girl scouting

[indiana ima]

i have two daughters, one is not yet three and the other only 4 months old. i've long thought that i would like them to have the opportunity to get involved in scouting.
sadly, boy scouts has become an organization that i won't permit my 5 year old son to join.
but i think girl scouts is great. any thoughts? advice? things to make sure to do or watch out for or fill-in-the-blank?
how old was your daughter / neice / friend / cousin / sister / whatever when she started with girl scouts? did/does she like it?

oops! baby crying, gotta go!

[MamaBug]

My best friend has two girls ages 5 and 10 in GS. She is also their leader, one is a Daisy and one is a GS. She is very involved and I think that is the best way to be. Even if you can't be the leader then make sure you have an active part. Help with activites, make costumes, sign up for jobs when the leader needs help. I was a girl scout and I LOVED it, that is where my best friend and I met and we are still going strong 30 years later!

[TiredX2]

You could always consider camp fire which is for boys & girls

[Linda KS]

This is our second year in GS. Last year my DD were Kindergarten and first grade age. My DDs love GS. They do lots of different things and they really enjoy being around the other girls. Every troop is a little different, and every council is a little different. We haven't had any major problems.

I'm the co-leader of their troop this year. If you aren't going to be a leader or co-leader, make sure you help out with the troop sometimes both to lessen the load and so that you know the other girls and moms. Last year I helped out by driving for field trips, doing a newsletter for one of their troops, and helping at some meetings.

For the most part, really nice families sign their kids up for GS. We've met sweet kids through scouting.

[charmarty]

i am interested in this for my 4 year old dd's

[dziejen]

My 8yo dd is in Brownie Girl Scouts -- she started at age 5 as a Daisy and this is her 4th yr. She loves it and her troop has many opportunities for parents to get involved. She is quiet and enjoys that it is non-competitive but she also loves being with the other girls, has participated in many crafts and activities. She also did a week-long day camp last year. This year my youngest is old enough to come along with us so I may volunteer at the camp for the week. My only caution would be to get to know the Troop Leaders well and make sure that you like and trust them. Our leader used to be our neighbor and she is a mom of 5 and I really like the way that she treats her children so we are comfortable letting her go places with the girls even when we can't be there the entire time. So far Girl Scouts has been a good experience for us.

[indiana ima]

thanks for mentioning camp fire. i don't know anything about it. i found the web site of the closest council but i can't tell if they have kid groups in my town. it's not a very well done web site!

so it sounds like kids can start girl scouts at 5 years of age? anyone start their kid at 4?

[Nankay]

I was leery of having dd join..I HATE groups/uniforms/groupthink/slogans/pledges..etc. BLECH But she did--dh was all for it. It was a NIGHTMARE. I know all troops are different...but I won't even buy girl scout cookies now.

I posted about this at
http://www.mothering.com/discussions...ht=girl+scouts

[indiana ima]

wow, nankay. thanks for sending me to that thread. my son seems to have PDD, so it was actually more interesting on that level than anything else. it's rotten to hear that girl scout troops can be so discriminatory. perhaps this is why so many previous posters say that if i want to involve my DD, i need to be a leader!

[Linda KS]

Originally Posted by indiana ima

so it sounds like kids can start girl scouts at 5 years of age? anyone start their kid at 4?

The first level of GS is Daisies, which is for girls who are Kindergarten age.

Nankay, I'm so sorry for your experience. That was just awful, it isn't GS policy, and it never should have happened.

[AmyAngel]

Hi, not a mom yet, but I was in Girl Scouts for 12 years (they didn't have Daisies when I started - I was actually assistant leader of our area's first Daisy troop when I was in Cadettes!). I hope when I have a daughter I can find a great troop for her to join.

Girl Scouting can be really great, but it really depends a lot on the leader. My mom was always quite involved when I was really young, as a chaperone, volunteer, and sometimes cookie mom or assistant leader. I ended up with the same leader the last almost 9 years, she kind of went up with our troop. She was our town's "woman of the year" one year! I actually worked for her while in college at the day care she owns, and still occasionally use her as a reference when needed. If you have (or ARE) an awesome leader, it can be a really wonderful experience. I got to go many places and learn many things I would never have been able to do otherwise, and my mom was thrilled she got to go with me! It was also kind of cool to go to day camp in the summer the same place my mom camped when she was a kid.

It was a great for me. That said, please be involved at least at first, until you're sure the leader is good (and do this everytime the leader changes). I would want a leader who knows a great deal about the history of GS and its policies and ideals, who is interested in learning, teaching, growing and serving the community. The idea is to turn out educated, resourceful, thoughtful, involved strong women at the end.

Dads can join GS too, as adults, and there was at least one brother who went along sometimes that I can remember. My dad gave us all a lesson on basic car maintenance one time, and traveled on a few of our trips.

