History Supplement of the Alberta Women's Institutes

              HISTORY SUPPLEMENT OF THE ALBERTA WOMEN'S INSTITUTE
conduct themselves in public. They have seasonal parties, hikes and
Mother and Daughter banquets. At the end of the year they have
Achievement Days to which the Mothers are invited. Throughout
the year merits are given each member for attendance, appearance,
behaviour, committee work and Club activities. The two girls with
the highest merits at the end of June have earned the privilege of
attending the Convention at Olds. Supervisors of individual Clubs
are given merit awards at the Convention for " Years of Service".
They are presented with Certificates on which are designated the
number of years of service.
CONVENTION:
The Conventions are held at the Olds College annually the first
part of July. The Convention is a Leadership and Learning session
with participation in competitions and sports as well as good fellow­ship.
They " Learn to do By Doing". They learn to model and perform
in public with confidence, i. e. a former public speaking winner, a
Japanese girl has taken journalism and is now writing for papers in
the East.
The usual sequence of events include a tour of the grounds and
the greenhouses on arrival with a " Get Acquainted Party" in the
evening. Following the official opening the group is divided into
classes to include instruction in Deportment, Nursing, Cooking,
Handicraft, Horticulture, Leadership, Fashion Show, etc. by volun­teer
instructors. The girls compete for several awards. Marks are
given for everyone who makes an attempt or endeavor to participate
in all projects.
Competitions include, sports ( Jumps, Races, Games); Public
Speaking ( judged and followed by comments and constructive criti­cism);
Short Stories and Poetry ( judged on neatness and creative
ability); Room inspection ( judged on neatness, cleanliness and bed-making
with both girls and Supervisors participating); Secretary
Scholarship ( direction is given on the structure of a good report);
Handicraft ( the Club receiving the most points in handicraft); Art
( choice of any subject or media, stress originality); Proficiency ( for
Club obtaining the highest overall points); Program Books ( a calen­dar
of meetings held through the year) and Scrap Books or Posters
on the five point program. The winners are presented the awards
following the banquet.
FASHION PARADE:
The girls model the clothes made in the Club during the year,
and this is followed by a formal tea with members of the cooking class
serving sandwiches and cookies. The afternoon Sports Competition
is followed by a picnic supper. The evening entertainment may be an
Amateur Hour or a Masquerade Party. Awards for the Masquerade
were given to the best National, Original, Comic, Novel and Group
costumes. ( A most interesting party was when each represented a
Story Book Character).
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