I am going to be a girl scout leader.....?

Question

any tips or suggestions on what to do with the girls?? I want them to have a lot of fun.

Answer 1

The ideas above are all great, and I totally second the recommendation for checking out Scouting Web, but the biggest piece of advice I'd give is to ask the girls what to do with them. This is one of the cornerstones of the Girl Scout program, but is sadly overlooked by a lot of leaders who want to plan out a whole year's worth of meetings before they even start up.

Obviously, the younger the girls the more decisions the adults make, but they can be given choices from the start about which of two field trips or activities to do. When they go camping, early on they can choose from pre-determined meal ideas, later on they can plan them, and by the time they're juniors, if they've been allowed to progress in their skills up to then, they should be able to make the shopping lists (and do the shopping if you're willing to oversee it) for example.

Oh, and the other biggest piece of advice I'd give is to make sure you know several games that don't need much preparation or supplies because all the girls I've ever seen of all age levels love to play games. Sometimes it can be used as an incentive to finish up ("if you don't finish, we won't have time left to play [whatever]"), sometimes something goes quicker than you expected, sometimes you realize 10 minutes into the meeting that you forgot the bucket with the special supplies for today's science experiement... It's good to have these written down (I've seen cute collections of ideas on notecards attached to a keyring, for example) so when you're in that moment you have something to grab and look at since if you're stressed out, you may go blank. And if the girls are old enough to read, those who finish something early can be asked to choose a game for the rest of the group, or can take turns choosing, etc.

Final piece of advice - get all the training necessary as soon as you can and don't just go into it to sit through some boring class; the best part about trainings is making connections with other leaders who often have great ideas on local resources or activities you may not have heard of yet. (Nope, I'm not a trainer ;-)).

Oh, yeah, and have fun! If you're not, the girls won't. :-)

Answer 2

There are several websites with things to do, read there. I find this a good site: http://www.scoutingweb.com/ScoutingWeb/index.htm
Use the books available, most groups have some, and you should have or get a handbook.

And it is not all about fun, it is having a balanced program. They play, move about, learn and have a bit of fun. If you only offer fun the kids get bored soon, it is like just eating cotton candy, just flavor but no substance.

If you see a hype or fad coming on that fits in with scouting, (Lanyards/scoubidou/boondoggle is one) learn it as soon as you can and use it in a program.

Think about some things that can run for several weeks and still be fun, but make sure that the kids who have missed a week (or several) can still join in. One way of doing that is having the kids work in groups on a project that stays in the troop headquarters or their own sub group area.

Answer 3

As well as what Sorcha suggested - I think you are supposed to be trained by the Organisation, so make sure they do this. You will also need first aid training. So don't start unprepared.

Answer 4

crafts and stuff
sport games
trips outdoors (girls are jealous of the boys who get to go camping)
mini competitions
something to let them earn badges