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Cookies

Prepping for Cookies: Value of the 5 Skills

When girls participate in the cookie program, they “earn and learn”—they earn funds for their Girl Scout activities while learning key skills that will help them in business and life.
All they need to do to develop the 5 Skills is sell cookies with coaching from adults who
understand the 5 Skills! Here’s your how-to guide to getting started:

What are the 5 Skills and why do they matter?

1) Goal Setting: Girls set cookie sales goals and, with their team, create a plan to reach them. This matters because girls need to know how to set and reach goals to succeed in school, on the job, and in life.

2) Decision Making: Girls decide where and when to sell cookies, how to market their sale, and what to do with their earnings. This matters because girls must make many decisions, big and small, in their lives. Learning this skill helps them make good ones.

3) Money Management: Girls develop a budget, take cookie orders, and handle customers’ money. This matters because girls need to know how to handle money—from their lunch money to their allowance to (someday) their paycheck.

4) People Skills: Girls learn how to talk (and listen!) to their customers, as well as learning how to work as a team with other girls. This matters because it helps them do better in school (on group projects, on sports teams, and on the playground) and, later, at work.

5) Business Ethics: Girls act honestly and responsibly during every step of the cookie sale. This matters because employers want to hire ethical employees—and the world needs ethical leaders in every field.

Why do we focus on the 5 Skills?

Because when your Girl Scout has learned these skills, she’ll be poised for success in her
career. Think about it: When employers interview job candidates, they all look for the same things. This is true whether the employer is a bank, high-tech company, university, hospital, publishing house, car dealership, accounting firm—or even the local pet store! They want:

Someone who can set goals and meet deadlines.
Blowing a deadline can mean blowing a deal!

Someone who works well with others.
Who wants to deal with strife and complaining in the workplace? Not the boss!

Someone who understands customers.
It doesn’t matter whether the “customers” are hospital patients, TV viewers, or other companies—every business has to know its customers and what they want.

Someone who can influence others.
This doesn’t just mean selling a product. Employers want people who can sell ideas, pitch
projects, and make deals.

Someone who is honest, trustworthy, and reliable.
This kind of goes without saying—or it should!

Sound like anyone you know?
That’s your Girl Scout, using the 5 Skills she learned in the Girl Scout Cookie Program.

Featured

The New Cool Girl Hangout? City Council Meetings

Cool girls change the world. And while your cool girl has dreams of making her impact as a groundbreaking artist, a business mogul, a scientist, or even as President of the United States, there’s no reason for her to wait to start affecting positive change.

Naturally, there are many ways your girl can take action in your community, but one of the most concrete ways is by attending and participating in city council meetings. After all, it’s in those meetings that local laws (sometimes called city code or ordinances) are decided, the local budget is set, and public health and safety concerns are addressed.

And while a lot of people talk about what they’d like to see happen in the world, it’s the cool girls who actually take action to make those ideas and dreams come true. So if there’s something in your town that your girl wants to see improvements on—whether it’s the local library getting more up-to-date books, the park getting cleaned up, or any other project—it might sound odd, but her city council meeting is the place to be.

That said, if you’re like a lot of Americans, there’s a good chance you’ve never been to a city council meeting yourself and might not be sure how to prepare your girl to attend. That’s why we’ve put together this handy guide to take the guesswork out of the equation and make her (and your!) experience as smooth, effective, and dare we say fun as possible.

Why Is This Such a Hot Spot
The coolest thing about City Council meetings is that anyone—yes, even teens and younger kids—can review the meeting’s agenda in advance, request a speaker card or add their name and topic to the meeting’s agenda, and then speak at the actual meeting about whatever project or issue they feel strongly about. That means your girl (Or you! Or both of you!) can have the attention of your local government to support what you think is going right or to challenge ideas and plans that you disagree with. And when your daughter has a totally new idea she wants to bring up? This is the place for that, too!

