Polished Pebbles has served 30 sites across Chicago, IL with our after-school mentoring program for girls through partnerships with Chicago Public Schools, Chicago Housing Authority, University of Chicago Charter Schools, and Citizens Schools.
Our Pillars
The Three C’s of the Polished Pebbles Girls Mentoring Program are Communication, Career Exploration, and Community, all of which are applicable to the Illinois State Learning Standards for Social/Emotional Learning (SEL), and the 21st Century Skill Assessment Building Blocks.
COMMUNICATION – Our focus is mentoring girls to become strong, effective communicators in all aspects, including interpersonal communication and communicating respectfully with adults and peers.
21st Century Skill Building Blocks Addressed: Verbal Communication, Social Awareness, Problem Solving, Collaboration, Planning for Success
CAREER EXPLORATION – Girls apply newly learned communication skills in a real work environment through on-site job shadowing and workforce development opportunities that link technical, social, and emotional learning skills to college and career opportunities. Polished Pebbles girls learn about different career paths, the daily tasks involved, and the requirements (educational, work, life) to obtain these positions through career exploration experiences from our supporting partners.
21st Century Skill Building Blocks Addressed: Personal Mind-set, Planning for Success, Social Awareness, Verbal Communication, Collaboration, Problem Solving.
COMMUNITY – A primary goal of our program is to create a space and place for members of the schools’ communities and the city’s corporate residents to impact youth and bring about change in their local communities. This also includes deliberate efforts to create parental engagement events to inform parents about program activities and get them involved with the learning objectives to some degree.
➢ 21st Century Skill Building Blocks Addressed: Social Awareness, Verbal Communication, Planning for Success)