Coming of Age Circles for Girls is a 6-week program designed for 10-12 year old girls (and non binary people), supporting them to transition into teenagehood/adolescence with more ease.
A new group is forming NOW and starting on October 22, 2023.
Lead facilitator: Karin Lucia Gisler
Spots are limited to 13 participants and can fill very fast. If this offer calls you, we recommend you to contact us ASAP.
Our vision is to prepare the girls to become assertive and informed young women/teenagers. We share age appropriate information about our (menstrual) cycles, guide them to listen to their inner wisdom and support them to confidently express their needs and boundaries. We celebrate who we are and honour the importance of sisterhood!
The circles are inspired by the “Journey of Young Women” (JOYW) international mentor training with Katherine Krueger. JOYW trains women to become mentors for girls and to facilitate girl’s circles. It offers an abundance of material, ideas and inspiration for a holistic coming of age education.
Note, our circles are “girls' business” only. This is NOT a mother-daughter program. The 6 Sundays are spent only with the girls in circles.
To include the parents in this journey, we offer two separate evening circles just for the mums and one evening circle just for the dads. There, we discuss different coming of age-related topics without the daughters being present. On the last Sunday, on November 26, all mothers are joining the circle from 12.30 pm onward for a special celebration.
Coming of age circle dates: Six Sundays: October 22, 29, and November 5, 12, 19. 26 We meet each Sunday from 9.45 am – 2 pm
We are likely to hold our gathering at Kamala Rose's property, who has kindly offered her beautiful home in Wilsons Creek (10 min from Mullumbimby town) to be used as space for the coming of age circles. Her beautiful, light filled, open home is surrounded by pristine rain forest, a small farm and a gorgeous garden full of flowers.
Please pm Karin Lucia Gisler or call 0415 886 113 for more details.
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What are we exploring in these 6 Sundays together?
1st Sunday: Sisterhood – This first circle is all about melting ice and getting to know each other. We discuss what we need to feel emotionally safe within a group setting. We explore how to access our feelings and express our needs and boundaries in an assertive way.
2nd Sunday: Intuition/Inner Wisdom – “Intuition is like a little wise woman sitting within us and guiding us on our journey through life”. How can we hear her? How can we access her? The craft activity of this day is related to the ancient story of "Vasalisa the Wise and Baba Yaga".
3rd Sunday: Nature’s Cycles and Puberty – Let’s talk about the wisdom of the cycles. The cycle of life and the importance of each rite of passage; The earth seasons, the moon cycle, the menstrual cycle, and the benefits of honouring the different phases of those cycles with prayers, ceremonies and conscious presence (age appropriate). We also have a closer look at Puberty.
4th Sunday: Body Image – (Social) media pressure and beauty perception… We talk about body image, positive self talk and self care. Let’s celebrate our unique amazing self!
5th Sunday: Menstruation – This day is all about our powerful menstrual cycle. We present a “moon basket”, talk about self care throughout the menstrual cycle and during our periods, about nourishment, Red Tents, and the benefits of honouring ourselves and our needs…
6th Sunday: Celebration – Our last Sunday together. We organise and prepare a special celebration in co-creation with the girls. The mothers are joining us in the second half of the day for a nourishing ceremony and celebration.
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If you are still with me, please read following information carefully:
We invite 10 and 12 year old girls to participate in this group (age recommendation but flexible). The spots are limited and we take a maximum of 13 girls per group. Non binary people are welcome to join us (of course!).
Once the first circle has started, the group will be closed. This means, any new people wanting to join will have to wait until the next group starts. I strongly recommend that each girl who enrols commits to attend all 6 Sundays (or most of them). Spots fill often very quick. Best to enrol as soon as you know you are ready to commit.
On the last Sunday (on November 26), the mums are joining us in the second half of the day (at 12.30pm) to participate in a special celebration for the mothers and the daughters. So please make sure you save this date!
To further include parents in this journey we offer two additional Mums Circles and one Dads Circle on separate evenings (dates to be set).
Dads Circle topics include:
The big impact fathers have on their daughters.
Puberty and the importance of Rites of Passage.
Menstruation and the importance of honouring and celebrating “moon time”.
