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Girl Scouts

How to support Girl Scouts without buying cookies

January 10, 2018 / 'Becca / 7 Comments

It's Girl Scout Cookie time!  I was a Girl Scout from second grade all the way through high school, I am a Lifetime Member, and I was a leader from 2002 to 2010.  I've sold a few thousand boxes of Girl Scout Cookies. Girl Scouting is an important program that had a huge influence on … Continue reading How to support Girl Scouts without buying cookies

Make a Soap Saver: neat, clean bar soap with no waste!

October 27, 2016February 15, 2021 / 'Becca / 5 Comments

Use every bit of soap with no gooey mess in the soap dish! Easy to make at a cost of $1 or less! Use up all those little soaps from hotels, and repurpose your old scrubby-puff, too!

Costco vs. Gordon Food Service

March 9, 2011April 23, 2018 / 'Becca / 33 Comments

It's Works-for-Me Wednesday!  It's also Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, so you might want to check out last year's suggestions for Lenten fasts that help the environment or my musings on vanity and seeking help. I've been a member of Costco for some time, and the money we save by buying some things … Continue reading Costco vs. Gordon Food Service

Handwashing Experiment

January 27, 2010May 24, 2017 / 'Becca / 4 Comments

This would be a fun experiment for any group of kids over 3 years old.  It is an activity for the Girl Scout badge Let's Get Cooking, combined with an activity I adapted from the Junior Girl Scout Handbook.  My troop did it two years ago at the beginning of our work on the badge.  It … Continue reading Handwashing Experiment

Girl Scout Snack Management

January 27, 2010October 7, 2015 / 'Becca / 2 Comments

UPDATE in 2015: This article is about what I did with my Girl Scout troop, but it applies to any children's activity--and a lot of it also applies to adult activities where you might want to serve a snack!  (I'm no longer a Girl Scout leader, but I expect to go back to it someday.)  … Continue reading Girl Scout Snack Management

Two Easy Indoor Games

December 22, 2009June 2, 2011 / 'Becca / 3 Comments

Here are two games that are easy to set up, use minimal materials, and are fun for kids about 2-10 years old at a party or holiday gathering.  (See also these knee-bouncing games for entertaining younger kids!) Pass the Parcel You will need a bunch of small toys, costume jewelry and similar trinkets, coins, and/or pieces of wrapped … Continue reading Two Easy Indoor Games

Learning from Old Clothes

November 16, 2009August 26, 2011 / 'Becca / 2 Comments

Learning about the history of clothing fashions is an activity I've done with Girl Scouts several times.  It's part of the Art to Wear Try-It and badge, Listening to the Past Try-It, and probably a few others.  It's always been fascinating.  Clothing is so intimately a part of our daily lives that thinking about what people like ourselves wore … Continue reading Learning from Old Clothes

Donating Dish Detergent

July 22, 2009June 29, 2015 / 'Becca / 5 Comments

Do you ever want to help an organization, but feel like you can't spare enough money to make a real difference? Are you an environmentalist, wishing that everybody would switch to plant-based cleaners to help conserve our irreplaceable petroleum, but feeling like nobody ever listens to your ravings about how great these cleaners are? Buy a bottle of … Continue reading Donating Dish Detergent

Send campers home with a bag lunch!

July 21, 2009May 6, 2011 / 'Becca / 1 Comment

One very useful idea I've learned from Linda May, Girl Scout leader and camp director extraordinaire, is to serve bag lunches as the final meal of an event. Linda does this at the annual winter camp she organizes for our service unit, and my troop has done it at several troop camping weekends. It's wonderful because … Continue reading Send campers home with a bag lunch!

Hand Towels for a Crowd

June 10, 2009September 6, 2012 / 'Becca / 3 Comments

Here's a way to use washable cloth hand towels for a group too large and/or germy to share a towel hanging on a rack: Get a bunch of small cloth towels or terry washcloths. Stack the towels in a box or basket near the sink. Hang a laundry bag or place a laundry basket or hamper … Continue reading Hand Towels for a Crowd

Agent of Change: What a long, lame Journey it’s been!

