PLUG AND PLAY MODULES MAKE TEACHERS' LIVES EASIER.
Specifically designed to meet requirements of BC Physical and Health Education curriculum for Grades 4-7.
You’re in the right place if:
✅ You want to nurture a respectful, safe, inclusive classroom
✅ You want to increase connection and empathy among your students.
✅ You want to empower your students to navigate their teens years with confidence.
✅ You believe in growth mindset principles and want your students to benefit from them too.
✅ You want to deepen your understanding of the struggles faced by your students.
✅ You want some language and metaphors to reinforce your teaching
✅ You're tired of wasting your time (and your students' time) with outdated, confusing learning resources
✅ You want to fulfill social and emotional development curriculum requirements in a way that’s fun and easy.
🌟Learn more about the curriculum we created just for you!🌟
"I liked it. It was fun. Saleema Smellypits was so funny and I feel better about my body changing. I also know how to stand up for myself now."
–GUGP Participant
"I think your morning news was really educational and my friends would really like it too. My favourite thing was the name of the news P.U.B.E TV and the idea of it was really hilarious. I think you make it so funny which makes it better for kids or it would be so awkward. I really hope my friends get to watch Growing Up Game Plan. Thank you Saleema!"
–GUGP Participant
"I like this video because it connected me when I have trouble with my friends. I liked your strategies as it can help me when those things happen to me."
–GUGP Participant
"From my perspective, your ideas, and videos around gender expressions have been great because I feel your explanations are much clearer than I could've explained them. The glossary is very good because they can read out the definitions and when we have discussions, we can refer to them."
–GUGP Teacher
"I like the Internet Safety section especially because it's up my alley. I do think people my age will find this one fun and enjoyable. It is well done, it teaches kids that posting something embarrassing or mean to someone else isn't very nice and that's a good skill to learn later on."
–GUGP Participant
Right from the first video, [my kids] realized it wasn't like other online courses. The videos were very engaging and age-appropriate. I appreciated how you spoke to them directly about difficult subjects but still made the content appropriate for their age groups."
–GUGP Parent
COURSE OUTLINE
Module 1: SMASHING THE BOXES: Breaking free from gender stereotypes.
Julie takes the lead in this module to talk about how gender roles and gender stereotypes have an influence on our identity.
Module 2: MONSTERS AND SUPERHEROES: Using your inner power to honour, manage and express your emotions.
This is where students meet their Monster (inner voice), Blob (representing emotions) and Superhero (their heart centre, intuition, tiny voice inside us that deserves a megaphone). Students learn how to mute their Monster so their Superhero can lead the way.
Module 3: STANDING UP: Being assertive in even the toughest situations.
In this module, Saleema shares her own story of being bullied in grade 5 and what she learned from that experience. She does some role plays with one of our influencers to demonstrate assertiveness skills.
Module 4: HEALTHY RELATIONSHIPS: Making sure yours are HERI.
Brandy plays the role of a fortune teller in this one, predicting that students will have HERI relationships in their future. We'll keep you in suspense about what HERI stands for, but Brandy stresses the importance of open communication, consent and boundary setting in both friendships and romantic relationships.
Module 5: PUBERTY: Understanding it, rolling with it, celebrating your body.
In this module we meet Brandy BiggerBoobs and Saleema SmellyPits, anchors of Puberty News Tonight who deliver their special report on preteens and body image as well as answer puberty questions from viewers.
Module 6: INTERNET LIFE: Having fun and making smart decisions online.
Here, Brandy and Julie discuss tips on internet safety. As part of this module, students will be provided with a Social Media Shield, a toolbox for them to draw on so that being on social media is a positive experience. It includes concrete tips on posting and interacting with others, managing negative effects of social media on self esteem, and maintaining a healthy balance between their online and offline lives.
Bonus Module 1: A Game Plan for Managing Anxiety: Brain Health and Mindful Meditation.