It is always beautiful to see how rock solid the dads show up when it is comes to supporting their daughters. This is a great opportunity for the dads to connect amongst themselves and to receive valuable information about their daughters becoming a young woman/teenager. I hope fathers are interested in taking part in this journey but if not, the daughters can still enrol and participate.
In the Mums Circles, we can drop into a safe space and experience how it feels to be fully held and heard amongst women. It is always amazing to meet all the mums and spend quality time together. In circle we get to know each other and hear what moves through us, talk a bit about the girl’s circles but also about our self-care patterns and the beliefs we formed back then, when we were our daughter’s age, about what it means to be a woman. Again, this is a great opportunity to gather, connect deeper, and hopefully to form a supportive community network. I highly recommend the mothers to attend the two Mums Circle evenings.
It is very important for us parents to grow together with our children to be able to best support them and also to heal wounds from our own past. Many of us have not been celebrated when coming of age. Appropriate information and guidance might have been sparse. This can be the time for us NOW to heal and celebrate, together with our daughters.
This is an opportunity for girls to gather amongst themselves, experience how nurturing it is to be supported, accepted, held and heard by others in the group. To sink deeply into sisterhood and the mysteries of becoming a woman, safely held and guided by their mentors. We create the much needed space to ask questions, to tap into the big world of emotions and to share what comes up.
Confidentiality is important to us! What’s said in the circle stays in the circle. We encourage the girls to freely talk to parents and friends about their own experience in the circle and the general content shared. But we ask everyone to be respectful and not share details of someone else’s journey with outsiders. We, as mentors, agree to confidentiality too and are not sharing personal information with parents or outsiders unless there are safety concerns. However, what we do in the circles is very transparent and we send emails to all parents before/after each circle. So you are always up to date about content and general happenings.
What is the layout of a circle?
Open the circle with a check in and a meditation.
Explore the topic of the day (Sisterhood, Intuition, Nature’s Cycles and Puberty, Body Image, Menstrual Well-being, Celebration) in circle
Shared lunch
Afternoon activity (Craft, art, games) related to the topic of the day
Closing circle and reflections
The layout is flexible and can change according to needs :-) The circles are informative but also experiential and lots of fun!!
Note: We WON’T be talking about sexual well-being with this age group, unless this topic comes up organically.
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Sometimes girls can be hesitant or unsure about joining a coming of age circle/girl’s group. This is normal and often because they don’t know what to expect. The wording we use to present this offer to our kids is important. So, what could you tell to your daughter about what we are doing?
We talk about “secret/sacred girl's business”.
We play games, sing songs, listen to mystical stories. Sometimes we cook.
We do many awesome craft activities.
We meet other amazing girls and can make new friends.
We have fun and open conversations.
We can talk about things that matter to us.
This is a great place to ask any questions about growing up!
We also prepare a special celebration for the mothers at the end of the 6 week series.
This is a place where we can fully be ourselves, be seen and be heard...
Lots of fun is guaranteed!
Encouraging friends to enrol their daughter into the course makes organising and forming a group easier for me, but also supports your daughter by taking the step into “the unknown” together with a friend.
Great video testimonials can be found on my Facebook page Raising Daughters Here a few statements of the girls taking part in our last coming of age circle group:
“I like how I can be myself here and nobody would judge me and I appreciate how much time and thought you have put into the circle.”
“I love coming here and I had fun!”
“I feel very connected and I can do things I didn’t know I could do.”
“I feel peaceful here, comfortable and at home.”
“I really like doing craft and I liked making new friends.”
”It is great fun to come here, and I feel prepared now to grow up.”
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INVESTMENT for the program: $580 ~ $780 (sliding scale*) Included in this price are all the costs for the six Sundays for the girls’ circles (incl. craft and art material), two mums circles, one dads circle, presents of completion, two experienced mentors.
Not included is food! We like to share lunch and ask that every girl brings a plate of healthy food to share to each circle (dietary requests are shared once the group is formed)!
* Sliding scale guideline: We have created a sliding scale to support families with a low income. Every family pays an amount between $580 - $780 according to their income. This means roughly $580 for a family with a low income, $620 to $720 for a family with an average income, and up to $780 for a family with abundant money flow. This is sacred work, let’s help each other out!
