Calendar
Young Women's Initiatives
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Skills Ontario’s Young Women’s Initiatives is a collection of engaging and hands-on events and programs that provide skill development and mentorship opportunities to young women in grades 7 to 12. Skills Ontario hosts Career Exploration Events across Ontario from October to April, and Canada’s largest young women’s conference at the Skills Ontario Competition each year! Scroll down to start exploring! For the 2021-2022 school year, Skills Ontario will continue to host all our regional Career Exploration Events and our Young Women’s Conferences in a virtual format! Stay tuned! Skills Ontario has some exciting news coming up surrounding new programming, a Women in Trades Resource Hub, and other amazing offerings that will be announced throughout the 2021/2022 year! |
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International Day of the Girl Series GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ Collaborating Organizations |
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Thank you to our Young Women's Initiatives Partners:
This program is funded by the Government of Ontario.
Program Partner
Progressive Contractors Association of Canada
Supporting Partner
International Day of the Girl Series
October 4th – 11th
The International Day of the Girl was established by the United Nations in 2012 and is recognized as a day to acknowledge girls and their rights, education, and opportunities. Let's seize the opportunity to reimagine a better world inspired by girls – energized and recognized, counted and invested in.
Skills Ontario is offering a series of free online events to celebrate the International Day of the Girl. We expanded beyond the official date of October 11th, 2021 to offer various opportunities for girls and their parents/guardians and family members to participate in! Skills Ontario will be celebrating through a three-part series:
1. A week of at-home challenges to try out the skilled trades and technologies for chances to win prizes!
2. A virtual hands-on workshop kids can do with their family to learn new skills!
3. A For Girls, By Girls! virtual conference, where viewers can hear from girls and learn about the
skilled trades and technologies!
Part 1 of the Series - International Day of the Girl Challenges
*No registration required
October 4th – 8th, 2021: Calling all girls!!! Skills Ontario would like to show the world what you can do! We are challenging girls to try out activities relating to the five skilled trade and technology sectors:
- Motive Power: Sail Cars Challenge
- Industrial: Popsicle Stick Playground Challenge
- Service: Fashion Design Challenge
- Construction: Marshmallow Towers Challenge
- Technology: Coding Challenge
You can choose to participate in as many challenges as you’d like – there are five in total, relating to each sector. Let’s show the world that girls can build, construct, create, and do anything they put their mind to!
Submissions can be videos and/or pictures of your project. You will need to highlight what you as a girl can do and why girls rock! This can be done in either voice recordings within a video, or through a written document that is photographed with your project.
Submissions are to be posted on Twitter between October 4th – 8th. Tag @skillsontario and use the hashtag #SkillsIDG2021. If you do not have Twitter, or are uncomfortable posting, please email your submission to ywi@skillsontario.com.
To join in on the fun and enter for a challenge:
- Follow us on Twitter here!
- Read the rules and guidelines for the challenge you'd like to participate in
- Tweet your submission to us at @skillsontario with the hashtag #SkillsIDG2021
Challenge winners will be contacted October 12th and will be required to sign a consent form and return it via email before October 19th so that Skills Ontario, its partners, your school and class can celebrate your submission!
Part 2 of the Series - International Day of the Girl Workshop
Monday, October 11th, 2021: 1:00pm
This activity requires registration and is free to participate in.
Skills Ontario is excited to be offering an Animation Workshop for the family! Participants will have the opportunity to learn and work through foundational skills using Google Slides (or PowerPoint) to create a short video. Come and create a short animation using skills that can be applied to all future projects! Details subject to change. Please keep checking the website for updates. Parents/guardians are required to register.
Target Audience: Grades 6 -8.
Please note, younger students are welcome, but may require a parent/guardian or older sibling to assist with some of the steps throughout the workshop.
Part 3 of the Series - International Day of the Girl Celebration Event: For Girls, By Girls
Friday, October 8th, 2021: 10:00am – 10:40am
- Classes (teachers/students) can watch the Premiere Event, featuring a Live Chat, during the AM showing; and
Friday, October 8th, 2021: 6:30pm – 7:10pm
- Parents/Guardians/Families can watch a BONUS showing of the event in the evening.
This activity requires registration and is free to participate in.
Skills Ontario will be hosting the For Girls, By Girls! virtual conference to celebrate the International Day of the Girl! This event is dedicated to empowering girls through relatable and engaging content. For Girls, By Girls provides viewers with the opportunity to hear from girls in elementary and senior elementary to discuss their perspectives of how they perceive the skilled trades and technologies, what they want to be when they grow up and why, what their favourite tool is, what they think certain trades actually do, and what interests them!
This will be a great event that allows girls to relate to what they’re watching, with the opportunity to learn alongside their teachers, classmates, parent(s)/guardian(s), and other family members. There will also be encouraging messages from highly respected and influential leaders and tradespeople including an inspirational keynote from Kyara Cabrera Fong, Auto Body & Collision Repair Apprentice. Skills Ontario is thrilled to commemorate the International Day of the Girl. Join us as we celebrate you and everything that girls can do!
If you have any questions, please contact lchester@skillsontario.com.
Young Women's Conferences
Click HERE for more information regarding the Young Women’s Conferences.
Skills Ontario Career Exploration Events
Our Career Exploration Events are for young women to learn about careers in the skilled trades and technologies. These events provide participants the opportunity to integrate experiential workshops and networking with mentors. These events are held for secondary and senior elementary (grades 7-8) students. Previously, Skills Ontario hosted events in multiple locations across the province throughout the school year. For the 2020-2021 school year, we hosted our programming in a virtual format!
Please stay tuned for more information on Career Exploration Events for the 2021-2022 school year.
If you have any questions, please contact rkappes@skillsontario.com.
Collaborating Organizations
Skills Ontario is on the forefront of making change in our province! We are thrilled to be partnering with women in skilled trade and technology organizations and groups to stand together and make an impact. We are united with the same goals and initiatives and will promote exciting opportunities for women through skill development, mentorship, networking, and experiential learning opportunities at our Young Women’s Career Exploration Events and Young Women’s Conference.
