Sample Meeting for Blended Troop of Brownies and Juniors

If you have read this blog in the past, you may recall that this is our first year as a blended troop with Brownies and Juniors.  In the five years I've served as a Girl Scout troop leader, I have often wondered how leaders of blended troops juggle girls of different ages within the same troop?  How did they plan meetings to help satisfy steps for various badges at different levels?  I will admit the planning process can be overwhelming at times even for a troop that is not blended.  It is frustrating and disappointing for both leaders and girls when the plans do not go as anticipated.  In this post, I will outline the agenda for a recent meeting during which our plans did go as anticipated.

Last Wednesday, we decided to make dog toys to donate to a local animal shelter.  We were going to visit the shelter during the second half of our meeting.  The day before our meeting, I discovered we weren't able to visit the shelter because the lobby and bathrooms were being remodeled.  The volunteers at the shelter were unable to accommodate groups and offered to reschedule our visit.  I scrambled to prepare short projects and activities that would fill the 90 minutes we would spend together.  

Once the girls had left the meeting that evening, I decided it actually ended up being, in my opinion, the "perfect meeting."  I thought I would share the agenda here.  

4:15pm   Girls arrive.  
              Kapers assigned.  
              Recite Girl Scout Promise.  
              Sing Girl Scout Law song.
              Share:  Review Troop Rules.  We had a new girl join our troop in 
                         January.  The other leaders and I decided we should review our 
                         troop rules for everyone's benefit.  The girls each had an 
                         opportunity to share one rule for our troop, and we
                         leaders chimed in as well.
               Troop Business:  With Cookie Booth sales coming up in March, our 
                                        Cookie Mom asked the girls to vote on a few 
                                        important details.

4:45pm   Service Project:  T-shirt Dog Toys

5:00pm   Craft:  Metal Washer Necklaces

The Juniors are working on their Jeweler badge.  Step 2 of this badge is "Make Jewelry with Metal."  The Brownies and Juniors made metal washer necklaces during the meeting.  After considering several different ways to decorate the 1.25" diameter washers, I decided we would use scrapbook paper and Mod Podge. There are a million tutorials and blog posts available online, describing how to make washer necklaces. Here's how our girls made their necklaces:

• Prior to the meeting, I grabbed a scrap piece of paper.  I could have easily traced the washer with a pencil on the reverse side of the paper before cutting it out with scissors, but I decided to use my Cricut.  I chose the Simply Sweet cartridge to cut out a 1.25" circle.  I saved the negative part of the paper square for the girls to use as a template during the meeting.  I flipped the circle over, placed the washer on top and lined up the edges, and traced the inside circle onto the paper.  I used a standard hole punch to cut the hole in the middle of the circle.

• During the meeting, the girls chose a patterned piece of paper.  I helped them use the paper template to decide which part of the pattern they would like for their necklaces.  We cut the circles, and the girls cut out the middle hole as described above.

• They used paint brushes to apply Mod Podge to one side of the metal washer.  They covered the washer with the paper circle, making sure to align the edges of the paper with the edges of the washer.  They applied another coat of Mod Podge.  

• I came across some very small letter beads that had been given to me by a family member years ago.  I invited the girls to use these letters on their necklaces.  Some of the girls chose to write "love," "bff," or their names.  We dabbed a little more Mod Podge around each of the letters, hoping they would dry securely.  A hairdryer was used to help with the drying process.  We let the necklaces dry completely as we continued with the meeting.  Before the girls left, we finished their necklaces.  They chose to use a ribbon, yarn, or parachute cord we had remaining from past projects.  We tied a cow hitch (knot) by making a loop in the middle of the ribbon and threading the loop through the middle hole of the washer.  We took the two ends of the ribbon and passed them through the loop, pulling the ends to tighten the hitch on the washer.  The girls were familiar with this knot because they used them when they made macrame bracelets last month. 

5:20pm   Morse Code.
Step 2 for the Junior Detective badge is "Communicate in Code."  My husband and I recently started watching Downton Abbey.  In the first minute of the first episode of the first season, I saw characters using Morse Code to relay the shocking message about the sinking of the Titanic.  Before the meeting, I cued up the clip so the girls could see Morse Code in action.   

One of our co-leaders shared this worksheet she had come across when preparing a homeschool lesson for her daughters:  

http://www.magictreehouse.com/teachersclub/resource_center/pdfs/17-save-our-ship.pdf 

I printed copies of the worksheets.  Our girls used the Morse Code key on the worksheet to decipher the message to the captain of the Titanic.

