What do youth want and need? How can we support them?

Young people deserve help finding their authentic self and the courage to walk with purpose, resilience and love. Real Talk Marin holds a safe space to share honest conversations, make meaningful connections, and seeds essential life skills to help pre-teen girls* make choices that truly serve them. This is a space to bond with peers and mentors who value being real, together. Our aim is to offer a light in the darkness, and uncover some wisdom, joy and community amidst uncertain times. We hope you'll join us!

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Real Talk Grows

• confidence and self worth
• authentic self expression & boundary setting
• self care & stress management skills
• understanding & celebrating our changing our bodies
  

• relationships that truly serve
  
• identity exploration (online and in real time)
• quality time with peers off phones, in nature
• earth intimacy
  

Real Talk Marin Curriculum will be developmentally (age and stage) appropriate for pre-teens in or around 5th & 6th grade. We will focus on the above themes as best serves the group, striking a healthy balance between depth and fun. Have more questions? Visit our Teen Curriculum, Philosophy, or our FAQ.

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Real Talk Marin Details

HUMMINGBIRDS GROUP

• Real Talk circle for 5th & 6th grade girls*
• 8 Gatherings Thursdays 3:45-6:45pm
• + 2 Saturday Daylong Adventures
• 10/5, 11/3, 12/9 Daylong, 1/11, 2/1, 3/7, 4/27 Daylong, 5/9, 6/13
  
• Hosted in Fairfax & surrounding area
• Facilitated by Caitlin McNeely
• Intro call with parents & caregivers before group start.
• Pre-teens rising into 5th grade welcome. If you feel like your daughter is a fit but isn't a rising 5th grader, please apply.
• This series is meant to be an inclusive, intimate group for a limited number of participants.

*We understand gender identity to be fluid and expressed in many ways. Our programs welcome teens along the gender spectrum who are assigned female at birth and/or socialized female. Please see our gender inclusive policy.

TUITION
September 2023 - June 2024 School Year
Tier 1 $2,500 Base Tuition
Tier 2 $2,750 Pay It Forward
Scholarships Available

• Pay in full by PayPal or check by September 1, 2023
• or PayPal monthly billing Sept-June (10 months)

We are committed to making this important opportunity available to all teens, including those for whom our rates are a financial barrier. In order to do that, we offer scholarships to as many teens as possible. In 2022, $40,000 in scholarships were given. We are an LLC receiving no grants or funding beyond tuition and individual contributions. Please consider making a difference in a teen’s life through our “Pay It Forward” option, which includes gifting $25/month extra towards a scholarship.

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"It's amazing to be able to talk openly and not feel judged. I met new friends and got to hear their perspectives and experiences. I learned a lot about our culture and what it means to become a woman. I've taken away a lot of important things that will help me through the rest of my life. Thank you so much for creating this experience." - Real Talk Teen

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Facilitated by Caitlin McNeely

CAITLIN MCNEELY grew up exploring the gentle sandy beaches of the southern Gulf coast and the giant sprawling oak trees in her urban Houston neighborhood. In the summer, her favorite time was spent road-tripping to the magical tide pools and rocky beaches of a small island off the coast of Maine. She has studied the intersection of nature, spirituality and creative writing in the US and abroad. She follows a path of learning from and supporting indigenous cultures and wisdom-keepers.

Caitlin holds training from the Wilderness Awareness School in Washington and is currently training in Somatic Ecopsychology and is deepening her ecotherapeutic skills. Caitlin holds experience and knowledge in permaculture, organic farming, folk herbalism and ancestral bushcraft, and is Wilderness First Aid certified. Learn more about Caitlin...

Group & curriculum guided by Directors Emily Frost & Quetzal Francois.

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"Looking back on our group, I see how it has shaped who I have become. I found a voice I didn't know I had, and learned to stand in my own truth. I am worthy of love and I belong here." - Real Talk Teen

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Complete Payment & Application

Scholarships
Learn more & fill out request

Thank you!

We will contact you as soon as we have received your information.
Additional forms (including Health & Emergency Form,  Liability Waiver & Financial Agreement) will accompany the start of the group.
Please contact us if you have questions. A free intro call for parents and caregivers will be scheduled before start date.

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"We are teaching girls how to have experiences that end in joy and honor, rather than regret, guilt, or shame. Youth need to understand what joy and regret really look like for them. We need to 'reflect and revise' what really matters. This work is so important!" - Charis Denison, youth advocate, founder of Prajna Consulting, featured in Peggy Orenstein's Girls & Sex, Advisor to Love Your Nature

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Featured artwork by the talented Maddie Rose Templeton