At Girl Scouts, girls’ dreams are our dreams and Girl Scouts is where girls see the limitless possibilities ahead, because they are encouraged to aim for the stars and reach them! Whether she’s making a new friend on the playground, raising her hand in class, starting her own nonprofit, or advocating for climate change or social justice, a Girl Scout builds a better world—just as Girl Scouts have been doing for over a century. With programs in every zip code, coast-to-coast and around the globe, every girl can find her place in Girl Scouts and start creating the world she wants to see.
Who Can Join Girl Scouts? 
The Girl Scout Leadership Experience (GSLE)
When girls participate in the GSLE, they gain measurable leadership skills outcomes that fuels their success.
The Girl Scout Leadership Experience comes to life when activities are led by girls, features cooperative learning, and girls are engaged in learning by doing. These are the three program processes that allow girls to ask questions, offer ideas, use their imaginations, learn to work together, brainstorm, problem-solve, and reflect on their experiences.
Girls’ time in Girl Scouting isn’t a to-do list, so please don’t ever feel that checking activities off a list is more important than tuning in to what interests girls and sparks their imaginations. Projects don’t have to come out perfectly—in fact, it’s a valuable learning experience when they don’t—and girls don’t have to fill their vests and sashes with badges. Because what matters most is the fun and learning that happens as girls make experiences their own, don’t be afraid to step back and let your girls take the lead.
Reflection
Was a badge-earning activity a resounding success? Or was it derailed by something the girls hadn’t factored in? No matter an activity’s outcome, you can amplify its impact by encouraging your girls to reflect on their latest endeavor.
Reflection is the necessary debrief that reinforces what the girls learned. As they explore the “whats” and “whys,” girls make meaningful connections between the activity at hand and future challenges that come their way. In other words, reflection gives girls the confidence boost they need to pick themselves up, try again, and succeed.
Reflection doesn’t need to be a formal process, but you can kick-start the conversation with three simple questions: What?, So what?, and Now what?
- Go over with girls the what of the activity. For example, ask, “What did we do today? What part was your favorite? If we did it again, what would you want to do differently and what would you repeat?”
- Then move to the so what elements. You might ask, “So what did you learn by doing this activity? So what did you learn about yourself? So what did you learn about your community (or environment, school, or others) that you didn’t know before?”
- Lastly, review the now what with the girls. Say something like, “Now that we’ve done this, what would you like to do next? Now that you know this about yourselves, what would you like to try next? Now that we did this Take Action project, what do you think we should do next to make sure it continues on?” What?, So what?, and Now what?—or whatever style of reflection you choose to use with your girls—are powerful elements of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience, and they’ll carry these lessons with them for the rest of their lives.
Progression
Although program elements—like outdoor expeditions or entrepreneurial ventures—align across all grade levels, Girl Scout Brownies and Juniors won’t be doing the same activities as seasoned Seniors and Ambassadors. But with your support, they will get there!
Girl Scout programming is designed to be progressive, and it’s what makes Girl Scouting fun and effective! By building on the knowledge and skills they gain year after year, your girls’ confidence will grow exponentially, and they’ll be eager to take the next steps. As a volunteer, you will cultivate a supportive, nonjudgmental space where girls can test their skills and be unafraid to fail. Keep in mind that good progression drives success for girls.
Inclusion and Belonging
Juliette Gordon Low founded Girl Scouts over 100 years ago as an innovative movement where all would be welcomed. We continuously strive to build a diverse, equitable, and inclusive organization that supports the many faces, cultures, and walks of life that proudly make up our vibrant community. It is essential to our mission that every individual’s ideas and perspectives are sought out, heard, respected, and valued. Together, we empower girls to make the world a better place.
How to make a troop more inclusive:
- Create an environment that values and respects diversity. Foster a belief in your troop that everyone benefits from having a diverse group of girls, by helping the girls be aware of and appreciate the commonalities and differences that they can and can’t see.
- Make sure all girls have the opportunity to fully engage in activities and have access to opportunities and information. This may mean helping girls overcome barriers to participation, adjusting activities, or even changing how you communicate.
- Model respectful ways to interact with all people. Girls learn by watching how adults interact with girlsand other adults.