 

During this portion of the meeting, we had some time to work on a handwriting activity.  Step 4 of the Junior Detective badge is "Try Out Detective Science."  I remembered using a book called Love Your Handwriting by Heidi Swapp when I was into writing titles for my scrapbook pages.  I modified one of Heidi's activities for our girls to work on during this meeting.  The girls played with their handwriting by writing the word trefoil in various ways.  Once they had completed the worksheet, they exchanged papers and examined the similarities and differences in their handwriting.




5:45pm   Braille.  
In this post, I described how our Brownies and Juniors learned about Braille.  During this meeting, they were able to complete some steps for the Brownie Senses badge and the Junior Detectives badge.

6:00pm   Closing.  Our girls love to end the meeting by singing "Make New Friends" and doing the friendship squeeze.

Please note that we don't always incorporate each of these components into every meeting.  It happened to work out this time, so I thought it was worth sharing on this blog.  Thank you for reading!

Investiture and Rededication Ceremony

During our first meeting of 2015, we held an Investiture and Rededication Ceremony to welcome a new member into our troop.  "Investiture welcomes new members, girls or adults, into the Girl Scout family for the first time. Girls receive their Girl Scout, Girl Scout Brownie, or Girl Scout Daisy pin at this time."  "Rededication Ceremonies are an opportunity for girls and adults to renew their commitment to the Girl Scout Promise and Law."  It is suggested by Council that these ceremonies be held each year, and I read that many troops hold a joint Investiture and Rededication Ceremony in October, when the Girl Scout year begins.  I will admit that our older girls are in their fifth year as Girl Scouts, and this was only our second ceremony.  When our girls began their first year as Daisy Girl Scouts in kindergarten, we held an Investiture Ceremony.  You can read all about that sweet ceremony here.  

To begin our Investiture and Rededication Ceremony, I described the difference between the two types of ceremonies to the girls.  I explained the importance of the Girl Scout membership pin.  We welcomed the newest member into our troop.  I continued by reading the story of Juliette Gordon Low and her magnificent strand of pearls:

"In the early years of Girl Scouting Juliette Gordon Low, or Daisy as she was affectionately known, dedicated almost all of her personal assets to pay for the expenses of the movement. Her vision and passion for helping girls became self-sufficent, strong leaders was the moving force in her life; no sacrifice was too great for her girls.
Daisy owned a magnificent strand of pearls - one of her most cherished possessions. She loved her pearls; they were beautiful and quite valuable, and Daisy reserved them for special occasions.
By 1915, if the organization was to continue to grow, funds were desperately needed. To support the movement for another year, Daisy sold her exquisite pearls, once again putting the needs of the girls over her personal desires."

Each girl then had the opportunity to share what they would do to help others if they suddenly had a great deal of money.  (Side note:  At the suggestion of one of our co-leaders, I emailed our families a few days before the meeting and requested they ask the girls the following question:  "If you were given a lot of money, or if you sold something really valuable, or if you won the lottery, what would you do with that money to bless or help others?"  Asking this question in advance was brilliant (Thank you, Mandy!).  The girls had their answers prepared for the ceremony, and more importantly, it gave them an opportunity to talk about serious issues with their families.  We knew if we didn't give them time to consider their answers, we would have had blank stares and shrugging shoulders during the meeting).  As I mentioned in a previous post, children are natural helpers.  They have good hearts.  A few of the girls said they would use their money to help homeless people.  A couple of the girls mentioned giving the money to an animal protection organization.  One girl wanted to help children battling life-threatening illnesses by providing these children and their families a free Disney vacation through Give the Kids the World.  Another girl wanted to give her money to Friends of Bethany.
 

We gathered around the island in my kitchen for a candle ceremony:

ALL:  (Recite the Girl Scout Promise)  "On my honor, I will try to serve God and my country (leader lights one of three candles), to help people at all times (leader lights second of three candles), and to live by the Girl Scout Law."  (leader lights third of three candles).
ALL:  "I will do my best to be..." 
GIRL 1:  honest and fair
GIRL 2:  friendly and helpful
GIRL 3:  considerate and caring
GIRL 4:  courageous and strong
GIRL 5:  responsible for what I say and do, and to
GIRL 6:  respect myself and others
GIRL 7:  respect authority
GIRL 8:  use resources wisely
GIRL 9:  make the world a better place
GIRL 10:  and be a sister to every Girl Scout.
*Prior to the ceremony, we stuck one birthday candle in each cupcake.  When the girl read her Law component, she held her cupcake and tipped the candle into the flame of one of the candles lit by a leader.  (Thank you for that suggestion, Amy!) 
Once the candles were all lit, we sang the Girl Scout Law song.   

