Saturday, March 2nd, 2013

Week 4 of GO-GIRL

Saturday, March 2nd, 2013


This week, the girls went to the WSU Undergraduate Library (UGL) and went to 3 different presentations put on by our wonderful WSU Library Scientists! One presentation taught the girls how to decide if a website can be considered a good source to use in their research and writing. They also learned what to look for in a website, especially before entering personal information on the internet. The girls learned to look for "https:" before the web address. Another presentation taught the girls how to use the Michigan Electronic Library (MeL) system (accessible anytime and anywhere on the web at www.mel.org), and search for books and sources. The girls also learned about how to cite sources for papers in APA and MLA formats, and the presenters stressed that this would be useful information later on in the girls' educational careers. The final presentation was about creating a good Power Point presentation that would teach people effectively (i.e. by properly using backgrounds, different fonts, text color, photos, how much should be on a good slide, etc.). The girls got a chance to fix up a very poor-looking presentation and they made some well-needed adjustments by changing text color and placement, and making uniform backgrounds for the slides.




After lunch in the Towers dorms cafeteria, the girls learned about biases, and how to avoid using them in questions while creating a survey. They learned about how some participants will adjust their answers to be socially acceptable, and how some questions are inappropriate. They also learned about the bias that a survey taker could have, and how to avoid that for when they create their own surveys.





















We're going to be going to the WSU Mort Harris Rec Center in the afternoon next Saturday, March 9th. See you then! :)

A Stellar 1st day of GO-GIRL!

Saturday, February 2nd, 2013

Well, we are off and running! Just looking at the girls in their groups by the end of the day today, you would never know that they were perfect strangers this morning.

The day was spent getting to know one another and the mentors.  What better way to do get to know one another than to play icebreakers!

One of the icebreakers was called, "Honey if you love me, will you please smile for me?" In this exercise, all of the students stood in a circle while one student went to someone she hoped she could make smile (the point of the game being not to smile, but that was near impossible for everyone-the giggles were contagious!). If the participant smiled, the smiler (then "it") would continue to ask someone else this question and hope that the next person would smile. This activity broke the ice between girls who were not to familiar with each other and were out of their comfort zone. It was a very easy-going first day that helped the girls get comfortable with everyone and their new environment. By the end of the day, the girls went from being strangers to forming long-term friendships! The laughing and giggling was heard from every classroom throughout the day as more games and icebreakers ensued.

Also, the girls learned about graphs and how to analyze and interpret them, which will come in handy later in the semester as the girls will be researching a topic, administering surveys, and analyzing data. At noon, the girls enjoyed a buffet-style lunch in the Towers dorm dining hall. After lunch, the girls went back to their classrooms, paired up with a partner and were given a Macbook. They used the computers to take an online survey regarding futures careers and other interesting topics.

Finally, the girls came up with team names for their groups. We're proud to present our GO-GIRL groups for the Winter 2013 semester:

Group 1 (Mentors Becky & Taylor): Queen Bee Yellow Jackets
Group 2 (Mentors Macy & Radha): Invincible Investigators
Group 3 (Mentors Jodi & Mary): TTYL (Talented Team of Young Ladies)
Group 4 (Mentors Fayzha & La'Shana): FBI Girls (Fabulous, Beautiful, Intelligent)
Group 5 (Mentors Nina & Sarah): SM&ART (Science, Math, and Art)
Group 6 (Mentors Melissa & Terrel): H4 (High Heels High Hopes)

Looking forward to our 2nd day! :)

Pharmacy this week!

GO-GIRLs and Parents,

* REMINDER *

This Saturday, March 26th, GO-GIRL will meet at the Wayne State University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. Please drop off your daughter at the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences between 9:00-9:20 am. Pick-up will be in front of the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences at 3:00 pm.
The field trip is always a highlight of the GO-GIRL session. To find out more about the College visit their website at: http://cphs.wayne.edu/

Directions:
Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences is located at 259 Mack Avenue, Detroit, the southwest corner of the Detroit Medical Center Campus.
The College is on the corner of Mack Avenue and John R St.

From I-75 North
Exit at Mack Avenue and take right on Mack Avenue.
Turn at the third traffic light (John R. Street).

From I-75 South
Exit at Mack Avenue and take left on Mack Avenue.
Turn at the third traffic light (John R. Street)

From I-94
Exit at 75 South (towards Toledo, OH).
Exit at Mack Avenue and take right on Mack Avenue.
Turn at the third traffic light (John R. Street).

From Main Campus
Go South on Anthony Wayne Drive, Cass Avenue, or Woodward and turn left on to Warren Avenue
Turn right on to John R. Street.

GO-GIRL will resume as normal at the College of Education on April 2.

Please email us at gogirl@wayne.edu or call us at (313)577-0917 or (313)530-3308 (the Saturday GO-GIRL Hotline) with any questions and/or concerns!