[indiana ima]

a friend was just over here, hanging out and baking cookies with me and the kids. she's been a girl scout most of her life - to the point where now she works for the local council. i told her a little about the story of what nankay and her family went through, and she was livid. she said the girl scout motto (or something like that) was "all girls, everywhere" and that the local employees should have been asked for help if the volunteers needed it. she also said that it was absolutely wrong for the father to be excluded.
i guess it just reinforces for me that, as almost everyone in this thread has said, i need to be super-involved in order to ensure that my daughters have a good experience.

[aniT]

You could always consider camp fire which is for boys & girls

I was in camp fire, I always wished my mother had put me in girl scouts. When dd was in Kindergarten I looked into CampFire for her. There were NO councels/troops/groups or anything within 50 miles of us and we lived in the North Bay Area of California.

This is our sixth year of Girl Scouts. DD #1 is about to bridge up to a Cadet later this year. DD#2 just joined the Brownies (there were no daisys where we lived last year.) We just finnished cookies sales. 100 boxes each. This is going to be fun come delivery time!

Both girls love being in the scouts. They get to do activities, crafts, field trips, and meet new friends. The older girls get to do camp outs. I couldn't be happier with the experiance my children have had in the Scouts.

BTW, I haven't read the other thread about the problem you had yet, but let me say that all troups are not the same. We have moved often. DD has had many different leaders and some of them were pretty flakey!!! You could always transfer your dd to another troop you feel more comfortable with. Good luck with your decision and I hope you and your daughter have a rewarding experiance with the Scouts.

[srain]

I loved GS, but do consider whether you want to encourage gender-segregated activities, especially at such a young age.

[my2girlsmama]

My 5 yr old (we're in Canada and under the Girl Guides. No scouts here that I can find for girls) and is in Sparks, which is for K ages....then its Brownies, Guides etc.

I joined her at one local area troupe and just left that one due to stupid leaders...we've just joined another troupe where her old friend from an old school goes and she is happier. I like the carfts, which DD is totally into, and the comraderie. I tend to be leery in leaving her etc but I like the new leaders, very welcoming and kind and busy with the girls...and I plan to stay involved and volunteer in better weather for trips etc.........eventually become a leader maybe.

I think staying involved with ANYTHING your child is into pretty much goes without saying

[indiana ima]

Originally Posted by srain

I loved GS, but do consider whether you want to encourage gender-segregated activities, especially at such a young age.

please elaborate?

[Meiri]

I think for both genders, some seperate activities are good. Not everything they do should be gender seperate, but some is good for them, both.

DD loves Daisy Scouts, and I've gotten involved as a co-leader. I'm loving being involved in Girl Scouts again. I *gulp* may end up as a Brownie leader next year, maybe, but I'd rather be an assistant.

[TiredX2]

I think for both genders, some seperate activities are good. Not everything they do should be gender seperate, but some is good for them, both.

I'm not attacking your opinion, just wondered the *why* behind it. When discussing kids in the 5-8 age range (I guess this forum is specifically 3-8, but girl scouts doesn't go down that far) what do you think the advantages are in gender seperate activities?

TIA,
Kay

[Marsupialmom]

I think one reason it is good to have separate activities is ABILITIES/developmental differences. At that age girls typically have better motor and language skills.

My son had motor skills issues but I remember in early ed programs and in K how many boys were frustrated by the fine motor skills that was asked of them. I saw girls frustrated by the gross motor skills boys needed.

I want my girls active in sports but have found there are times that the physical differences between male and female means they need separate sports. I think this principles applies here.

One of my reserve about Brownies they don’t seem to be as “rough-n-tumble” as many girls want. This is one reason why Ventures was created but it is for teen age girls and boys.

[dolphinkisser]

I just want to pipe in and tell you about 4H. I am a 4H leader and it can be very discouraging at times because some parents take you for granted and then blame you if things go wrong but they are the ones that don't lift a finger to help. Luckily i have gathered ( over time) a group of committed parents and i have a nice stable club.
4h does not segregate in terms of age or sex...clubs are comprised of boys and girls between the ages of 5-21. The categorization of clubs seem to be more based on common interest. My club is into animals so we do community service project for the ASPCA and we have a petfood drive. Our latest project is making petbeds so that we can raise funds for homeless animals.
My daughter is involved in Girl Scouts also. I am an assistant leader. I am having trouble with the politics of our local council. Unfortunately , we have a woman who is in control who seems to do everything that girl scouts stands AGAINST....i.e exclusiveness...she picks and chooses who could be part of the ' Girl Scout Leader clique" ( if you are from the right family or have money)...i was definitely not part of the clique and service coordinator did not want me to be there...the troop leader made a stink and said she wanted me as an assistant and that i worked well with the girls. ( see this service coordinator had never even seen me interact with kids and i had at that time been a teacher for 12 years). I have a lot of bitterness and i am working on forgiveness ( at times i think i am there but she has her nose in everything). Anyway...my point is...yes the ideal of Girl Scouts is wonderful but it only takes one person who is on a powertrip to ruin the whole Girl Scout message. Thanks for reading my epistle. .