Progression in Girl Planning and Leadership

In the Girl Scout Leadership Experience, adult leaders and advisors help develop girls' leadership skills by following the three processes of Girl-Led; Learning by Doing; and Cooperative Learning.  As girls age up, they take on progressively more responsibility for running their troop, planning activities, designating assignments to others, and ensuring fair and equal involvement of all girls.  The following are suggestions for building in progression in leadership in the Girl Scout program:

Daisies

• Government - Daisy Circle
• Adult role – Leader (offer limited choices)
• Girl role – make choices from those given

Brownies

• Government - Brownie Ring
• Adult role – Leader (oversee and guide – build in success)
• Girl role – brainstorming, thinking about implications of decisions, voting

Juniors

• Government - Patrols
• Adult role - Role Model (encourage healthy risk taking)
• Girl role – increased responsibility for decision making, planning, and carry through

Cadettes

• Government - Town Meetings
• Adult role - Mentor (create safe space to fail)
• Girl role – help plan meetings and activities; designate who does what

Senior and Ambassadors

• Government – Executive Board with officers
• Adult role – Advisory (step in only for safety reasons)
• Girl role – all planning and implementation, consulting with adults as needed 

By building progressive leadership into the Girl Scout experience, we help young women gain the inner skills they need to successfully meet life with courage, confidence and character.

How to Start a Troop on a Shoestring Budget

This great resource was compiled by Lisa Smith Beasley


LEADER SUPPLIES 

• Leader's materials including your Volunteer Essentials training manual and Camping manual
• Age Level Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting
• Age Level Journeys (get the set with a copy of the girl's book and the leader's guide) 
• Age Level Badge Requirements
• Safety-Wise document
• Storage box (bought, or photocopy paper box, or a wheeled suitcase you have.) A wheeled luggage cart with a milk crate or craft/scrapbooking cart with pockets for supplies is great!
• Sharpies (multiple colors, if possible) 
• Adult scissors (for adults to use)
• Tissues / Kleenex 
• Hand sanitizer
• First Aid kit (purchased or put together from recommended supplies)

INCOME 

• Start up grant from Service Unit or Council, if available (many require it to be repaid after cookie sales)
• Dues (decided by girls, often based on cost of badges and patches if not budgeted in product sales earnings) 
• Start up fee from parents to cover the first batch of pins, patches, etc 

SUPPLIES

• Look in your own cupboard. If you buy new crayons or markers each year for personal use, you may have a lot of boxes sitting around! Same with craft supplies 
• Watch garage sales and thrift stores for supplies. Don't be afraid to mention that it is for a Girl Scout troop - some people will give discounts or donate. 
• Be ingenious - leaders have used one of those beaded car seat covers as source material. For example - knotty people swap - http://www.geocities.com/EnchantedForest/9092/knotpeop.html 
• Suggest a “supply swap” at your next Service Unit meeting - each leader brings items and craft materials no longer used, and goes home with a supply of new things 

PAPER/PHOTOCOPIES 

• Ask parents for old office letterhead, and use the back. Great for drawing, paper airplanes, etc. 
• Some companies will let employees use the printer/copier for the cost of paper, or for free as community service. See if one of your parents can do this. 

GIRL SUPPLIES 

• Have each girl bring in her own supplies in their own box, or buy a box of zippered plastic bags and each girl gets her own bag. Have them contain: 
• scissors 
• crayons 
• markers 
• pencil 
• glue or glue sticks 
• paint set (optional) 
• Ask parents for donations of excess craft materials, then base the crafts on what is available. 
• If a badge calls for something special, have each girl bring that item in (i.e. oatmeal container for drums or constellation viewers, shoebox for making dioramas, etc.) 
• Ask parents to save certain items for future use (i.e. the tabs off Kool-Aid Bursts for SWAPS, Snack-to-Go containers for trail mix, old greeting cards for crafts.) 
• Divide the girls into smaller groups - one per supervising adult. If one group cuts while another glues, then you need half the number of scissors and glue sticks. 
• Borrow what you can! Both parents and other leaders might help. 

CHEAP GIRL SCOUT ACTIVITIES 

• Sing songs 
• Practice a flag ceremony (some service units and the council have flags they can loan). 
• Do service projects, like planting flowers at a fire or police station 
• Volunteer time with an animal shelter, soup kitchen, meals on wheels, at a nursing home or working at the council camps - great tie ins to badges 
• Schedule one meeting to just go to the playground, eat a sack dinner and PLAY! Girls have a great time. 
• Pretend you’re tourists and “visit” your town, hitting all the tourist destinations. Stop at the local ice cream parlor for a treat on the way home. 
• When the weather gets nicer, get outside the meeting place and practice putting up, taking down, (not losing parts) and putting away tents so the girls are ready for tent camping during the summer. 

