Guest Author - Diana Laulainen-Schein

The theme for World Thinking Day 2005 is FOOD!

Thinking Day is celebrated internationally every February by Girl Scouts and Guides. Thinking Day has been celebrated since 1926 when it was founded at a World Conference (held that year in the United States). It is intended to be a day in which Girl Scouts and Guides around the world think about one another.

The actual date of Thinking Day the 22nd of the month to honor the birthdays of Lord Baden-Powell (the founder of Boy Scouts in England) and his wife, Lady Olave, but in practice, Thinking Day is generally celebrated any day in February.

Activities for this special day can encompass any theme related to widening our understanding of people, and particularly other Scouts and Guides, around the world.

Each year there is a national theme and groups of troops in neighborhoods or councils can join together in celebration. At any Thinking Day event, each troop can adopt a single country and to organize activities and information to present to their fellow troops. Girls attending such an event would present their country but would also have an opportunity to learn about the other countries and activities being presented by other troops.

For example, if the national theme is "World Festivals," activities could include traditional games, art projects, and/or the making of swaps related to the project. A troop adopting the English observation of Boxing Day could provide the materials for making a British-themed swap and would present information on this holiday to their sister troops. A troop presenting Cinco de Mayo/Mexico may choose to offer a traditional Mexican game, and a troop focusing on Brazil's Carnival may choose to dress in costume and teach others the Samba dance.

In observing Thinking Day 2005, girls around the world will likely have a chance to sample a wide variety of food, but other ideas in observation of this theme could include a recipe swap or troop service projects focused on food banks and hunger in their communities.