Steering girls through transformation
Butterfly Foundation Education Services Coordinator Amberley Laverick with Noelli Bariacto, Rhea Pereira, Ariella Steinberg and Emma Steinepreis.
Teenage years can be a tough time for body image issues, which is why we invited the Butterfly Foundation to talk about body esteem and how students can support one another during these formative years. Butterfly Foundation Education Services Coordinator Amberley Laverick spoke to students in Years 5, 6, 7, 8, 11 and 12 about the different things that can impact body esteem, such as their peers, beauty ideals in the media, health messages and language. Miss Laverick said she hoped the girls understood the reality of body esteem. “We all have the opportunity to be a positive body esteem role model for ourselves and others,” she said. “Some days we will feel good about our bodies and others not so much: that is okay, everyone has those off days.
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St Hilda’s Ammonite
“Hopefully by talking about these things it allows the girls to feel that their experiences are shared by many people and it is okay to be open about how you are feeling.” Based in Victoria, the Butterfly Foundation takes presentations and workshops across the country. The Foundation represents people affected by eating disorders and negative body image. Miss Laverick said it was important for those spending time with young people to be aware of their own relationship with their body and be conscious of the messages they send. “Negative talk about bodies, eating and exercise has become normalised in our society which tends to have a focus on appearance, when ultimately what we value in one another is who they are and not what they look like.” Our thanks to the St Hilda’s Parents’ and Friends’ Association who funded the visit.