 
This ceremony lasted about 30 minutes because I first wanted to explain what was going to happen, what they needed to do, and the girls got in position.  Of course there are always a few giggles and sweet shenanigans... 

We spent the first half hour of our meeting reviewing for the Cookie Sale that starts January 9th in our area.  Check out this link to see how we prepared for the Cookie Sale when our girls were Daisies.  We spent the remaining half hour of the meeting completing the Energy Expert Patch Workbook from Consumers Energy.  We requested the free patches for our Brownies and Juniors last spring.  As of June 1, 2014, the free patch program is only available for Michigan residents.  The Brownie and Junior Workbooks are slightly different, but they were similar enough to complete together.  As we worked through the packet, we skipped a few activities and asked that they finish them at home.  When we began talking about conductors and insulators, the 4th graders got really excited.  They had been studying that unit in science class, and their test was scheduled for the following morning!  Overall, I think they enjoyed earning the Energy Expert patch.  Thank you for reading!

Celebrating Juliette Gordon Low's Birthday

Juliette Gordon Low is a common name in the world of Girl Scouts.  For those readers who may not be familiar with her, "Juliette Gordon Low, founder of Girl Scouts of the USA, was born Juliette Magill Kinzie Gordon on October 31, 1860, in Savannah, Georgia."  Girl Scouts are encouraged to recognize and celebrate our founder's birthday each year.  Since our troop had a meeting scheduled on October 29th, and we did not have plans for a Halloween event this year, I thought this meeting would be the perfect opportunity to celebrate and to work on a few steps toward various badges.  Here is the agenda for that meeting:

4:15pm  Girls arrive.  Take yogurt snack orders.
4:30pm  Promise and Girl Scout Law Song 
              Learn 2 new Girl Scout songs
              Juliette Gordon Low Skit
5:00pm  Yogurt Snack
5:20pm.  Macrame Bracelets
6:00pm  Closing

Our girls learned a valuable lesson during this meeting:  Sometimes the best plans and intentions don't go as expected, and that is okay.  Here is what actually happened during that meeting.

4:15pm  Girls arrive.  Take yogurt snack orders.  Kapers assigned.
4:30pm  Girl Scout Promise and Girl Scout Law song.  We were SO excited the girls were able to sing the entire song without referring to this YouTube video or the Girl Scout Law poster we display at our meetings.  

 
As I mentioned in a previous post, we have a blended troop this year.  Our Brownies are working on the Girl Scout Way badge.  To satisfy Step 1, they learned three new Girl Scout songs.  In addition to the Girl Scout Law song, the girls sang The Banana Song and Princess Pat.  Many of the Juniors enjoy singing, and they had a good time joining the Brownies as they learned these songs.

The Brownies could celebrate Juliette Low's birthday to satisfy the second step for the Girl Scout Way badge.  The girls agreed to wear their Halloween costumes to the meeting, and I offered to make a special treat for them to take home after the meeting.  I found a directions for a Spooky and Sweet Halloween Treat on pages 14 to 17 in the September/October 2014 issue of the American Girl Magazine.  Since I was making this candy for Girl Scouts, I chose dark cocoa mint and green Wilton candy melts.  I melted the candy melts individually and in separate bowls in the microwave according to the directions on the package.  I quickly poured the melted candy onto wax paper I had previously placed on the kitchen counter.  I used a wooden spoon to spread the candy out until it was about 1/4" thick, and I swirled the brown and green candy together.  I sprinkled crushed Oreos over the top of the candy.  I carefully placed candy eyes, knowing I would be cutting the candy into pieces once the candy had hardened.  

 
 To recognize Juliette Gordon Low, the girls performed a skit I found online.  Conveniently, the skit had eight parts, and we have eight girls.  For troops with more than eight members, the girls are divided into groups, and parts can be assigned to each group.  Prior to the meeting, I printed out The Juliette Low Interactive Story.  I also wrote the parts on index cards.  The cards were randomly passed out to the girls.  I read the story, and when her character was mentioned, she stepped forward and said her line along with the action written on the card.  It was super cute...and really easy for me!




