You’re a new Girl Scout leader or volunteer? Awesome! Now, what? What can you do to make sure your girls and YOU get the most out of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience? Amy Caperton, Denine Dains, and Darby Petitt in the Metro Denver region are experienced leaders of troops with older Girl Scouts, many of whom have been together since Daisies and Brownies. They offer this advice for new troop leaders and volunteers.
Denine: Let the Girl Scouts do it! Girl Scouts is girl-led, so let girls make decisions, cook, clean up after meetings, etc. Even the littlest Daisies can clean dishes, get water, and put out snacks and supplies. As girls grow, let them struggle with the tent before immediately jumping in to help. You’ll be surprised the difference you’ll see in the girls and how it helps make things easier for you!
Amy: Have younger girls make a kaper chart for meetings and rotate the girls through them. When we were Daisies/Brownies, we had jobs like attendance, snack and snack helper, supplies, lead Pledge of Allegiance and Girl Scout Promise & Law, etc. The more jobs the better! It makes the girls excited for the meeting.
Darby: Listen to what the girls want to do in Girl Scouts. For younger girls, offer lots of different opportunities for them to try things they might not have picked on their own. Let older girls do things that interest them, but also challenge them to try different activities. Most of all, let the girls do some of the planning. I think the “girl-led” aspect of Girl Scouting is the most important for them to feel invested.
Do you have any tips, tricks, “life hacks,” etc. to share? We would love to hear them! Just email GSCO Public Relations Director AnneMarie Harper at annemarie.harper@gscolorado.org.
Comentarios