First-grader finds fun and education at Girls Inc.

“I just like to play with my friends and talk to them,” she says while taking a break from playing on the mats. A group of girls nearby bounce around basketballs while another group sets up a different set of mats into a fort.

Despite the flurry of free-for-all playtime, the 6-year-old considers academia the best part of the evening.

“Learning about stuff in our classroom is my favorite part,” Susely says.

The schedule at Girls Inc. is tight and followed closely, Susely implies.

“We play around until we have snack,” she explains. “Today we are having supper early though because we aren’t having snack.”

Almost like clockwork, the girls line up by age, ready for class, at 4:30 p.m. They are assigned different areas to go and shuffle off in those directions.

“Hold the door for your neighbor,” says an aide to Susely, who obliges.

Susely and her group arrive at their classroom and take their seats at multiple round tables in their room.

Sidney Marks, the group’s teacher, stands at the front of the class and goes over vocabulary words with the girls. Anesthesia is a word of focus as the class’s lesson is centered on surgery and health.

“Susely will be performing surgery today,” says Marks as she places a stuffed doll, named Zelda, on a table at the front of the classroom.

Marks and another aide pass out surgical gowns, face masks and gloves to the girls. Each girl also receives a pump of hand sanitizer and some assistance getting outfitted; everyone is prepped for the procedure.

First, Zelda receives an I.V. (a pop bottle with a tube attached.) Next, Susely picks up a scalpel (plastic butter knife) and cuts Zelda open by undoing the Velcro that holds her together. Once inside, the group examines Zelda’s heart and circulatory system.

After Velcroing Zelda back up, Susely puts her gown away and goes to the computer lab to play an educational computer game called I-Ready which assesses and improves reading and math skills.

At 5 p.m., the girls line up for dinner. Susely takes a seat at a table of friends and adult instructors and digs in to her bowl of chili. The conversation turns to Valentine’s Day parties at school, a tradition that in which Susely takes part.

Once dinner is done, Susely goes with her friends to a crafts room to make a penguin out of toilet paper tubes and construction paper.

“Susely is always really happy,” says one of her friends, as she cuts out pieces of paper for her penguin.

And at the end of the day, the penguin is complete and Zelda’s heart is working properly, all thanks to Susely.