A Look Back at Girl Scouts Unite and the History We Made Together



The final SWAPS have been exchanged and the suitcases are tucked away, but the energy and excitement of the Girl Scouts Unite event continues to inspire. From interactive workshops and fascinating speakers to incredible performances and epic celebrations, the experiences shared by thousands of attendees in Washington, DC ignite the next chapter of the Girl Scout Movement with a bright spark of hope for the future.

“There is nothing more powerful than Girl Scouts coming together to discover what they’re capable of and what they can create together,” said Bonnie Barczykowski, CEO of GSUSA. “The Girl Scouts Unite event was a celebration of girls’ voices, ideas, and leadership—and a reminder that when girls are supported, encouraged, and connected to one another, they can shape the future in extraordinary ways.”

The Girl Scouts Unite event featured an exciting lineup of speakers, performers, workshops and sessions reflecting the confidence, creativity and resilience at the heart of Girl Scouting. Attendees also had access to more than 100 booths and activities in the Hall of Experiences, along with programming designed for Girl Scouts and adults in the Movement. The event also included major celebrations such as the National Bridging Ceremony, the Gold Award Celebration, community-building moments, and opportunities for Girl Scouts to meet and connect with inspirational leaders who are taking action in their communities.



Bringing an event of this scale to life is no easy task, which is why we are so grateful to the sponsors who helped make this event a reality. Thank you to Meta, Fiserv, Google.org, General Motors OnStar, Charles Schwab Foundation, MLB, American Girl, DHL Supply Chain and all the sponsors, exhibitors, and supporters who made this event memorable for all the Girl Scouts, alums, volunteers, advocates, friends and families who attended.

Thank you to Girl Scouts Nations Capital for being a wonderful host for this year’s event. We look forward to seeing everyone again in Indianapolis for the next Girl Scouts Unite event in 2029.

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A Look Back at Girl Scouts Unite and the History We Made Together

10 Adorable Crafts to Create With Your Girl Scout Troop

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.16″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″] Arts and crafts are one of the best parts…

The post 10 Adorable Crafts to Create With Your Girl Scout Troop appeared first on Leader Connecting Leaders.

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10 Adorable Crafts to Create With Your Girl Scout Troop

Girl Scout Daisy Craft and Tinker Meeting Plans

*This post contains affiliate links. 

The Girls Scouts of the USA have issued some new badges for Daisies, Brownie and Juniors. One of the newest badges is the Girl Scout Daisy Craft and Tinker Badge.

What is the Girl Scout Daisy Craft and Tinker Badge?

The Girl Scout Daisy Craft and Tinker Badge badge will have your troop  creating something new, but thinking about who they are making it for and what they need to make it work. They will get to use different craft tools to make a gift for someone special.


Girl Scout Daisy Craft and Tinker Badge


Available on TpT


What's included in this resource:

  • All three steps
  • Hands on stations activity for Step 1
  • Choice of three different age appropriate crafts for Step 2
  • Easy discussion for Step 3


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Girl Scout Daisy Craft and Tinker Meeting Plans

The Girl Scout Daisy Snacks Badge Has Arrived!

 *This post contains affiliate links.

When my daughter was a Daisy Scout back in 2008-2010, there were no badges to earn. Fast forward to now, and there are so many choices for leaders to use with their girls.

One choice that is missing from the roster of Daisy badges is a food oriented badge. Every other level has one or two. When a leader has a multi-level troop, she has no badge option for her Daisies to earn; all she can give them is a fun patch.

I have created an unofficial Girl Scout Daisy Snacks badge, complete with requirements! Whether you are a Daisies only level troop or a multi-level troop, this badge your girls will enjoy earning.


Girl Scout Daisy Snacks Badge


What is the Girl Scout Daisy Snacks Badge?

The badge requirements include a preparation page with an introduction and a list of what items are needed. 