Go-GIRL 2011 Day 6

Saturday, March 12th, 2011

A super busy day as we all scrambled to wrap up our GO-GIRL surveys! We all contributed to writing the survey questions and typing them into the InspireData program, the program we're using to publish the surveys to the web! It was stressful trying to get them all in before lunch but we all managed to have them complete by the end of the day, phew! The information for taking the surveys is below:

GO-GIRL Surveys

Instructions:
Go to http://esurvey.inspiredata.com
Enter the Survey ID # and take the survey!

Teams:

C.R.A.Z.Y. (Creative, Real, Active, Zany, Young) Awesome Ladies
ID# 993022
Pretty Girl Swag
ID# 951360
BCM (Beautiful Classy Misses)
ID# 477419
P3 (Pretty, Powerful, Pre-Teens)
ID# 610413
DGAO (Diverse Girls As One)
ID# 583556
Scientists With Style
ID# 336141
Pink Saturdays
ID# 960985

After we wrapped up our surveys and worked on our team posters and cheers, we headed over to the WSU Mort Harris Fitness and Recreation Center which is right nearby the College of Education on the WSU campus. There we had Little Caesar's pizza, salad, cookies, and pop. Then we were able to run around and play! Some of us played basketball, there was also a volleyball game, we could walk on the track, hula hoop, or play any number of other activities and games. Mostly we would run around and play until we were hungry or tired and then we'd chat before running around and playing some more, it was so fun!

Reminder: Rec Center next week!

Dear GO-GIRLs and Parents,

Just a reminder that this Saturday we'll be spending the afternoon in the WSU Mort Harris Fitness & Recreation Center. Please remember to wear your GO-GIRL t-shirts and gym shoes. We're sure to have a fun afternoon of playing volleyball and other games! See you then!

G^3 Cyber Fall 2010

Saturday, November 6th, 2010

Our second G^3 Cyber was such a smash! The day started out in the WSU Welcome Center with a fun "Find Someone Who..." activity which was actually showing us how data mining works (how Google and other online sites sort our "likes" and "dislikes"). From there we moved to the Computer Science labs in State Hall where we started to dabble in learning the SCRATCH program. Each GG was armed with a cute, purple GO-GIRL wristband flashdrive complete with their individual iPhoto photo, and were all able to take the program and their work home with them for later! Parents met in the morning for a Parent Cafe in the UGL where they discussed career opportunities in Computer Science and explore ways they they can support their daughters as they continue to plan their path to college. Then we enjoyed boxed sandwich lunches and took turns checking out demonstrations by computer science students. The students had taken apart computers and showed us how hard drives worked and they answered our questions about computer science college degrees and jobs. We took tours of the 3D Movie labs in the Woodward Bldg. and finished the day with a fun prize-filled round of Cyber Jeopardy!

Next weekend: GO-GIRL Graduation

GO-GIRL: Gaining Options – Girls Investigate Real Life™
Project Presentation and Graduation
Winter 2010

Date: May 1, 2010
Location: Wayne State University


Schedule of Events

9:00 – 9:20 Girls arrive, prepare for final presentations
9:30 – 11:00 Parent Café- Room 10 College of Education
11:00 – 11:30 Parent welcome and Presentation of Final Projects
1st Floor College of Education Building
11:30 - 1:00 GO-GIRL Luncheon and Graduation
2nd Floor Ballroom Student Center Building

PLEASE NOTE: Due to limited seating, there is a 2-guest limit for each GO-GIRL


Questions? Please call Saundra Sumner at 313-577-0991
or
Email us at: gogirl@wayne.edu

Day 8

Saturday, April 17th

Today the GGs, in preparation of next Saturday's data collection from their surveys, learned about data collection and analysis. Specifically, they covered topics from categorical data vs. quantitative data, descriptive statistics, mean, median, and mode. They practiced analysis with graphs and discovered which graphs answered their research question. The software used to conduct the surveys and analyze the results, InspireData, was used to further explore the concept of mean and they practiced with the software how to find mean in data. After lunch, the GGs let loose on campus with their Campus Road Rally. 2 teams combined into 3 groups and the GGs were led on a wild chase around WSU's campus as they completed a university campus scavenger hunt where they took photos as proof of their findings. Though it was chilly, fun was had by all and the exercise was much needed after a tough morning of data analysis! :)

G^3 Cyber

Saturday, March 27th, 2010

Today was GG's second Operation Keeping in Touch event: GO-GIRL Goes Cyber (G^3 Cyber), and it was a success!

About 35 of our former GG alumnis from grades 8-12 reunited in the WSU Welcome Center, along with their families and friends, to join us for a fun day of cyber activity and Parent Cafe learning.

While the girls were busy working and playing, the GG parents joined us for a Parent Cafe which started off in the WSU Undergraduate Library. Here, with the help of WSU's librarians, the GG parents were introduced to MeL, the Michigan eLibrary. This great online resource can help parents and GGs in obtaining research and other useful information materials. Later, Dr. Sally brought parents up to speed on GG and upcoming GG events and opportunities. Finally, a WSU admissions counselor spoke with the parents about WSU and the college admissions process in general.