This is a big deal because when city council members help to propose new laws, vote on which ones will go into effect, and plan the budget that determines how the city will spend its money, they’re supposed to represent the people who live locally. And this can be difficult when you consider that while women and girls generally make up half of our population, only about one third of local city council members in our country’s top 100 cities are female. That means male-dominated city councils may not naturally consider issues from a girl’s point of view—and makes it even more important for your daughter to stand up, represent, and let them know how she feels about the issues that affect her.

What’s the Gift with Purchase?
Influencing major policy in your town is obviously the main reason to show up to City Council Meetings, but there are other perks that go along with attendance. The sheer experience of speaking in front of influential people—who are connected to even more influential people at the state and national levels—can give your girl a hefty dose of self-confidence. Think of it this way—if she’s speaking her mind to city council members as a teen or tween, introducing herself to new friends, speaking up in class, or even negotiating job offers will come that much easier to her in the future.

Who knows? After going to City Council meetings at a young age, perhaps your daughter will grow up and want to run for local office, helping to even up the gender gap, and making an even bigger difference in her community.

Where Do We Show Up?
All city councils across the country (in some areas, they’re called Town Council, Board of Supervisors, or the Planning Commission) are required to hold public meetings. The time and location, as well as the proposed agenda are usually posted on your city or town’s website at least a few weeks ahead of time to give everyone plenty of time to plan. While some of these meetings may be held in the afternoon, many are held in the evenings to make it easier for people to attend after work and school hours are over.

Who Runs the City Council Meetings?
City council meetings are run by council members who’ve been elected by local residents. Note that these people can also be called aldermen, selectmen, freeholders, or commissioners, depending on the term used in your area.

What’s a City Council Meeting Like?
There might be an opening prayer at the start of the meeting, then the Pledge of Allegiance will be recited just like in your girl’s school. From there, someone will likely go over the “minutes” of the previous meeting. You know how a lot of TV shows start with a recap of last week’s episode? Same idea.

After that, there may be many agenda items including updates from committees who are dedicated to certain types of issues. The truth is that because the City Council oversees a wide array of issues, their meetings can stretch to be pretty long depending on how long the council members want to discuss them. Know that ahead of time and consider bringing quiet distractions for your girl if she’s too young to focus the entire time. Coloring books or embroidery floss to make friendship bracelets can keep your child occupied and help the time fly by faster without causing much distraction.

As mentioned, City Council meetings can be pretty long, and they’re not usually very action packed—but they are one of the most direct and effective opportunities you and your girl have to make an impact on your town, city, and even state and country.

Service Community

Go-getter Daisy Troop 1635 Prepares Thanksgiving Baskets

Community Service is a primary motivator for Daisy troop 1635, who meet in Minneola. These second-year Daisies have created bags to support homeless individuals, collected items for Hurricane Harvey relief, assembled first aid kits for the homeless during Fire Safety Week, and made birthday bags for a local food bank.

In a recent brainstorm with their Daisy team, the girls decided on a canned food drive for their fall project. Troop Co-leader, Ruth Woody, encouraged the girls to take their idea one step further after seeing a Facebook post from Bennett Law Firm, encouraging groups to assemble and donate Thanksgiving dinner baskets to support Helping Hands Ministry in distributing meals to those less fortunate.

 

Co-leader, Ruth Woody, shares the impact of this project: “The girls agreed that everyone deserves to have a Thanksgiving dinner. I want these girls to learn at a young age that sharing is caring, and that Girl Scouts give back to their community every chance we have.” Woody also recognizes the support of Co-leader, Holly Jones, and the troop’s wonderful moms who gladly help with every community service project taken on by the Daisies: Alora, Allyson, Bailey, Brenna, Fae, Kathryn, Lily, Loryana, Margaret, Sonya, and Victoria.

And these Daisies aren’t slowing down any time soon. They’ve already decided on two upcoming projects. For winter, they’ll contribute to Toys for Tots, and over the summer, they’ll participate in a local Autism Awareness event in support of their sister Girl Scout, Bailey.

