Although I've been too busy to give my bellaonline articles the attention they deserve, I have not been ignoring my troops. Since that's where my energy has gone, I thought I'd share the wealth. Here is my plan for doing the "Her Story" Try it.

Each Try It requires that you do four items. One thing I stress to all my co-leaders is you do NOT have to follow the book exactly but must simply keep to the spirit of the Try it. Hence some of what you see below does appear vaguely familiar if you've consulted the Try It book, but how I've pieced it together was done specifically to target young Brownies who can't write their own timeline. I also focused on a Girl Scout timeline to emphasize all the exciting adventures that are possible if they stay in Scouts over the years. The timeline is being tied into a mom's tea when the girls will share their dreams.

Finally, this Try It is being completed with at least three co-leaders working together to make it happen. My troops are run cooperatively, so no one is doing anything alone.

Her Story

#1. A Girl Scout's Story

Read about Juliette Gordon Low in your Brownie Girl Scout Handbook. Or check out her story online at: www.girlscouts.org/girls . Then try to find a woman in your community who was a Girl Scout a long time ago. Invite her to speak to your troop, if possible, or interview her. Find out about her memories of being a Girl Scout.

I have been a Scout for over 20 years and I will be the speaker and will be brinfing the following items to the meeting to share.

* Old GS pictures
* Daisies I was given as a girl Girl Scout
* Copies of my First Class Award and Gold Award Certificates
* My old vest/my daughter's Brownie vest
* Essay that I used to get into college talking about Girl Scouting
* Juliette Low Storybook to tell her story
* Old handbooks

#5. Help In Your Community

Service is an important part of being a Girl Scout. Look at the section on service on page 92 of your handbook. Would you like to do a service project that helps women and children?

The troop will be participating in a toy drive and gift wrapping presents for other children for Christmas.

#6. Your Story

Think about where you will be when you are a grown-up. Create a time line for yourself like the one below. Write in your time line what you would like to do or to have happen in your future.

We will focus on what the girls want to do as Girl Scouts and do this as a group (since most don’t write well at this point) on a board. Hopefully, talking about what I did as a girl and what my older daughter has done will give them ideas. We'll share their "dreams" with the moms at the mom's tea.

My Timeline (from the Brownie Handbook)
Age:
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17

#4. A Ceremony to Honor Women

Plan a simple ceremony to honor women. We’re going to honor their moms.

Theme: “Mom: Watch me Grow”

We’ll share out “Girl Scout timelines” that will illustrate their dreams "as they grow" with the moms, and I’ll have a back-up activity to add to the tea if we need it (singing, most likely).

As for the rest of the tea, first, don’t tell the moms, it’ll be a surprise, but you’ll have to ask that they all attend even if they aren’t going to training. Then:

Co-leader #1 will bring pots and potting soil and a variety of flower seeds. She will get a variety and we’ll put them in a bowl and not tell them girls or the moms what they are. We’ll have the girls paint the pots and plant four seeds without telling them what they are. As the seed grows both mom and daughter can see what was planted. The idea is that you don't know how Girl Scouts will help you grow into a young woman just as you don't know what flowers will grow in the pots. We will paint the pots and otherwise decorate them for the moms. I was thinking stick-on jewels or ribbon or???

Co-leader #2 will you bake some flower cookies (to match the theme) and bring in some “tea” (how about lemonade?) and something to pretty up the rooms to look like a tea party.

So there it is a well-earned Try It tailored for a first-grade troop and emphasizing continuing in Girl Scouts into high school. Doing it this way will educate both the girls and their moms about the many adventures that await them.