The EmpowerHER Program: Developing a Curriculum to Foster Social-Emotional Learning and Physical Activity Among Adolescent Girls in a Summer Care Program

ABSTRACT

Programs integrating social-emotional learning (SEL) and physical activity (PA) can contribute to positive behavior outcomes and development for adolescent girls. The purpose of this article is to report the development of the EmpowerHER Program curriculum. Specifically, this curriculum describes implementation strategies and activities tailored to adolescent girls while contributing to the literature surrounding health programs addressing PA and SEL components. Adolescent girls (10–14 years old) participated in an eight-session summer program that provided the opportunity to engage in fun-filled activities that encouraged PA and SEL. Strategies from the EmpowerHER program can be applied to curriculum development and program implementations in out-of-school settings to aid in promoting PA enjoyment and engagement for adolescents. This curriculum supports the importance of contextually tailoring a health program to support PA and SEL for adolescent girls.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Texas A&M Health Science Center Seedling Grant.