Woody’s advice to other Girl Scout troops: “There are many people in need out there. It just takes a small amount of time and research to find what you can do to help.”

—

Is your troop taking on a Thanksgiving-inspired community service project? Share your story.

Academics

Girl Scouts Celebrate National STEAM Day

Imagine girls taking on some of the biggest challenges and problems our planet faces—and helping solve them. Or having careers that are engaging and well paid. Imagine girls paving the way in innovation and design. And teaming up with peers to invent the future. Girls are making this dream into a reality every day, thanks to science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM).

Research shows that girls are interested in STEAM and excel at it. Yet, for a variety of reasons, girls often don’t pursue STEAM opportunities—starting as early as elementary school.

But we can change that! Let your girl see that STEAM can help her make the world a better place! Girl Scouts who participate in girl-focused STEAM programs…

  • Become better problem-solvers, critical thinkers, and inspirational leaders
  • Get better grades, earn scholarships, and follow more lucrative career paths
  • See STEAM as the foundation for a meaningful and successful future

Perhaps she’d like to…build a robot, create an app, invent a medical device, develop a video game, design a car, protect the world’s wildlife, send a spacecraft to a far galaxy, cure a disease, keep the ocean clean, study the stars… The possibilities are truly endless!

Help girls become STEAM Superstars! Access your how-to guide here.

Girls enjoy STEAM activities most when they’re hands-on and collaborating with friends or troop sisters. Girl Scouts with robotics experience consider working with others on a team (77%) and building things with their hands (73%) the most important components of STEAM activities. Girls can customize their STEAM experience with one or more of Girl Scouts’ NEW! Journeys and badges for Daisies, Brownies, and Juniors (K-5th grade).

  • Engineering: Think Like an Engineer Journey. Girls discover how to think like an engineer by participating in hands-on design challenges and completing a Take Action project.
  • Computer Science: Think Like a Programmer Journey. Girls learn how programmers solve problems as they (girls) participate in interactive computational-thinking activities and complete a Take Action project.
  • Outdoor STEM: Think Like a Citizen Scientist Journey. Girls practice the scientific method by undertaking a citizen science project. They make observations, collect data, and work with scientists who provide feedback on research and findings. Girls also complete a Take Action project.
  • Robotics badges: Girls design their own robots after learning how they’re built and programmed. “Unplugged” activities allow girls to earn badges without buying kits.
  • Mechanical Engineering badges: Girls complete hands-on engineering activities, such as building and testing rollercoasters, race cars, and gliders (Daisies and Brownies only).

With girls and STEAM – our future is bright!

Uncategorized

Citrus Council Launches ‘Citrus Scouterships’ as Part of a…

The month of November is widely regarded as the start of the “giving” season. Many use this time to reflect on the situation of others and donate their time, money and gifts throughout the community. The efforts are recognized globally and in social media, on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving as #GivingTuesday.

This year, Citrus Council will be making a direct investment in the development and growth of the Central Florida community. The council will be covering the membership fee of any girl looking to join or renew in the Girl Scouts, through Citrus Scouterships. The Scouterships will conclude on November 28, as part of Citrus Council’s culminating effort for #GivingTuesday.

In October, the Girl Scouts of Citrus Council launched their Hurricane Irma Relief initiative, providing Scouterships to girls in Central Florida for the month of October. Although this came about in the wake of Hurricane Irma, it quickly expanded to include those affected by Hurricane Maria. Many were able to take advantage of the Scouterships, but still many more were left out.

In an effort to include as many of the local community as possible and embrace the many families transitioning into Central Florida, Citrus Council has relaunched the Scouterships initiative, open to all girls during this month. For many girls, the Girl Scout experience provides an incredible leadership opportunity and for others a sense of normalcy during difficult times.