JULIETTE LOW BIRTHDAY PARTY OR TROOP SHOWER 
Ask girls and parents to donate items for a Juliette Low birthday party.  Provide a list of suggested items that could be used for crafts, supplies or the troop First Aid kit. Each girl brings in an item, wrapped, and then they take turns unwrapping the presents. Girls will enjoy opening and showing the gifts for their troop!

A game can be made of the unwrapping: Each girl holds her wrapped gift and the leader starts the "Left/Right" story.  Gifts get passed from one person to another around the circle according to the directions in the story. When the story was done, each girl is holding a different gift and gets to open "her" present. An example of the story is at http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Plains/1132/stories.html

What isn't supplied for the First Aid kit, ask you local hospital or pharmacy if they can donate what is needed. 

"It" Bag

We're all familiar with Kapers and the benefits a Kaper Chart brings to organizing our troops and ensuring an equal rotation of responsibilities among the girls.  But during the year there will be times when you need one or two girls to help with a quick task - not enough for a Kaper Chart assignment, but still enough that you want to ensure each girl gets an equal chance to be a helper.   This is where an "It" bag comes in handy.

You keep two paper bags labeled "It" and "Not It". Start with all the girls' names on slips of paper in the "It" bag. When you select the one or two that you need by drawing their names, move the slip to the "Not It" bag.  Each time you need these occasional helpers, draw a name from the "It" bag until you have selected all of them. Girls will quickly learn that everyone will get a chance to be a helper, and it eliminates the “Me, pick me!” competitiveness.

Transportation Safety

Vehicle safety should be one of our primary concerns when transporting girls as part of the Girl Scout program. The Safety Group for Girl Scout Councils developed an auto safety module that is part of the Girl Scout Safety Wise document. Review the checklists and responsibilities of drivers and passengers, and remind them they all have responsibilities to help ensure a safe trip. (If you do not know where to find Safety Wise, contact your council or local service unit. Most councils publish Safety Wise on their websites.)


Make sure you have filed all necessary paperwork and received authorization for the trip. Contact your council or local service unit for assistance if necessary.

Make sure every driver and passenger are protected with a functioning seatbelt.

Follow your state laws requiring car seats and/or booster seats for girls, according to height and weight.

Check with your council regarding the use of 15 passenger vans. Most councils prohibit the transportation of girls in 15 passenger vans due to vehicle rollover and other safety issues.

All drivers must be registered as Adult Volunteers. They should provide you with a copy of their driver's license, car registration, and current auto insurance card prior to the trip. Girls registered as a girl member can NEVER drive other girls.

A First Aid kit should be in your car at all times and a currently certified Troop First Aider must accompany the group. Girls and adults should know where the First Aid kit is.

Any medications going along with girls or adults must be in their original containers, labeled with product identification, prescribing doctor, and directions for administration. Medications for girls should be kept by the leader or First Aider. Discuss protocol for Epi Pens (for severe allergic reactions) and injectable insulin (for diabetes) with parents prior to the trip.  Know what your council's policy is for administration of any injectable medications.

Carry a "Go Packet" with you.  A simple 2-pocket folder can serve as your "Go Packet" to be carried with you whenever you are transporting girls anywhere. In the folder, include the following:

• Copies of all drivers' licenses, car registrations, and auto insurance card
• Health cards and emergency contacts for all girls AND ADULTS accompanying you
• Roster and emergency contact information for all girls and adults accompanying you
• Contact information for the adult(s) at home who agreed to be the Troop Emergency Contact for this trip
• Trip itinerary
• Girl Scout Accident Report information with your council’s emergency contact number
• Girl Scout Insurance Claims forms (contact your council or local service unit if you do not have a copy)

The Buddy System

The buddy system is a safety practice in which two or three girls are grouped to keep watch over each other.  In an activity (ex. swimming, hiking), the girls grouped together should be of equal ability.

Under the buddy system, each pair/trio is responsible for:   

• Staying with her buddy at all times, 
• Warning her buddy of danger, 
• Giving her buddy immediate assistance if it is safe to do so, 
• Calling for help or (as a last resort) going for help when the situation warrants it.

The buddy system does NOT relieve the leader of their responsibility for knowing the whereabouts of each member of the troop, but it does serve as a means of involving everyone in the group and having them share the responsibility.  To be really effective, all members of the group need to understand how the buddy system works.

