning several relay rounds.

New friends, Yudith and Ester, after winning the 3-legged race

Next, it was off to the races! The day´s events included the three legged race, water balloon toss, and a new favorite that consisted of a team carrying a ball to the end of the court and back without using their hands…even if the ball falls. Apart from being wildly entertaining, these games allowed the girls to demonstrate some of the skills which we had been working on all year such as strategy, communication, and team work.

Our final Chicas Dinamicas "Barra" (Cheer) of 2012!

While this final gathering marks GSW´s two month hiatus during the school year´s summer vacation, it gave us moment to reflect on some of GSW´s wonderful accomplishments, such as the sports exchange with Goals for Girls and the expansion into a new school, Virgen del Rosario, that made this school year such a success.  Furthermore, we are excited to rejuvenate and focus on how we can improve on delivering our mission to empower young women through athletics.

See you in the New Year!

With the Peruvian school year winding down, we hosted goodbye parties this week in two of our five schools – Colegio Pacca and Virgen del Rosario. To create a culminating year-end event that was true to GSW values, it was essential that we bring the spirit of healthy competition into the day’s activities. Hence, we orchestrated a series of games and races including a potato sack race, water balloon toss, musical chairs and many more.

Egg-and-spoon race at Colegio Pacca.

At Pacca, the girls divided themselves up into colored teams from last year’s Olympics Day – pink versus white versus purple.

Purple and pink teams competing in the potato sack race at Pacca.

They played each race for points, and at the end of the day the pink team claimed victory – dominating in the three-legged race and egg-and-spoon race.

The pink team prepares for the three-legged race.

The races generated a tangible feeling of team spirit, which we were particularly glad to see in our new school Virgen del Rosario. It has been encouraging to see friendship and camaraderie develop between the Chicas Dinámicas at Rosario within such a short time. The Rosario girls particularly enjoyed the water ballon toss, and we enjoyed having a water balloon fight with the remaining balloons.

The girls at Virgen del Rosario begin their water balloon toss.

After completing the various races, we treated the girls to a celebratory cake and distributed a number of end of the year presents. Each girl received a signed certificate of participation in the program, a Chicas Dinámicas group picture, and the most coveted gift in our prize bag: a large colorful water bottle.

Luz Anael and Pamela were racing partners.

The gifts elicited countless looks of delight and gratitude. But the parties were bittersweet – everyone will be missed over the three month summer break, and for our sixth grade girls, this week marked the end of their time in the program.

The shining faces of Chicas Dinámicas at Virgen del Rosario.

We will be recreating the goodbye celebrations in our three remaining schools this coming week, and this time with the special surprise attendance of former Project Manager Megan Connolly. We look forward to finishing the school year with the fun competition, teamwork, and gratitude that we seek to cultivate in Chicas Dinámicas every week of the year.