To apply…

New Girl Scouts:

  • Visit www.citrus-gs.org
  • Click JOIN NOW
  • Fill out your information & click Continue
  • Select a troop OR choose UNSURE, entering ‘Scouterships’ in the comment box
  • Select Financial Aid as the payment method

Renewing Girl Scouts:

  • Visit MY GS
  • Click RENEW
  • Select Financial Aid as the payment method

*Does not apply to memberships purchased prior to launch of campaign. Does not apply to adult memberships.

Girls participating in these Scouterships are encouraged to participate in the cookie program and fall product program in order to have a financially sustainable troop. This will allow them to earn enough funds to maintain their membership for years to come. Girls are also encouraged to partake in the ‘Do Anything’ program series, where they will experience and learn about a range of applicable life skills for their continued development.

Service Community

Fall Back, Change the World

Aren’t we always saying we wish we had more time? Well with daylight savings, today we do. It may just be one hour—but Girl Scouts know how to get creative to make that hour count.

So let’s use the extra time to do what Girl Scouts love most—change the world! Here are four ways to make the world a better place today (and every day):

  1.  Donate an hour. Instead of letting this gift of time fly past you, offer to help a friend with a project; volunteer at a local community center, animal shelter, or charity event; initiate an impromptu trash cleanup in your neighborhood… There are so many options! Whatever you choose, doing something thoughtful with that extra hour can go a long way.
  2.  Have a lunch pack party. Feed some mouths and a few souls with a lunch pack party. Get your friends together and ask them to supply Ziploc bags, bread, cold cuts, sliced cheese, condiments, fruit, and bottled water. Then get to packing! If you have just four friends over and each of you assembles 10 lunch packs, that’s 40 people you can go out and feed in one day—how awesome is that? And if you can’t make it out during lunch, that’s OK; distribute the packs around dinnertime instead. For a little extra nourishment, include a note with a few hope-filled words in each one! It may take a little longer than an hour, but it will be worth it.
  3.  Make an overdue phone call. Is there a friend you’ve been meaning to get in touch with for a while but just haven’t found the time to? Pick up the phone and make it happen! After all, there’s no time like the present. You’ll feel good about reconnecting, and no doubt the other person will too.
  4.  Let someone (or someones) take your place in line. This is an easy thing we can all do to make such a difference—perhaps for a mom or dad rushing home to the kids, for an elderly person who may have trouble standing for long periods, or for someone who’s just having a bad day. So what do you say? Let ‘em cut! Then step to the end of the line and watch your good deed shine.

See? Service comes in doses large and small—even an hour can make a not-so-small difference.

Can you think of other fun and rewarding ways to put your extra hour to good use? What are you waiting for? Leap into leadership, grab your family and friends, and head out to change the world, one modest-yet-powerful act at a time. Girl Scouts is cheering you on!

Uncategorized

Welcoming New Girls to Your Troop

Your troop may already be up and running, but that doesn’t mean it’s too late to welcome new members! Adding new girls to your troop—even midyear—can help energize your group, showcase the Girl Scout spirit of sisterhood and inclusion, and demonstrate by example how Girl Scouts is the best leadership development experience for girls in the world. Period.

After all, Girl Scouts is all about trying new things, building new skills, and getting to know new friends in a safe and supportive all-girl environment—with guidance from caring troop leaders like you, of course!

To smooth the transition for your newbies, incorporate these fun activities into your meetings, and new girls will feel at home in no time at all!

1. Set up a storytelling meet-and-greet!
One of the absolute best ways to connect with others is by swapping stories. Introduce newcomers at their first meeting, then have everyone else introduce themselves, covering the basics, like their first name, age, and years in Girl Scouts. Encourage your seasoned Girl Scouts to go a little more in-depth by sharing something about their families, pets, or interests. Maybe each girl can pick three things about herself she’d like her new Girl Scout sisters to know. Once all troop members have introduced themselves, ask new girls to share some of their own stories.