5:00pm  We served a yogurt snack to the girls to satisfy Step 5 Slurp a Snack (Brownies Snacks Badge) and Step 2 Whip up a Great Breakfast (Juniors Simple Meals Badge).  The Brownies had smoothies made with yogurt, frozen fruit, and orange juice.  The Juniors had a yogurt-granola parfait.  Up to this point, the meeting was running smoothly, and the girls were having a lot of fun together.

5:20pm  Macrame Bracelets.  By learning to macrame, the Brownies would satisfy Step 5 Enjoy Girl Scout Traditions (Girl Scout Way Badge).  At the same time, the Juniors would complete Step 4 Create Jewelry Inspired by Another Culture (Jeweler Badge).  I had purchased packages of parachute cord (4 different colors, 25 yards each) and clips from a craft store.  There were directions for two-toned bracelets next to the supplies, so I grabbed a flyer.  Prior to the meeting, I reviewed the directions and cut 16 lengths of cord, each 2 yards long, as directed.  I cut four of each color, knowing we could cut additional pieces during the meeting if needed.  When the other leaders arrived, they burned both ends of each cord, again as directed.  

Once the snacks had been cleaned up, we had the girls choose their cord colors and get settled.  As we began to instruct how to start the bracelets, there was some confusion.  Suddenly the directions weren't as clear as I initially thought they were.  After several minutes without success, we referred to a couple different videos on YouTube.  Minutes passed, and I began to panic.  In four years, this had never happened--our meetings and projects generally run rather smoothly.  After 30 minutes of scrambling, we bailed.  The girls were perfectly content playing a game together until their parents arrived.  Of course, I couldn't let this project go.  I continued to fiddle with the bracelet.  A couple minutes later, the directions clicked for me.  I am determined to get the bracelets started for the girls, and we will revisit this project during our Christmas party.  

Through this experience I have learned there may be occasions that require I get together with the other leaders prior to a meeting to make sure we're on the same page.  Next week our girls will begin knitting hats and scarves on a round loom.  We will be prepared this time!  I hope you check back with us.  Thank you for reading!

Juniors and Brownies: A Blended Troop, Part One

During the 2013-2014 school year, I was a leader for two different troops.  There were eight Brownies in one troop and five Daisies in another troop.  The older troop generally met on the first and third Wednesdays of the month while the younger girls usually met on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month.  We combined the troops for service projects and special events.  Unfortunately, due to various circumstances, we decided to disband the Daisy troop at the end of the year.  

Three of the girls in that Daisy troop are the younger sisters of girls in the older troop.  After being apart for one school year, these three girls have gotten back together and joined the older girls' troop.  We now have a blended troop of five Juniors and three Brownies.  

The Juniors started this year by meeting every Wednesday in September to work on the aMUSE Journey.  We invited the younger girls to the first meeting in October.  This was the official start to our year. 

Though the girls are all familiar with each other, we began the meeting with a variation of this M&M icebreaker.  I gave each girl about a dozen M&Ms.  They were allowed to eat all but one.  They each answered a question that corresponded to the color of the M&M they had left in their hand.  Here are the questions that were asked:

• Red:  If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?  Why?
• Orange:  If you were going to eat one last meal, what would it be?
• Yellow:  If you were an animal, what kind of animal would you be?  Why?
• Green:  What do you want to be when you grow up?
• Blue:  What is your favorite subject in school?  Why?
• Brown:  What is the best gift you've ever given someone?

We then asked the older girls to take turns reading The Brownie Story to the younger girls.  I provided the version included in the Brownie Girl's Guide to Girl Scouts, but there are several creative skits and ceremonies that revolve around this story that can be found online.  Then the girls lined up in two lines facing each other, and the younger girls walked through the tunnel.  They each had the opportunity to "twist and turn" and "look in the water."  

We spent the next several minutes watching the Girl Scout Law Song on YouTube.  After running through the video two or three times, the girls knew the song...and the Girl Scout Law!  

At this point in the meeting, the Juniors were given time to finish painting the scenery for the puppet show they had written during the aMUSE Journey.  The younger girls made a new kaper chart for the troop, making sure to include kapers the troop decided upon together.  This concluded our first meeting together as a blended troop.  Thanks for reading!