- Be mindful of your own biases and assumptions about others by leading with empathy and encourage girls to do the same.
- Be conscious of and avoid using generalized statements about groups or types of people and don’t referto a person based on a particular characteristic like race, gender, ability, sexual orientation, education, socioeconomic status and religion.
- Get to know the girls and their families. Remember that all families are different and keep that in mind when planning family events. Girls may have really engaged grandparents, caregivers, or other family members who should be included in important ceremonies and occasions. Also, pay attention to special holidays and cultural traditions that may conflict with troop plans or limit a girl’s participation.
The Important Difference Between Badges and Journeys
Journeys and badges are designed to give girls different leadership-building experiences, all while having fun!
- Journeys are multi-session leadership experiences through which girls explore topics. Because of their leadership focus, Journeys are also a prerequisite for the highest awards in Girl Scouting: the Bronze, Silver, and Gold Awards.
- Badges are all about skill building. When a Girl Scout earns a badge, it shows that she’s learned a new skill. It may even spark an interest at school or plant the seed for a future career. And remember: you’ll have fun and learn by doing right alongside your troop!
If they choose, your Girl Scouts can pursue badges and Journey awards in the same year; encourage them to find the connections between the two to magnify their Girl Scout experience! While you’re having fun, keep in mind that the quality of a girl’s experience and the skills and pride she gains from earning Journey awards and skill-building badges far outweigh the quantity of badges she earns.
As a volunteer, you don’t have to be the expert in any badge or Journey work. In fact, when you show that you’re not afraid to fail and willing to try something new, you are modeling what is it is to be a Girl Scout. Our badge and Journey requirements are structured so your girls can learn new skills without you having to be an expert in all the topics, including STEM.
Emblems and Patches
In addition to Journey awards and badges, girls can commemorate their Girl Scout adventures with emblems and patches, which can be worn on their tunics, vests or sashes.
- Emblems show membership in Girl Scouts, a particular council, a particular troop, or in some other Girl Scout group. These can be worn on the front of a sash or vest (see the diagram in the handbook section of The Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting to see where these are placed).
- Patches are developed at the national or council level with a focus on participation. Some come with companion activity booklets, while others are given out at events. These are worn on the back of the tunic, sash or vest, since they are not emblems or earned awards.
You can purchase emblems and patches—along with badges and leadership awards—at Girl Scouts of Western Ohio’s shops or by visiting the GSUSA online shop. There, you not only find a cool list of the earned awards for each grade level, but you can also click on a link that shows you exactly where girls can place all their emblems, awards, badges, pins, and patches on their vests and sashes!
The Difference Between Community Service and Take Action Projects
As your Girl Scouts look for meaningful ways to give back to their community, you can help sharpen their problem-solving skills and expand their definition of doing good by discussing community service and Take Action projects. Both projects serve essential needs, but at different levels. When a Girl Scout performs community service, she’s responding to an immediate need in a one-off, “doing for” capacity. In other words? She’s making an impact right now!
Through Take Action/service learning, girls explore the root causes of a community need and address it in a lasting way; they truly make the world—or their part of it—a better place.
If your troop members want to pursue their Bronze, Silver, or Gold Award, they’ll develop a Take Action project on an issue that’s close to their hearts. To make Take Action projects even more impactful for your Girl Scouts, set time for them to reflect on their projects. When they make time to internalize the lessons they’ve learned, they’re more likely to find success in their future projects —or anything else they put their minds to.
Traditions and Special Girl Scout Days
Time-honored traditions unite Girl Scout sisters—and the millions of Girl Scout alums who came before them—around the country and around the globe and remind girls how far their fellow trailblazers have come and just how far they’ll go.
A few of those extra special days, when you’ll want to crank up the celebrations, include:
- October 31: Juliette Gordon Low’s birthday or Founder’s Day marks the birth in 1860 of Girl Scouts of the USA founder Juliette Gordon Low in Savannah, Georgia.
- February 22: World Thinking Day celebrates international friendship. It’s an opportunity for Girl Scouts and Girl Guides to connect with each other and explore a common theme around the world.
- March 12: Girl Scouts’ birthday commemorates the day in 1912 when Juliette Gordon Low officially registered the organization’s first 18 girl members in Savannah, Georgia.
