The Girl Scout Leadership Experience engages girls in discovering themselves, connecting with others and taking action to make the world a better place. Even at the youngest ages of Girl Scouting, girls can gain leadership skills they will carry with them throughout their lives. The Girl Scout focus on leadership shows girls that they are leaders right now in their everyday lives, and they will continue to be leaders as they get older. In Girl Scouting, Discover + Connect + Take Action = Leadership.
Discover : Girls understand themselves and their values and use their knowledge and skills to explore the world.
Connect : Girls care about, inspire, and team with others locally and globally.
Take Action : Girls act to make the world a better place.
Girl Scouts USA has an electronic resource that further explains the structure and benefits of this great leadership model.
Using Journeys & Badges Together
The graphic below explains how the journeys and badges work together. Journeys and badges are designed to be complementary, not to compete. Journeys are the core Girl Scout curriculum. They have been developed to help Girl Scouts develop the three keys to leadership: Discover, Connect and Take Action.
Badges complement the journeys by helping girls build skills on specific topics. To get a picture of how journeys and other Girl Scout activities work together to make one consistent Girl Scout experience, view the journey maps on the Girl Scout website. As you mouse over the journey map, you will see pop-ups that give further information about how to tie Girl Scout activities (such as camping, field trips, and cookie sales) into the journeys.
Journeys
Where can I learn more about the journeys?
It's Your World: Change It! Learn more
It's Your Planet: Love It! Learn more
It's Your Story: Tell It! Learn more
What does it mean to "customize" a journey?
Journeys only come to life when girls and volunteers sprinkle in their own interests, talents, creativity and imagination to shape the journey experience. You can also call upon a range of local experts who can enrich the girls' experience. Check out tips and suggestions in the girls' book, adult guide and in It's Your Journey-Customize It! All area available in the GSCM retail stores.
Will it be possible for badge requirements to count toward fulfillment of journey requirements? Journey awards are based on a girl’s participation in a whole series of interrelated activities and discussions that contribute to a girl’s overall experience and that help her develop the three keys to leadership. Badges focus on one specific skill (for example, creating a piece of art or learning first aid). For that reason, journey activities cannot be counted as completion of a badge activity requirement. Keep in mind that the journeys are very flexible and that requirements for earning awards are not meant to be rigid. What's most important is that girls gain exposure to a variety of opportunities and enjoy activities based on the three keys (Discover, Connect, Take Action).
The Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting
What is The Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting?
In September 2011, Girl Scouts USA will debut this exciting new resource for girls. Girls at each grade level will have their own The Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting so there will be six publications. It will be a 9x12 standard three ring binger so girls can add pages and other momentos to it. The sections will include badge offerings; a handbook section covering traditions, history and bridging; and a "My Girl Scouts" section (varies by grade level but will include things like scrapbook pages, stickers, etc.). View the handout »
Who gave input into the development of The Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting?
More than 1,000 girls, parent, and volunteers from all over the country participated in online surveys and focus groups to help GSUSA develop The Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting . More than 30 volunteers, national operational volunteers and council staff from various locations met online for months to offer input into the format and the content of the badges. Within Girl Scout headquarters, teams from several departments made recommendations on format and content. Before finalizing, girls from all backgrounds and across grade levels offered feedback on the content in its formative stage.
Will adult guides to The Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting be produced?
Adult guides will not be necessary as volunteers will be able to apply what they've learned from their journey adult guides, Volunteer Essentials, and Safety Activity Checkpoints.
Badges
Are badges going away?
No, earning awards is an integral part of Girl Scouting, as it has been for nearly a century. Badge activities complement the journeys and contribute to the first leadership key: Discover. Some badge topic areas are out of date and are being permanently retired, while some totally new badges will be introduced. Other offerings will combine current topics and favorite activities into badges that will feel very familiar to all of us. All badges will have great energy and a bright new look. New badges will be released in The Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting .
Why is Girl Scouts USA changing the badges?
Being relevant to today's girls is one of the main reasons why Girl Scouts USA is updating the badges. The Girl Scout badges haven't been updated in 20 years and think about how much technology alone has changed in that time. We know this won't be easy but it is truly being done with the best interest of girls in mind. The great part is that Girl Scouts created a special category called Legacy Badges so we can keep the traditions that make us who we are and still give girls a variety of things to do that are hot topics today.
How will the new badges build skills as the girls move up?View the handout »
What will the new badges look like?
We do not know the details of individual badges but they will be embroidered iron-on patches. View the handout of the badge shapes »
How many new badges will be offered at each level?
The exact number of badges is still under consideration but the intention is to offer girls a variety of topics that cover contemporary interests, as well as classics that have historically been appealing to girls and volunteers. View the handout »
How will there be enough for girls to do if the numbers of badges are reduced?
Girls will have many awards to earn. Girls will have the new badges; journey awards; the Girl Scout Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards; the Safety Award; CIT; VIT (formerly LIT); PA; troop crests; and two new awards called My Promise, My Faith and Journey Summit. View the handout »
Will Daisies earn badges?
Girl Scout Daisies will continue to earn the Promise Center and Learning Petals. The activities for earning petals will be revised for the release of The Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting . Daisies will earn “leaves” when they complete activities tied to cookie sales and financial literacy. View the handout »
Will girls still earn Cookie badges?
Yes. There will be two sets of skill-building badges related to the Girl Scout Cookie Program. A girl will still be able to earn the Girl Scout Cookie Activity pin when she participates in the Cookie program.
How long can we use existing handbooks and work on existing badges?
The Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting will be available for use beginning in fall 2011, with the transition period running through September 2012.
How can we be sure that girls are working on badges that are still available in your stores?
Feel free to contact the GSCM to check on inventory levels. To see a list of discontinued items, please check the store website at http://gscmonlinestore.stores.yahoo.net/dime.html
Additional Details
What about the Girl Scout Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards?
Requirements for these awards will be listed in the appropriate The Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting. They will also continue to be listed on our website, as well as Girl Scouts USA's website.
What about the CIT, LIT and PA awards?
There will be new requirements for CIT and PA awards. LIT is becoming Volunteers in Training (VIT). View the handout »
What about religious awards?
The current religious awards will still be available and they will be adding a new award called My Promise, My Faith.
What is the status of STUDIO 2B?
As with current handbooks and badge books, there will be a one-year period (June 2011 to June 2012) to transition from existing resources to The Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting . STUDIO 2B materials will only be available until council supplies last. Today, journeys are the choice for Girl Scout Cadettes, Seniors and Ambassadors. Material from the STUDIO 2B focus books is being incorporated, when appropriate, into The Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting at these grade levels.
What do we do now?
Have your troop plan for the rest of your troop year and order your patches now to ensure you have what you need when you need it for the girls
Purchase The Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting in the fall. As soon as we know when we will have The Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting available in our stores, we'll be sure to let you know.