Be sure to build in time for questions so the girls have even more opportunities to connect and share. Make it super interactive and fun by finishing up the meeting with a cool trivia game to see how much they remember about one another!

2. Showcase what your troop loves to do most! 
At a new girl’s first or second meeting, work with the other girls to plan an activity around things the troop loves to do most, whether that be community service, outdoor adventure, photography, or science experiments. What better way to get a new Girl Scout’s experience off to an exciting and memorable start than to head straight into the action?

At the beginning of the meeting, have a couple girls take the lead and explain the activity and why they love it so much. For subsequent meetings, give new girls the opportunity to choose activities they love most and help them plan something special to share with the troop!

3. Encourage her to take the lead!

Girl Scouting is all about taking the lead and making things happen, so let newcomers do so early and often. You can start small, having them lead a simple activity, or go big by encouraging them to teach their Girl Scout sisters about an issue that really matters to them. You might also go around the room and have everyone share what taking the lead like a Girl Scout means to them, complete with real-life examples to help new girls really get a grasp of leadership and everything they have the power to accomplish as Girl Scouts. Allow them time to ask questions, too. Learning and leading, that’s how we Girl Scouts do it!
Academics

Prudential Spirit Awards 2018

 

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program is the United States’ largest youth recognition program based exclusively on volunteer community service.

Created in 1995 by Prudential and the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), the program honors middle level and high school students for outstanding service to others at the local, state and national level. Thus far, it has recognized more than 120,000 young people who’ve made a difference – and inspired countless others to consider how they might contribute to their communities.

Top Winners receive sizable cash awards, engraved medallions and an all-expense paid trip with a parent or guardian to Washington, D.C., for the national awards ceremony in late April 2018.

To be eligible, you must:

  • be in grades 5-12 as of November 7
  • be a legal resident of any U.S. state or Washington, D.C.
  • have engaged in a volunteer activity that occurred during the 12 months prior to the date of the application
  • submit a completed application to a school or the head of an official designated local organization by November 7

Girl Scouts can apply online at spirit.prudential.com or nassp.org/spirit. Applications must be submitted to the Citrus Council office no later than November 7, 2017. We will then review applications and select one or more Girl Scouts to represent our council in the state-level judging. If you have any questions of need a paper version of the application, please call 855-670-4787

Awards:

Local Honorees receive a Certificate of Achievement from their schools or organization. Those Local Honorees who qualify (26 hours of service for ages 10 and younger, 50 hours for ages 11-15, and 100 hours for older students) also receive the President’s Volunteer Service Award.

Distinguished Finalists receive an engraved bronze medallion, and other state-level runners-up receive Certificates of Excellence.

State Honorees receive an award of $1,000, an engraved silver medallion, and an all-expense-paid trip with a parent or guardian to Washington, D.C., for national recognition events.

National Honorees receive an additional award of $5,000, an engraved gold medallion, a crystal trophy for their schools or nominating organizations, and a $5,000 grant from The Prudential Foundation for a nonprofit charitable organization of their choice.

Leadership

Founder’s Day: Celebrating the Original G.I.R.L.

October 31 marks Girl Scout founder, Juliette Gordon Low’s birth in 1860 and is celebrated as Founder’s Day across the movement by girls and women who share Juliette’s vision, grit, and adventurous spirit. As the original G.I.R.L. (Go-getter, Innovator, Risk-taker, Leader)™, Juliette saw a bright future for girls, gathering 18 girls in her hometown of Savannah, Georgia, to share what she’d learned abroad about a new outdoor and educational program for youth. With this, the first Girl Scout troop was formed—and the Girl Scout Movement was born to serve all girls nationwide.

Our earliest Girl Scouts, along with our pioneering founder, blazed trails and redefined what was possible for themselves and for girls everywhere. And ever since, Girl Scouts has provided girls with transformative experiences that set them up to lead in their own lives and the world. Because of Girl Scouts, millions of G.I.R.L.s have been prepared for a lifetime of leadership.