TO SECURE YOUR DAUGHTER’S SPOT, we ask you to pay a first installment of $250 into my bank account (or the full course fee amount if you prefer). Please contact me for bank account details. Note: The payment of $250 is seen as a commitment to attend the course and is therefore NOT refundable as we secure a limited spot for your daughter. Please make sure you can and want to commit before paying this first installment.
The remaining amount is due THREE WEEK BEFORE the first circle starts, by October 1.
Full refund is given in case we are unable to go ahead with the program due to unforeseen circumstances from our side.
Steps to enrol your daughter for our program:
1)Contact me :-) For a chat, questions, and bank details. I always like to have a brief chat with a parent before taking enrolments. So best to call me on 0415 886 113 or else email karinluciagisler@gmail.com
2) YOUR DAUGHTERS SPOT IS SECURED once a payment of $250 is in my account. If you prefer, you can also pay the full course fee amount at once (see sliding scale guidelines). Remember the payment of $250 is seen as a commitment to attend the course and non-refundable!
3) Once payment has been received, you get a confirmation email with a few initial questions to be answered like dietary requests, medical conditions, special needs etc.
4) Another email with more information about the program (location, what to bring, etc.) is sent out closer to start date. This email has an enrolment form attached that needs to be filled out and returned before the program starts. Every girl enrolled receives a personal invitation letter from us.
Our vision is to spend quality time with the girls and to keep our gatherings very lush and very special! We aim to use top quality art and craft material and the girls will receive a few special presents during our weeks together.
This is celebration time!! Our daughters are becoming young women/adults. It is an important chapter in their lives (and in their parents lives). Let’s help them to be prepared, held and guided in a sacred way.
I am looking forward to be hearing from you!
PS We are also offering Teenage Girls Groups for 13-15 year old girls. Please contact me if you are interested in more info!
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Karin Lucia Gisler is a qualified youth mentor/woker and the creator and lead facilitator of this 6-weeks program. She completed a mentoring training led by Katherine Krueger (Journey of Young Women) who prepares women to become mentors for girls in holistic coming of age education and holds a Diploma in Youth Work.
Karin offers many treasures to the world. Her inspiring stories and wisdom were seeded by her nature-connected upbringing, extensive world travel, participation in ceremony and ritual, self-development courses, and women's mysteries studies.
Karin completed many educational courses related to working with young people. She is also a graduate of the School of Shamanic Womancraft, a year long educational program for women, cultivating a deep personal and spiritual connection with the Earth and the Divine Feminine.
Karin works as Senior Instructor for Journey of Young Women (JOYW) and offers programs for young people and for parents in her community and online.
Want to know more about Karin and what inspired her to work with young girls?
Swiss-born, Karin lives in the Northern Rivers of NSW, Australia, where she raises two amazing children. She has been a great world traveller, keen to learn about different cultures, customs and how people relate with each other. Eager to learn about different religious beliefs, hear wisdom of ancient traditions and sit in ceremonies with people who are strongly rooted in their beliefs and traditions. Karin had the privilege to meet and live with very interesting people during this journey.
During the past 15 years Karin has sat in many women circles around the world and has experienced the importance of being supported, held and heard by others. After completing her JOYW (Journey of Young Women) training with Katharine Krueger, she realised how important it is for girls to experience this support. She feels called to share what she has learned with her community. Especially with the girls who are coming of age and with their parents. In her holistic coming of age program she is weaving together what she has learned travelling around the world, the wisdom she has gained on her Four Season Journey with the School of Shamanic Womancraft, the information she has received in her JOYW mentor training and the years working as an instructor for this organisation.
Karin is also a traditional Thai Massage practitioner and teacher, a qualified ABFE practitioner (Australian Bush Flower Essence), holds a diploma as a ‘Drogist’ (pharmacy-related education in Switzerland) and has studied Marketing, Acupuncture, Reiki, Foot Reflexology, Yoga, Meditation and other healing modalities.
Imagine the ripple effect of change young women can create in our communities if they have learned how to be true to themselves, if they have learned to dare, to be confident and to feel empowered!