As a leader preparing to take your troop out-of-doors or on a trip, you are keenly aware of health and safety.  Camp and travel security is just part of a Girl Scout’s BEING PREPARED – everywhere and anytime, including troop outings and troop camping adventures.

Safety has to do with the prevention of accidents and the prevention of injury to the individual while she is participating in an activity or while she is using facilities, supplies, equipment, and tools.

Security has to do with the protection of the lives and property of individuals and with the protection of the site and facilities and protection from the criminal acts of other people and from attacks by animals.

For the Adults:  

Be sure they understand their security role.  Have them review Safety Activity Checkpoints for the activity.  Be sure the adults know their sleeping assignments will be made so that they can readily detect intruders and offer immediate assistance to girls if needed.

• To watch over and keep track of specific groups of girls (as assigned by the leader) – conduct 
   periodic buddy checks – upon a prearranged signal, each person finds her buddy, clasps hands and 
   holds them up.  Adults can immediately count buddy pairs/trios and spot any unattached girls.
• To assist with bed checks at night.
• To become a “substitute buddy” for night trips to the latrine when it is too far from the sleeping 
   area.
• To be alert for and report any suspicious sounds, activities, autos, or people.
• To intervene if a stranger approaches your girls or group.

For the Girls:

Establish a few simple security rules for everyone to follow:

• Always stay with your buddy – never walk alone;
• Stay near the group – don’t stray away from the designated camping area;
• Avoid strangers and other groups;
• Carry your flashlight at night, stay within the lighted area;
• Report suspicious sounds, activities, people to an adult in your group;
• Make noise for self-protection to scare off unseen intruders;
• Sound alarm when in trouble;
• Run toward people an/or lights.

Pre-Tip Planning helps your girls to:
• Know what safety and security problems may be encountered;
• Know how to deal with these hazards and potential problems;
• Develop safety-security procedures for buddies to follow: for example, if they get separated from 
   the group or get lost, tell them to stay put. Decide on a signal (a whistle) to be used for 
   emergencies ONLY;
• Decide on the best way for choosing buddies for the trip: for example, buddies within kaper groups, 
   special interests, ability level.

If you plan your camp and trip security and prepare the girls and adults in your group to carry out the plan, you will be prepared to have a secure and safe experience.

Supervision of Girls: What Is It?

Adults accompanying a group should be chosen for their patience, flexibility, and good judgment. They need to understand their responsibilities during the trip.

The group leader needs to communicate with the other adults and encourage them to attend meetings when the troop is preparing for the trip. They should know what equipment and clothing to bring and what the site will be like. They need to know the rules in force at the site and the schedule and expectations that the GIRLS have set for themselves. They also should understand the underlying Girl Scout philosophy and practice of “For Girls, By Girls”.

If the adults have daughters in the group, they may want to discuss ways to encourage these girls to feel that they are part of the group, not different or special. Also realize that young girls sometimes find it hard to share the time and attention of their parent (or special adult) with other girls.


Supervision means:

• Encouraging girls to try new things

• Watching, guiding, motivating (NOT doing it for them)

• Intervening before injuries occur (safety is a primary concern)

• Being knowledgeable about the activity to be supervised and the potential for injury

• Being a role model by your actions

• Taking full responsibility for an activity or group of girls when asked

• Providing effective discipline when needed (criticize the behavior, not the girl)

• Knowing where girls are at all times

• Being easily located by girls who need help

• Helping girls understand how to do unfamiliar tasks while giving them real responsibility for finishing a job so that they see themselves as useful and competent

• Providing praise for effort and achievement

• Helping girls who need it with tasks such as combing hair, and reminders to wash hands, change to clean clothes when needed, etc.


Prior to the Trip:
• Prior to the trip, the adults going should attend the troop trip planning meetings with the girls.

• The group leader should explain the role of the supervising adults and their expectations before the trip.

• Adults should understand the plans the GIRLS have made for the trip.

• Adults should understand the safety systems for the trip and the buddy system that the girls have learned.

• If they are drivers, adults need to know the transportation safety standards in Safety-Wise; be registered with Girl Scouts as an adult volunteer; and present the leader with a copy of their driver’s license, registration, and insurance cards.

• Adults need to know the emergency procedures for the site as well as during travel to and from the site.

• Adults shall act as responsible role models by not smoking, drinking, or taking illegal drugs while supervising the girls.


Guidelines are from GSUSA General Outdoor Training Module