While Daisy badges require only three steps for completion, four steps are included. This gives leaders choices and also makes it easier to integrate with your Brownies who are earning their Snacks badge.

The options are:

  • Make a Savory Snack
  • Make a Sweet Snack
  • Snacks for Energy
  • Slurp a Snack

All of the steps include multiple recipes and are no bake. There are alternative options for those who have peanut allergies in the troop.

In addition, the snacks are easy for the girls to prepare.

The badge has an iron on backing-no sewing required!

Where on the Uniform Can You Place the Girl Scout Daisy Snacks Badge?

The Snacks badge is unofficial, so technically, it is supposed to go on the back of the vest. 

That being said, there are no badge police and you can place it on the front. That is what I did for my daughter when she earned some unofficial badges. No one said a word as she proudly bridged to Adult and those badges were on the front of her vest!





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The Girl Scout Daisy Snacks Badge Has Arrived!

Free Girl Scout Meeting Planning Tempates

 Free Girl Scout meeting planning templates will help simplify organizing your troop meetings.


Are you ready to make planning each Girl Scout meeting easier?           


Most of you reading this are probably thinking, What did I get myself into? Didn’t I just plan a meeting?

I know the feeling.

I have planned lessons for children since 1987. I have always considered each meeting I created like a lesson. There was always an objective, whether it was doing a badge, a service project or even, in our older scouting years, a Journey.

Free Girl Scout Meeting Templates



While this is intuitive for me, for many leaders, it is not.

This is why I am offering you two FREE troop meeting planning templates.

Template 1 is a pre-planning template. Get yourself organized before you get into the nitty gritty details.

Template 2 lays out exactly what you planned in an easy to use format. it comes in two versions-color and black and white.

You can get your free Girl Scout meeting planning templates here.

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Free Girl Scout Meeting Planning Tempates

Free Girl Scout Week 2023 Resources for Leaders

Are you looking for free Girl Scout Week 2023 resources? Here is a list to help you organize the third Girl Scout holiday of the year.


There are three Girl Scout holidays on the calendar. The first is Girl Scout Founder's Day, which takes place on October 31st. The second is World Thinking Day, which is February 22nd.

The third holiday is Girl Scout Week, which takes place around the same time each year in March. It always falls sometime during the week of March 12th, which is the day Juliette Gordon Low founded the Girl Scout movement.


Free Girl Scout Week 2023 Resources for Leaders


When is Girl Scout Week 2023?

This year, Girl Scout Week 2023 takes place from March 12th through March 18th.

When a troop celebrates Girl Scout Week, most of the activities are individual. The exception to that is when a girl goes to her place of worship to celebrate to participate in the service. This year, those dates are:

Girl Scout Sunday (Christian)—Sunday, March 12, 2023


Girl Scout Jummah (Muslim)—Friday, March 17, 2023


Girl Scout Sabbath/Shabbat (Jewish)—Friday/Saturday, March 17–18, 2023

For more resources and information, head on over to my main Girl Scout blog for a complete list of free resources.


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Free Girl Scout Week 2023 Resources for Leaders

An Important Update for Our Members and Supporters


For over 100 years, Girl Scouts of the USA has been dedicated to building girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place. An important part of this mission is the iconic Girl Scout Cookie Program, which is the largest girl-led entrepreneurial program in the world. The cookie program teaches valuable life skills like goal setting, decision making, people skills, money management, and business ethics ensuring that girls can become leaders in their communities.

The health and safety of Girl Scouts and cookie customers is our top priority. Rest assured: Girl Scout Cookies are safe to consume.