June 3, 2009May 6, 2011 / 'Becca / 21 Comments

When Girl Scouts USA first announced the development of Journeys, they made it sound like they would replace badges. By the time they released the first Journey for each age level last fall, they were saying these are just an *Exciting* *New* *Option* for Girl Scouts but we still can keep on doing badges as … Continue reading Agent of Change: What a long, lame Journey it’s been!

Fist to Five: A way to reach agreement

February 11, 2009May 11, 2011 / 'Becca / 1 Comment

My Girl Scouts and I recently learned a new method for assessing group opinions so we can work toward consensus.  It looked useful in the book (it's included in the Agent of Change Journey program) but it wasn't until we tried it that I learned how amazingly well it works for me! Fist to Five … Continue reading Fist to Five: A way to reach agreement

Patrol Power!

November 14, 2008August 26, 2011 / 'Becca / 8 Comments

One of my favorite things about leading Girl Scout Juniors instead of Brownies is the patrol system.  We used it in my Junior troop when I was a girl, but I didn't realize just how effective and useful it is until I tried it as a leader.  Patrols are small groups within the troop.  The … Continue reading Patrol Power!

Outdoor Fun skit ideas

November 12, 2008July 29, 2011 / 'Becca / Leave a comment

One of the requirements for the Outdoor Fun badge is to do skits demonstrating that you know the necessary skills for outdoor activities.  My experience in earning this particular badge as a Girl Scout, and in doing similar projects with my troop as a leader, indicated that girls tend to jump on the first ideas … Continue reading Outdoor Fun skit ideas

Menu Selection System

August 23, 2008November 2, 2011 / 'Becca / 2 Comments

Here is one way for Girl Scouts (or any other group) to agree on what meals to have at camp or some other occasion.  I've used it twice, with great success. First, have the girls brainstorm menu ideas.  Then, between meetings, leaders sort out the ideas that are affordable and feasible for the cooking equipment, budget, and time … Continue reading Menu Selection System

Organizing Girl Scout Troop Information

August 20, 2008January 28, 2015 / 'Becca / 11 Comments

This is by no means the only way to organize the paperwork for a Girl Scout troop!  It's just the way I do it.  Apparently some people think I'm good at it, because I've been asked to give a presentation on the subject at an upcoming leaders' workshop.  I hope this system is helpful to … Continue reading Organizing Girl Scout Troop Information

What Do You Reuse?

August 8, 2008March 12, 2021 / 'Becca / 46 Comments

This question was posted on a discussion board recently.  Not only do I reuse many physical objects, but I can reuse the list I made for that discussion as an article on my own Website! I love reusing glass jars so much that my ravings on the subject got too long for this article and … Continue reading What Do You Reuse?

Calming Chaos in Girl Scout Troop Meetings

August 5, 2008July 1, 2011 / 'Becca / 3 Comments

I can't, by a long shot, claim to have solved the problem of a group of Girl Scouts (or anybody!) dissolving into chaos when everybody is excited, we're trying to do one or more activities, there are various supplies and logistics to be coordinated, and/or there's some type of distraction!  However, over my five years … Continue reading Calming Chaos in Girl Scout Troop Meetings

Supermarket Field Trip

August 1, 2008February 7, 2014 / 'Becca / 3 Comments

My Girl Scout troop did this activity with Brownies earning the Penny Power Try-It and Daisies earning the Make the World a Better Place petal.  It also would apply to several Junior badges that have an activity about caring for the needy, about nutrition, or about comparison shopping. Divide into teams of 3-5 girls and … Continue reading Supermarket Field Trip

Consumer Taste Test

August 1, 2008October 3, 2011 / 'Becca / 1 Comment

This educational activity is suitable for school or any type of youth (or even adult) group; I did it with Girl Scouts.  It is a great way to teach the principle that brand-name products aren't necessarily any different from less expensive store brands. Sometimes I add an activity to a Girl Scout badge, something that … Continue reading Consumer Taste Test

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