- April 22: A day of appreciation for adult volunteers in Girl Scouting. We encourage the girls, their families and service unit/Girl Scout communities to plan special gestures to show appreciation for the adult Girl Scout volunteers in their lives.
Whether they’re making cool SWAPS to share with new friends or closing meetings with a friendship circle, your troop won’t want to miss out on these Girl Scout traditions and special Girl Scout days.
Girl Scout Ceremonies
Ceremonies play an important part in Girl Scouts and are used not only to celebrate accomplishments, experience time- honored traditions, and reinforce the values of the Girl Scout Promise and Law, but also to encourage girls to take a short pause in their busy lives and connect with their fellow Girl Scouts in fun and meaningful ways. Many examples of ceremonies—for awards, meeting openings and closings, and so on—are sewn right into the Journeys, including ideas for new ceremonies girls can create.
Girls use ceremonies for all sorts of reasons. Here’s a brief list so that you can become familiar with the most common Girl Scout ceremonies:
- Bridging Ceremonies mark a girl’s move from one grade level of Girl Scouting to another, such as from Junior to Cadette. (Note that Fly-Up is a special bridging ceremony for Girl Scout Brownies who are bridging to Juniors.)
- Closing Ceremonies finalize the meeting, with expectations for the next. A closing ceremony may be as simple as a hand squeeze while standing in a circle.
- Court of Awards is a time to recognize girls who have accomplished something spectacular during the Girl Scout year.
- Flag Ceremonies can be part of any activity that honors the American flag.
- Girl Scout Highest Awards Ceremonies honor Girl Scout Juniors who have earned the Girl Scout Bronze Award (Cadettes who have earned the Silver Award; Seniors or Ambassadors who have earned the Gold Award) and are usually held for a group and combined with council recognition.
- Girl Scouts Own is a girl-led program that allows girls to explore their feelings and beliefs around a topic (such as the importance of friendship or the personal meaning they get from the Girl Scout Promise and Law) using the spoken word, favorite songs, poetry, or other methods of expression. It is never a religious ceremony.
- Investiture welcomes new members, girls or volunteers, into the Girl Scout family for the first time. Girls receive their Girl Scout, Brownie Girl Scout, or Daisy Girl Scout pin at this time.
- Opening Ceremonies start troop meetings and can also begin other group meetings.
- Pinning Ceremonies help celebrate when girls receive grade-level Girl Scout pins.
- Rededication Ceremonies are opportunities for girls and volunteers to renew their commitment to the Girl Scout Promise and Law
Signs, Songs, Handshake, and More!
Over time, any organization is going to develop a few common signals that everyone understands. Such is the case with Girl Scouts, who have developed a few unique ways to greet, acknowledge, and communicate, some of which are listed here.
Girl Scout Sign
The sign is formed with the right hand, by using the thumb to hold down the pinky, leaving the three middle fingers extended to represent the three parts of the Promise.
Girls give the sign when they:
Say the Promise or Law.
Are welcomed into Girl Scouts at an investiture ceremony that welcomes new members or when they receive an award, patch, pin, or other recognition.
Greet other Girl Scouts and Girl Guides.
Girl Scout Handshake
Another form of greeting between Girl Guides and Girl Scouts is the Girl Scout handshake. Girls raise their right hand in the Girl Scout sign and shake using their left hand, denoting friendliness and loyalty.
Quiet Sign
The quiet sign can be extremely useful to you as a volunteer, so teach it to girls during your first meeting. Raise your right hand high with an open palm, this refers to the original 5th law of Girl Scouting: A Girl Scout is courteous. As girls in the group see the sign, they stop talking and also raise their hands. Once everyone is silent, the meeting can begin.
Girl Scout Slogan and Motto
The Girl Scout slogan is, “Do a good turn daily.” The Girl Scout motto is, “Be prepared.”
Songs
Whether singing around a campfire or joining a chorus of voices at the Mall in Washington, D.C., Girl Scouts have always enjoyed the fun and fellowship of music. In fact, the first Girl Scout Song Book, a collection of songs put together by girl members, was published in 1925.
Songs can be used to open or close meetings, enhance ceremonies, lighten a load while hiking, or share a special moment with other Girl Scouts. Check out Girl Scouts of Western Ohio’s online songbook and videos here.