Juliette: the original G.I.R.L.

  • Go-Getter: As a child and young adult, she experienced several ear injuries resulting in almost total hearing loss that affected her for the remainder of her life. However, Juliette never let her disability stand as a roadblock to her goals.
  • Innovator: When she was just 16, she convinced her cousins to start the Helping Hands Club with her, to make clothing for families who had recently immigrated to the U.S. This was Juliette’s first foray into civic action, organizing in the community, and inspiring girls to take the lead for the greater good.
  • Risk-Taker: From that first gathering of a small troop of 18 culturally and ethnically diverse girls, Juliette broke the conventions of the time—reaching across class, cultural, and ethnic boundaries to ensure all girls, including those with so-called disabilities, had a place to grow and develop their leadership skills.
  • Leader: A meeting in 1912 with Sir Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of Boy Scouts, inspired Juliette to establish Girl Scouts that same year. Telephoning a cousin from her home, she announced, “I’ve got something for the girls of Savannah, and all of America, and all the world, and we’re going to start it tonight!”

Learn more about the life and legacy of Juliette Gordon Low: http://www.girlscouts.org/en/about-girl-scouts/our-history/juliette-gordon-low.html

How awesome would it be to name a bridge in Savannah, Georgia, in honor of Girl Scout founder Juliette Gordon Low? Let’s make it happen! Sign the petition: http://www.girlscouts.org/en/about-girl-scouts/advocacy/the-girl-scout-advocacy-network/sign-a-petition-to-name-the-savannah-bridge.html

Uncategorized

Citrus Council’s Response to BSA Announcement

As many of you are aware, on October 11th, a historical shift occurred in the scouting world when Boy Scouts of America (BSA) voted to accept girl members into the Boy Scout ranks at the Cub Scout level.

While we would certainly have preferred that their vote go in a different direction, this action in no way influences or changes our very important Girl Scout mission. Every aspect of our programming (local and national) has been designed to be girl focused and girl-led. We remain committed to that ideal as well as the core values and vision of the Girl Scout Movement as established by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912.  Notably, over 59 million living American women can count themselves as alumnae of this incredible organization that began with one woman’s heart and determination to make the world a better place more than 100 years ago.

Our approach to empowering girls and young women, is a proven method for preparing women leaders. Numerous research studies and countless testimonials, clearly recognize that participation in Girl Scout programming has proven highly effective in enhancing leadership qualities, as well as other key indicators of success, for the girls involved. This method is especially effective in at-risk communities; studies have shown that girls who experience our fully immersed single-gender Girl Scout programming demonstrate higher levels of self-confidence and academic success than girls who have not had benefit of our gender-specific and girl-led program opportunities. We greatly respect our BSA peers and the amazing job they have done shaping young men into highly productive American citizens for more than 100 years, however, there are many unanswered questions as to the effectiveness the BSA programming will have on girls. It is unclear as to the impact this will have on the growth and development of girls. The results of which may not be seen until after a generation of girls go through the programming.

As a council, we recognize the convenience this may offer to families who have both boys and girls. Please be clear, we deeply respect the right of all to make the scouting choice they feel best for their family. However, we also deeply hope Girl Scout’s unique girl-led environment, character-building traditions, relevant badge opportunities, and proven life-success outcomes will significantly factor into discussions as families consider their options. Girl Scouts of Citrus will stand true to our mission to build girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place and to the convictions we share through our traditions. We also stand by the value of our program as manifested in years of statistically proven outcomes that demonstrate why a fully immersive single-gender scouting experience offers a powerful and unique choice.

In light of recent cultural challenges and images of violence on the evening news, now more than ever, our girls need a safe space to develop their courage, confidence, and character and to see dignified and composed role models.

The decision of BSA does not diminish our mission, but reinforces the need to provide programming that is relevant to the interests and goals of today’s girl.