Bridging to Juniors: The Ceremony

Our Brownie troop bridged to Juniors in late May.  We devoted two meetings just to plan and prepare for this special ceremony, and their participation in this process satisfied the 5th step for the Celebrating Community badge.  In the previous post I provided details about our decorations, but I thought I would include some of the photos here, too.

OUR BRIDGING CEREMONY 

Welcome:  I began the event by welcoming our guests.  I also gave a brief overview of our year for the extended family members in the audience who may not have been familiar with our troop's activities and accomplishments.

Promise:  One of our girls led the troop in reciting the Girl Scout Promise. 

Pledge:  We had placed a flag in the corner of the ampitheater prior to the start of the event.  Another girl invited our guests to stand and join us in saying the Pledge of Allegiance.

Skit:  Two girls introduced our skit, politely requesting our guests not use flash photography (their idea).  This was adorable and got a few laughs.  The skit was written by the girls in the troop.  They brainstormed general ideas, agreed on one, and worked together to write the lines.  We leaders helped ensure the speaking parts were equally distributed.  In the skit, the girls helped a "younger girl" learn about Girl Scouts.  They incorporated the Girl Scout Law, the song "Make New Friends," and the Friendship Squeeze into the skit.  Super cute!

              

Introduction of Girls:  Prior to the ceremony, we filled mason jars with water and added a couple of drops of food coloring to each jar.  Just before the ceremony, we tied a balloon to each mason jar.  We lined them up in two rows, making the "bridge."  When the skit was finished, we announced the name of each girl and let her walk through the balloon bridge.  Once all the girls were lined up across the front of our stage area, we leaders said something special about each girl.  We chose to hand out the bridging gifts at the end of the ceremony, but we took time at this point in the ceremony to explain what each girl would be receiving in her gift box.

Balloon Ascension:  When they were planning the ceremony, one of the girls asked if they could each have a balloon from the balloon bridge to release at the end of the event to symbolize their graduation to Juniors.  We all thought this was a great idea, and we agreed the girls should end their ceremony this way. 

 

Kona Ice Snow Cones!:  The girls decided to have Kona Ice serve snow cones to the troop and their siblings after the ceremony.  This was a great way to end another great year!

The girls are going to work on the Junior aMUSE Journey in September.  This will be our first Journey, so I will be sure to post what worked and what, if anything, we would do differently.  The girls hope to work on their Bronze award next year and have also voted to earn the Camper, Detective, Jeweler, and Simple Meals badges.  We hope you will check back in with us.  Thank you for reading!

Daisy "Camp" Part 1

As our first Girl Scout year was coming to an end, we chose not to participate in the two-day Service Unit Summer Day Camp.  Regrettably, our Service Unit has not opted to organize a neighborhood-wide camping trip for the past couple of years.  Instead, we planned a day camp experience for our troop.  It was so successful that I scheduled a similar event for our younger troop last weekend.  I will share the highlights of these events in this post.

 
The girls met at my house at 3pm on a Saturday in the spring.  We carpooled to Woodland Mound the first year, and to the Cincinnati Nature Center this year.  We began the afternoon with a hike.  At the CNC, we chose the Edge Trail that circles Powel Crosley Lake.  It took us about 45 minutes to complete this hike.  There are so many different ways to make a hike with the troop more than another walk through the woods.  Here are some ideas:


1.  Nature Scavenger Hunt --have the girls create a list, make up your own list, or save yourself some valuable time by finding a list online that will meet the needs of your troop.

2.  Alphabet Hike--find objects that begin with or resemble each letter of the alphabet from A to Z.  Another option is to give the girls a word, like "DAISY" or "GIRL SCOUTS" and have them find items with these letters.  The older girls went on a "BROWNIES" hike at camp this fall (see this post).  

3.   Senses Hike--have the girls close their eyes for a minute and ask them to  listen for different sounds.  Instruct them to put up one finger each time they hear a new noise.  Then discuss what they heard.  

After finishing the hike, we found a picnic table where we spent the next 30-45 minutes doing crafts and singing songs.  The year the older girls were at camp, they made God's eyes and decorated their own memory books.  For the books, I precut pieces of cardstock into 5x7" rectangles, allowing for each girl to have four sheets.  I punched 3 holes along the edge of one side.  The girls used crayons, markers, and stickers to draw and write about their Daisy experiences.  We used leftover yarn from the God's Eyes to tie the pages together for each girl. They also spent some time working together to complete a compass activity.  (We used two compasses my daughters received as the prize with their Chick-fil-A Kid's Meal).  We divided the troop into two teams and asked the girls to follow a series of directions we had written on an index card.  For example, "take 4 steps to the North, turn East and go 6 steps."