A recent report claimed that our Girl Scout Cookies contain certain levels of glyphosate and heavy metals. We want to address these allegations and share the facts:

Girl Scout Cookies are made with ingredients that adhere to food safety standards set by the FDA and other relevant authorities.
  • Our trusted bakers remain committed to compliance with all food safety standards and regulations set forth by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and other relevant health authorities.
  • These standards ensure that food products are safe for consumption.
  • As a result, Girl Scout Cookies are safe to consume and are manufactured in accordance with all food safety regulations.
To further put the coverage in proper context:
  • Environmental contaminants—which can include heavy metals— can occur naturally in soil. This means that nearly all foods using plant-based ingredients, including organic foods, may contain trace amounts. This does not mean that these foods are harmful to consume.
  • Glyphosate is widely used in agriculture in accordance with established EPA standards and is found nearly everywhere in the food chain. Trace amounts of glyphosate can be found in fresh fruits, vegetables, cereals, baked goods, and other food and beverage commodities.
  • Similarly, small amounts of heavy metals can be found naturally in the environment, including in food products, due to air, water, and soil exposure.
  • These metals are not added to our Girl Scout Cookies.
  • While such occurrences are not unique to Girl Scout Cookies, our trusted baking partners continue to ensure the integrity of our recipes and the safety of all Girl Scout Cookie products in accordance with federal regulations and Global Food Safety initiative standards.
  • Our bakers have confirmed that the levels reported do not pose a food safety concern to our customers.

The Girl Scout Cookie Program is about more than a sweet treat. It teaches Girl Scouts to think critically, build confidence, and use the skills of entrepreneurship, leadership, and business ethics in the real world. And remember: every purchase of Girl Scout Cookies powers life-changing experiences for Girl Scouts right in your local community. Visit girlscoutcookies.org to support a troop in your area.
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An Important Update for Our Members and Supporters

Girl Scout Leap Year Meeting

If you want to take a break from regular badge work, here is a once every four years Girl Scout Leap Year meeting.

*This post contains affiliate links.

For many leaders who are in the cookie zone, the end of February may seem like a long way off. Booth sales, cookie meetings, and cookie cupboard pickups are front and center right now. Even though it is a few weeks away, it isn’t too soon to start planning your upcoming meetings.

This year, in 2024, leaders have the once every four years opportunity to celebrate Leap Year with their troop. Daisies don’t remember what a Leap Year is, as they were toddlers the last time one occurred in 2020. 

Leaders, here is an opportunity for your troop to celebrate February 29th, 2024 with this Girl Scout Leap Year Meeting resource.

Girl Scout Leap Year Meeting


 
Girl Scout Leap Year Meeting


Available on TpT

Included in this resource:

  • Leap Year trivia game
  • Movement activities
  • Thinking games
  • Recipes and other food activities
  • Future Me page
  • Coloring pages
  • All printables

What are you planning to do for your Girl Scout Leap Year meeting?

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Girl Scout Leap Year Meeting

Girl Scout Daisy Certificates for Troops Who Are Not Bridging

 

In a few short weeks, it will be the end of scouting season for many Girl Scout Daisy leaders. For those who are completing year one, here is a first year Daisy certificate that you can hand out at your end of the year celebration.


*This post contains affiliate links.

Congratulations on completing your first year as a Daisy leader! And what a time to start your leadership role-during a world-wide pandemic!

You made it and so did your troop. While some of you are deciding to meet over the summer, I chose not to do that. I carried the load by myself all year, and my teacher brain and school calendar dictated that summer time is my time to rejuvenate. The only time my troop ever met in the summer was when they were Girl Scout Seniors who needed to complete a journey.

First Year Girl Scout Daisy Certificate



This is a non-bridging year for your troop. If you are planning a last Court of Awards or a simple fun last meeting of the year (that is what I did-a field trip or an easy craft and food), you can give your girls a certificate that shows they complete their first year of Girl Scout Daisies.

The certificate can be put in their Girl Scout scrapbook or hung in their room.

I created a simple and inexpensive First Year Daisy Certificate on Teachers Pay Teachers.

Please be sure to check it out and rate it. You get points that convert into cash when you buy products and rate them.

Are you having an end of the year celebration?

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Girl Scout Daisy Certificates for Troops Who Are Not Bridging