Middle and high school students in Clark County are invited to attend a Virtual Game Night on Friday, April 15, which aims to teach kids healthy coping skills.
The event will be organized by the Clark County STASHA Peer Education program, the Chief Umtuch DREAM Team, Prevent Together: Battle Ground and Unite! Washougal.
Jennifer Kirby, the coalition coordinator for Prevent Together: Battle Ground Prevention Alliance, said the event offers youth a way to connect with each other after kids stayed home during the pandemic.
Kirby said the event is a way to get kids connected in a “super-casual, stress-free way to play new games, (and) meet new people.” It will also allow the kids to learn new skills.
The game night will be held on Zoom. The event will include games of Skribbl.io, an escape room, and trivia.
The DREAM Team will host the trivia portion, Unite! Washougal will lead the escape room, and STASHA will host Skribbl.io in respective breakout rooms. Students will also have the chance to win prizes like Amazon gift cards.
“This is the first time we’ve done it, so we’re hoping that we’ll have enough interest,” Kirby said “At the end of the game night, we’ll have a poll asking the students if they want to do it again, and if so, we’re committed to hosting more of these.”
According to Kirby, the DREAM Team picked Trivia on Blooket specifically because it is fast-paced and allows students to earn coins within the game. As for Skribbl.io, STASHA went through an “extensive process” prior to selecting the game, where they developed a library of games to use in the future, like Uno.
STASHA will primarily host the coping skills portion of the event, which will cover things like meditation, the benefits of going on a walk, and other ways to reduce anxiety and stress.
Kirby said the event will be “entirely youth-led,” as the organizations coordinating the event are youth groups. There was a lot of discussion about what kids would be drawn to. Kirby said she expects Disney trivia to be a top pick for those who attend.
“The ideas came from the youth. We’re supporting them by giving them some guidance along the way and helping them to practice,” she said. “We’ve had six or seven students who put themselves out there in different leadership roles and it’s been great. These are really good skills for them to learn.”
Since the game night is on Zoom, Kirby said it will teach the kids to coordinate meetings on the platform, which is a skill they can use when they enter the workforce.
The virtual game night will run from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on April 15. To register, go online to bit.ly/3BLzp11.