 
We skipped the compass activity this year, so the younger troop had more time to devote to crafts.  They made God's Eyes, using 8" lollipop sticks that had been cut in half.  Learning from the past, I tied the yarn onto the sticks and started each God's eye prior to arriving at camp.  This was easier and quicker for the girls than having to help them get started on site.  This picture is from the first year we tried the craft.  They are using cookie sticks instead of the lollipop sticks cut in half.

 

They also completed a campfire craft from the Girl Scout foam craft kit that is available at Michael's.  I already had the yellow cardstock.  I brought some tacky glue and Elmer's Glue-All--both worked well on the foam.  The girls followed the picture provided in the kit.  Most of them added a personal touch to the scene. 


 
The girls each made a Daisy bracelet with some alphabet beads and pony beads that had been donated to the older troop a couple of years ago.  I had some elastic cord on hand from a previous craft.  Thankfully there happened to be enough beads to spell "Daisy" for each girl, so I didn't have an additional expense.   

We had enough time to sing some songs that remind me of my days at camp like "The Other Day," "Boom Chicka Boom," "Make New Friends," "Down by the Bay."  My mom spent her summers in college working at a Girl Scout Camp.  She taught me "Sarasponda" and "Flea", and I was excited to get to share these songs with the girls. 

My mom also told me about the Hoot Bird that would make an appearance at camp when she was a Camp Counselor.  I just HAD to try it!  A couple of days before camp, I bought a cantaloupe (I used a small watermelon the first time).  I created the Hoot Bird by decorating the melon with feathers from the craft store.  I adhered the feathers, cardstock triangle nose, and large googly eyes with hot glue.  Once at camp, I conveniently hid the bird.  Much later I pretended to get a call from my husband on my cell phone.  I explained to the girls that he was calling to let us know that a Hoot Bird had escaped from the Cincinnati Zoo and was seen flying over the Cincinnati Nature Center. I warned the girls that this was a gentle bird that would not hurt them but would most likely be afraid of us.  I described the bird as having brightly colored feathers and huge eyes.  Of course, the girls were interested in trying to help locate the missing bird.  After a short walk, they located the Hoot Bird and erupted into giggles. The best part is that the Hoot Bird can double as a snack.  So fun!

After making sure we were leaving the park cleaner than it was when we arrived, we headed back to my house for Part 2 of Daisy "Camp."  Please check back to see how we spent the rest of our time together.  Thanks for reading!

Everybody Counts

When I was in grade school, I remember participating in the Everybody Counts program.  Parent volunteers assisted program leaders to help young students experience what it is like to be physically challenged.  I vividly remember trying to tie my shoes while wearing mittens.  I was fascinated to learn about Braille and sign language.  The program was successful, for me anyway, since I recall these lessons some 25 years later.

As I was brainstorming ideas for the "Respect Myself and Others" lesson (dark purple petal), I thought it would be great to recreate the Everybody Counts program for our troop.  We divided the troop into two groups.  At one station, the girls tried to button my coats while wearing gloves.  This task proved to be challenging, and I was proud to see how determined the girls were to succeed.

The second station involved gently placing cotton balls in their ears.  I read parts of a book, whispering to exaggerate the effect.  To be honest, the girls totally called me on this one.  They knew I was whispering.  It was not as effective as trying to hear a story while wearing noise-cancelling headphones.  However, we chose to use cotton balls instead of having the girls share headsets.  

I would have loved to have the girls walk on crutches or allow a friend to guide them around the house while wearing a blindfold.  We did not have time, but I thought I would offer these activities as suggestions for your meetings.

One of our troop moms is a Sign Language Interpreter by profession.  We were able to have her teach our troop how to sign everything from their names to numbers to colors and favorite animals.  They even learned to sign the first verse of the song "Make New Friends."  It was a really fun meeting!  

By exposing the troop to a few of the hardships that challenge many people on a daily basis, they learned the importance of respecting others.  This was the first step they took toward earning their dark purple petal.  The girls also had a manicure party that served as a dark purple petal activity.  Please check back as that post is coming soon.  Thanks for reading!