Meanwhile, the GGs were split into teams which traveled to different stations in State Hall, learning about how computers can be used to make meaning of very large amounts of data. They explored the power to create and share messages using animation software. Among other activities, the GGs learned about "data mining", made a game using the programming language Scratch, and learned about some of the things computer scientists do. After a midday break for a Subway lunch in the Welcome Center, the girls were back at play (work). They watched a video and toured the graphics & sensor network labs in State Hall. At the end of the day, we held a big game of BINGO using all of the terms we'd defined throughout the day. The GGs walked away with lots of knowledge, new computer expertise, prizes, and smiles from seeing their former GG friends.

We're so looking forward to our GG Reunion this upcoming Fall of 2010, keep an eye out for our postings as more information becomes available!!! :)

Thank you to all of our former GGs and families who attended, and thank you to the helpful and wonderful WSU Computer Science Department faculty & staff who made this possible, as well as Dr. Stephanie Brock, the WSU librarians, the WSU admissions counselors, and GG volunteers, it couldn't have been possible without you!

GG Day 6: Pharmacy Field Trip

Saturday, March 27th

A major day for GO-GIRL!

Our 2010 semester GGs took a field trip to the WSU College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

Each group of GGs had a pharmacy student lead them around the building. Each 5 sessions that the GGs attended exposed the girls to different fields in the health sciences.

In the Occupational Therapy (OT) session the girls made a bracelet or key-chain and tested how strong their fingers and hands are by squeezing a mechanism as hard as they could. Then they learned the average strength of girls their age. They learned why OT is important and why people do it.

In the Physical Therapy (PT) session, they learned about different exercises that they could do to work different parts of the body to improve their strength. They also watched a video about the different places that they could practice PT such as at schools with veterans.

In the Pharmacy the GGs learned what pharmacists do and they toured the CVS laboratory. They saw how drugs are prescribed and approximately how many different types of drugs there are currently on the market.

In the Analyzing session they practiced testing urine (actually Mountain Dew in this case), and they learned how to use test strips that test for diabetes. Here they got a chance to wear lab coats and lab goggles and learn about lab safety procedures.

Lastly, in the Physician Assistant (PA) session, the GGs learned what PAs do and they practiced their knowledge on a sample case about a man who didn't know what was causing him to have certain symptoms. After learning the symptoms of a stroke, the GGs were able to diagnose this man. They also heard a real heartbeat in order to monitor heart rate and use a stethoscope.

In each workshop there was a real doctor and WSU students studying those respected professions to assist the GGs in their learning.

Just a reminder: GO-GIRL will be meeting at its usual time on Saturday, April 10th: 9:30am-3:00pm in the College of Education.

At this time (Saturday, April 10th), we will also be holding a Parent Cafe to which all parents of GO-GIRLs are invited. The theme of the Parent Cafe will be Programs and Resources. Librarians will show you how you and your daughter can more effectively use library resources at home or online. In addition, we will discuss careers for your daughters that break gender molds. It should be an excellent chance to network and meet one another as well as have a rich conversation. The Parent Cafe will be held from 9:30-11:00am in the College of Education, Room #10.

Please note that the street/metered parking on WSU's campus is free on the weekends.

We're looking forward to seeing everyone again this weekend after a nice holiday break, hope everyone had a great vacation! :)

GG Day 5

Today our GGs were able to exercise not only their minds, but also their bodies!

This morning the GG teams met to discuss survey questions. Some examples of the types of questions they examined were: open-ended questions, closed-ended, Likert-scale, multiple-choice, ordinal, categorical, and numerical. After filling out some surveys themselves, looking at some examples and identifying the different types of questions, the GGs had a chance to think of some rough draft survey questions that could possibly be used in the final creation of their team surveys.

Then, Subway subs helped us all rejuvenate after a long morning of QUESTIONS! The rest of our afternoon was spent playing volleyball and running around, altogether having a great time in the WSU Mort Harris Fitness and Recreation Center right here on campus. Everyone had a blast and we were able to let out some of our active energy!

Since next week is WSU's Spring Break, GO-GIRL will take a break and reunite on Saturday, March 27th at the College of Pharmacy. We're very excited to be able to spend the day in the Pharmacy and learn all about pharmaceutical science! See you then!

GG Day 4

Every day we are learning more about social science research here at GO-GIRL! Today was filled with activity! In groups, everyone discussed "bias" and how to identify bias in asking survey questions. Each group worked to acknowledge any potential bias in sample questions and then had a chance to test their knowledge and create their own unbiased survey question. Also, the GGs practiced putting answers into categories. This will help organize survey results of the final surveys for the semester. And finally, the GG groups put their heads together to work on their final research project. A few of the things they talked about were what populations they would want to survey to learn more about what they find interesting concerning this topic, what questions they could ask to learn more about the topic, how they think people they survey will answer these questions, and then they came up with a prediction statement. We'll keep working on these research topics every week but so far we've made some great progress!