Programs
Ways to participate:
|
Troops |
Camp |
Events |
Outreach |
The Girl Scout Leadership Experience
For nearly a century, Girl Scouts has helped girls become leaders. Not the stereotypical stand-in-front, boss-people-around variety of leadership, but the much more nuanced, real-world leadership to which today's girls aspire:
- Knowing yourself and using that knowledge to understand the world around you.
- Standing up for what you think is right and working cooperatively with others to make sure the "right" things happen.
Over the last few years, Girl Scouts has asked thousands of girls, parents, volunteers, and youth development experts across the country what girls want and need and how to make our volunteers' work easier. The reassuring outcome of these conversations was that Girl Scouts has been doing a lot of the right things all along. Only a few additions were needed:
- A better way to describe everything Girl Scouts provides for girls.
- A framework to make sure all girls and volunteers get the most out of Girl Scouting.
- Methods to ensure that all girls gain the skills to become the type of leader they dream of becoming.
This is where the Girl Scout Leadership Experience (GSLE) comes in. The Girl Scout Leadership Experience was created to encompass everything we know and love about Girl Scouts -- like troops, camp, patches, cookies, and events -- as well as the additions above.
In the model of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience above, the activites we do in Girl Scouts and the way that we do them (processes) result in outcomes that empower girls to become leaders.
Outcomes
Girls who participate in Girl Scouts benefit in a multitude of ways. Girl Scouts has identified 15 specific outcomes that girls achieve through Girl Scouting. These outcomes are organized around three themes:
-
Discover
Girls understand themselves, their values, and their world
-
Connect
Girls care about, inspire, and team with others
-
Take Action
Girls act to make the world a better place
The Girl Scout Leadership Experience is designed to ensure that every Girl Scout achieves the same outcomes, regardless of how they participate.
Processes
If the outcomes are what girls gain from the Girl Scout Leadership Experience, the processes are how they gain them. These processes are the heart of Girl Scouting. The processes are:
-
Girl-led
Girls play an active part in figuring out the what, where, when, how, and why of their activities.
-
Learning by doing
Rather than listening to someone tell them about it, girls get in there and do it! They explore their own questions, gain new skills, share ideas, and take time to reflect.
-
Cooperative learning
Girls work together toward shared goals in an atmosphere of respect and collaboration.
Activities
The Girl Scouting activities that we know and love fit within the three themes of Discover, Connect, and Take Action. Girl Scouts of the USA has put together tip sheets by grade level to help Girl Scouts learn How to Use Existing Resources within the Leadership Model.
Amaze! A Cadette Journey
In addition, you may have heard about the exciting new Leadership Journeys for Girl Scouts at each grade level. Each Leadership Journey is comprised of a series of themed activities that focus on building specific leadership skills and engaging girls around an issue they care about. How-to books and facilitator guides will outline each journey and will also contain stories, Girl Scout history, traditions and values, facts and games, and space for girls to fill in their own ideas and memories.
While the how-to books offer plenty of choices for girls, facilitator guides will provide the roadmap volunteers want. In partnership with girls, volunteers can add outings, celebrations, and explorations that suit the journey’s theme and the girls’ interests. Journeys can be stretched over a Girl Scout year or done over the course of a few weeks or months. The first Journey books are available in GSWW Stores.
Frequently Asked Questions
ASK IT!
Have a question that isn't answered here? Submit a question!
Q: What are the new Girl Scout grade levels?
A: Girls say grade level – not age – often determines their social groups. Research shows that girls learn best and have the most fun when they’re in the right developmental and social grouping. To reflect these findings, the new grade levels are:
| Program Level | Grade |
| Girl Scout Daisy | Kindergarden-1st |
| Girl Scout Brownie | 2nd-3rd |
| Girl Scout Junior | 4th-5th |
| Girl Scout Cadette | 6th-8th |
| Girl Scout Senior | 9th-10th |
| Girl Scout Ambassador | 11th-12th |
Q: What about current program resources and awards? Can I keep earning badges, interest project patches (IPPs), and everything else?
A: Yes! Keep using them. GSUSA has some great resources, including tip sheets for each grade level. Find them at How to Use Existing Resources within the Leadership Model.
Q: What are the first set of Journeys about?
A: The first books for girls are all part of the It's Your World Change It! series of leadership journeys. This series features one new book for girls at each grade level in Girl Scouting. The books emphasize inviting girls to "Take Action" on an issue they care about. The books also contain stories, inspirational material, Girl Scout history, traditions and values, facts and games, and blank space for girls to fill in their own ideas and memories.
In addition, corresponding "how-to" books have been created for adults. These guides for adult volunteers offer plenty of support, including customizable sample sessions.
Q: How does this affect the Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards?
A: These awards are important parts of the Girl Scout program! They are definitely not going away. For now, nothing has changed; you’ll still use the “Go For It” booklets for the Silver and Gold Awards and the requirements outlined in the Junior Handbook for the Bronze Award.
Every few years, the requirements for each award are revised and updated to reflect changes in our world. The next update will be released sometime in 2009. No reason to panic, though. If you have started your award project with the old requirements, you get to finish your project with those requirements.
Q: How does this affect the cookie sale program?
A: Daisies can now participate in the cookie sale program. Read more about GSWW's product sale programs.
Q: What resources are there to help me?
A: There are many! Here are some of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience resources:
|
Implementing the New Girl Scout Leadership Experience
GSWW Volunteer Magazine |
Tip Sheets:
Leader Magazine |
|
|
Leader Magazine |
Looking Ahead to the New Girl Scout Leadership Experience
Leader Magazine |
Introducing the New Girl Scout Grade Levels!
GSWW Volunteer Magazine |
| |
||
Q: Are there any resources to help me spread the word about the Girl Scout Leadership Experience and all the cool things happening in Girl Scouts?
A: Yes! Girl Scouts of Western Washington has a Girl Scout Leadership Experience flyer to distribute to parents, troop leaders, and other volunteers.
ASK IT!
Have a question that isn't answered here? Submit a question!