In this video, Asha Diaz of Grit Vancouver shows Growing Up Game Plan participants how to manage anxiety by quieting their minds. She uses a preteen-friendly Mindful Meditation with a mantra of “I am here, I am loved.”...the exact message we want our kids to take with them as they move through life!
Bonus Module 2: A Game Plan for Exploring Masculinity: Breaking down stereotypes and honouring identities.
Using honesty, humour and language that’s relatable to preteens in this video, educators and advocates Brandon Yan and Gavin Somers reflect on how messages around masculinity shaped their experiences of growing up. They offer valuable insight for all ages when it comes to the intersection of gender stereotypes, discrimination, and race, and what the term “toxic masculinity” means today.
The facilitators are funny and really engaging and non-judgmental. They are not preachy. I love the self-disclosure elements - sharing pictures of themselves as preteens and talking about their own embarrassing experiences or about being bullied etc.
–GUGP Parent
SAMPLE VIDEO CLIPS
A SNEAK PEEK AT THE TEACHER GUIDE
Everything you need to facilitate with no drama...
Lesson plans, icebreakers, warm-up and follow-up discussion questions and activities, curricular content, resources and more.
"Very understandable, incredibly relatable and age appropriate AND fun!"
–GUGP Parent
"As a parent and professional, I highly recommend Growing Up Game Plan…great information about being inclusive, understanding stereotypes of gender, celebrating uniqueness and so much more. My daughters are enjoying everything it has to offer."
–GUGP Parent
"Thank you for all your efforts in creating a course that should be included in the ministry of education scope…love the relaxed, yet straightforward tone. Love these tangible resources!"
–GUGP Parent
We got answers...
Is this program similar to Saleema's Body Science workshops?
What’s included in the program?
Is this a district or provincial program? Who created it?
Does this program meet curriculum requirements?
Which grades does the program target?
Can this program be used with online/distance learners?
Can I share my login information with my colleagues or friends?
How long does it take to complete the program?
Will parents be involved?
Is there a discount for school districts?
How long do I have access to the program for?
I’m Saleema Noon. Some fun facts about me are that I share a birthday with my husband Chris (not so fun, really), I just got an electric car (love it!), and I don’t have a middle name or any tattoos 🤓.
Can I tell you about the personal reason why I created Growing Up Game Plan: Classroom Edition?
If you haven’t guessed already, the photo you’re looking at is of me in Grade 5. When I look at this photo I see a girl with a really bad haircut (a Dorothy Hamill-mullet fusion of some kind?) and a nervous smile. But behind this smile was a lot of pain because Grade 5 was the hardest year of my life until that point.
I had just changed schools, I had a weird name, my skin was darker than everyone else’s, my body wasn’t changing in the same way my friends’ bodies were, and I was bullied relentlessly by my so-called best friend and her squad. My parents knew I was having a hard time and tried to help, but they weren’t taught the skills to know what to do back then. And neither were we.
I learned a lot of hard lessons that year and I’ve devoted much of my career sharing them with the kids I teach, most recently with our new online masterclass for preteens, Growing Up Game Plan: Home Edition. I'm proud to say that, since launching the program in 2021, over 1000 parents and their preteens are enjoying Growing Up Game Plan at home right now. But not all families can or will access Growing Up Game Plan at home. And I haven’t been able to stop thinking about how the culture of a class could be transformed if every student got to participate.
Teachers can have a powerful, positive influence on their students' social, emotional and mental health. But they’re maxxed out. The least we can do is give them current, engaging, no muss-no fuss resources to make their lives easier. Well, mission accepted and here we are!
With the invaluable support of my fearless co-creators (one of whom is an elementary teacher herself) over the past several months, we’ve blown up the Growing Up Game Plan core content to create a comprehensive social and emotional learning resource that we know is going to help so many teachers to help so many kids. And create the kind of classrooms I wish I grew up in. Enjoy!