My Promise, My Faith Pin
The Girl Scout Law includes many of the principles and values common to most faiths. And even though Girl Scouts is a secular organization, we’ve always encouraged girls to explore spirituality via their own faiths. Girls of all grade levels can now earn the My Promise, My Faith pin. By carefully examining the Girl Scout Law and directly tying it to tenets of her faith, a girl can earn the pin once a year. You can find more about the requirements for this pin in The Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting.
Highest Awards
Girl Scout Travel and Destination
Outdoor Adventures
For over 100 years, girls have discovered, explored, and strengthened their outdoor skills and commitment to environmental stewardship through Girl Scouting. Guided by supportive adults and peers, Girl Scouts discover the wonders of nature, experience the thrill of adventure, and challenge themselves and one another to reach new heights!
Girl Scouts’ national outdoor programming features a variety of fun, challenging, and experiential activities that empower girls as they develop attitudes, skills, and behaviors essential to effective leadership in the outdoors:
- Outdoor Competence: Girls engage safely and responsibly in a range of outdoor activities (e.g., practicing Leave No Trace and knowing what to bring to be prepared in the outdoors).
- Outdoor Confidence: Girls have confidence in their outdoor abilities and are willing to try new and challenging outdoor activities.
- Outdoor Interest: Girls have a love of nature and an interest in the natural world.
- Environmental Stewardship: Girls understand how their behaviors impact the environment and what they can do to protect the natural world.
* A 2019 Report from the Girl Scout Research Institute: Girl Scouts Soar in the Outdoors
How to Locate and Sign up for GSWO Events
Visit our events page. Here you will see a list of all the different events. You can click on an event to see full details.
OR
Visit mygs. You will be prompted to log-in. Select the yellow “Join” box in the upper right corner. Scroll down and select “Find Events.”
Finding Events
Discover the upcoming events in a variety of ways:
- “Explore Events”: Use filters to narrow down your search, remember to put your zip code in and change the radius of your search. If you are looking for something GSWO specific. Select the box “Show only the events of My Council”. Virtual events are all listed under zip code 45242, so use that when searching!
- “Event List”: Events are listed by month and name. “Advanced Search” on this page will allow you to filter options and categories
- “Event Calendar”: Events are listed chronologically by date.
Registering for Events Search:
- Locate the event that you would like to register for and click “Register Now” – this will take you to the event information and registration page.
- Click on “Register Now”
If you have not signed into your myGS account, you will be prompted to sign in before continuing with your registration.
- On the left you will see a description and details of the event that you have selected.
- On the right you will see the sign-up/shopping cart. Use the “+” to select the number of spots you need.
- Click “Add Events”
Add Details:
- Add attendee name(s) from the drop-down menu
- Choose your payment option
- Click “Submit Member Details”
- Click “Review Cart”
Review Cart:
- Review your order for accuracy
- Review and agree to the Girl Scout Promise and Law by clicking the check box.
- Click “Add Payment Details”
Make Payment:
- Enter payment and billing address
- Click “Submit Payment”
- You will now see your payment confirmation and order #.
- You have successfully registered for your event!
For more on how to log into myGS and how to register for events visit our GSWO YouTube channel and watch our myGS Training Playlist. If at any point in the process you hit a snag, please contact Customer Care for assistance at 888.350.5090 or send them an email.
The Girl Scout Program: National Program Pillars & More
Important Differences: Journeys and Badges
Important Differences: Community Service and Take Action Projects
Traditions, Ceremonies, and Special Girl Scout Days
Highest Awards
Girl Scout Travel and Destinations
© Copyright 2009–2022 Girl Scouts of the United States of America. All rights reserved. All information and material contained in Girl Scouts’ Volunteer Essentials guide (“Material”) is provided by Girl Scouts of the United States of America (GSUSA) and is intended to be educational material solely to be used by Girl Scout volunteers and council staff. Reproduction, distribution, compiling, or creating derivative works of any portion of the Material or any use other than noncommercial uses as permitted by copyright law is prohibited, unless explicit, prior authorization by GSUSA in writing was granted. GSUSA reserves its exclusive right in its sole discretion to alter, limit, or discontinue the Material at any time without notice.
