Lucy Fulton and Raechel Cowell, leaders of Troop 42227, focused on cookie sale safety at the SU 2 Cookie Rally:
Note: the above slideshow contains photos from both the event for older Girl Scouts and for the Safety Skills event for the younger girls.
Because our troop consists of first and second year Juniors, we wanted to find a meaningful way for them to participate in Service Unit 2's annual Cookie Kick-off/Rally. Given that our girls were very familiar with the younger girl program from years of attending it, and since they were too young to attend the older girl program, we fully supported our girls in helping to plan and run this year's event, along with the sponsoring troop(s).
After our girls decided to tackle the Safety and 100th Anniversary booths, we met twice outside our troop meeting time to plan out our ideas and gather the necessary supplies. One of the highlights was recording the "Safety Song" to the tune of "You Are My Sunshine."
At the event, our booths had two activities each. At our "Safety" booth, girls could practice door-to-door sales and safety rules. Through this simulation, attending girls learned to handle common and not-so-common scenarios. The other activity taught five important safety rules (represented each by a colored bead placed in a cup). Once wax paper was secured to the cup, the girls now had their own "instrument" to play with and remind them of what they learned. To further embed the principles, every girl received a popscicle stick "flag" that had the five safety rules and the lyrics to the "Safety Song" that they heard looping in the background and had a chance to sing themselves.
The "100th Anniversary" booth was both meaningful and eye-opening. One activity included telling the story of Juliette Gordon Low selling her pearl necklace to keep Girl Scouts alive. The overall message was about giving back. At this booth, girls received a paper "pearl" on which to write one community service activity they have done or wished to do individually or with a troop. The paper pearls were then placed on the wall behind the booth in the shape of a giant multi-strand necklace representing the many ways girls, who are part of this legacy, are giving back. For their participation, girls were given a plastic pearl swap to help them remember Juliette's sacrifice for Girl Scouts. The other activity for this booth included brainstorming on butcher paper the activities girls have done through their troop, Service Unit, and/or council. Then we asked girls to share what events they would like to do and we posted those as well. As a culminating activity, girls "voted" on three activities, sharing with us those they like and didn't like on specially made ballots.
Overall, it was a very busy cookie rally. Our girls worked hard to plan and execute their ideas. And, they had fun! For them, it was very motivating because they worked together to present their vision, combining their previous experiences with the cookie rally and their desire to demonstrate Girl Scout ideals through leadership. As for the troop leaders involved, we are very proud of our girls in their ability to discover a needful role they could uniquely fulfill, connect with other adults for supplies and guidance, and take action for our part in this event.
Note: the above slideshow contains photos from both the event for older Girl Scouts and for the Safety Skills event for the younger girls.
Because our troop consists of first and second year Juniors, we wanted to find a meaningful way for them to participate in Service Unit 2's annual Cookie Kick-off/Rally. Given that our girls were very familiar with the younger girl program from years of attending it, and since they were too young to attend the older girl program, we fully supported our girls in helping to plan and run this year's event, along with the sponsoring troop(s).
After our girls decided to tackle the Safety and 100th Anniversary booths, we met twice outside our troop meeting time to plan out our ideas and gather the necessary supplies. One of the highlights was recording the "Safety Song" to the tune of "You Are My Sunshine."
At the event, our booths had two activities each. At our "Safety" booth, girls could practice door-to-door sales and safety rules. Through this simulation, attending girls learned to handle common and not-so-common scenarios. The other activity taught five important safety rules (represented each by a colored bead placed in a cup). Once wax paper was secured to the cup, the girls now had their own "instrument" to play with and remind them of what they learned. To further embed the principles, every girl received a popscicle stick "flag" that had the five safety rules and the lyrics to the "Safety Song" that they heard looping in the background and had a chance to sing themselves.
The "100th Anniversary" booth was both meaningful and eye-opening. One activity included telling the story of Juliette Gordon Low selling her pearl necklace to keep Girl Scouts alive. The overall message was about giving back. At this booth, girls received a paper "pearl" on which to write one community service activity they have done or wished to do individually or with a troop. The paper pearls were then placed on the wall behind the booth in the shape of a giant multi-strand necklace representing the many ways girls, who are part of this legacy, are giving back. For their participation, girls were given a plastic pearl swap to help them remember Juliette's sacrifice for Girl Scouts. The other activity for this booth included brainstorming on butcher paper the activities girls have done through their troop, Service Unit, and/or council. Then we asked girls to share what events they would like to do and we posted those as well. As a culminating activity, girls "voted" on three activities, sharing with us those they like and didn't like on specially made ballots.
Overall, it was a very busy cookie rally. Our girls worked hard to plan and execute their ideas. And, they had fun! For them, it was very motivating because they worked together to present their vision, combining their previous experiences with the cookie rally and their desire to demonstrate Girl Scout ideals through leadership. As for the troop leaders involved, we are very proud of our girls in their ability to discover a needful role they could uniquely fulfill, connect with other adults for supplies and guidance, and take action for our part in this event.
