AA Girl Scout Brownie’s Guide Girl Scout Brownie’s Guide ... · Use this guide to introduce...
Transcript of AA Girl Scout Brownie’s Guide Girl Scout Brownie’s Guide ... · Use this guide to introduce...
Ten activities to introduce girls to plants, camp, and the outdoors.
A Girl Scout Brownie’s GuideA Girl Scout Brownie’s Guideto the Environmentto the Environment
Learning to respect and take care of the world around us is an important part of the Girl Scout experience.
Use this guide to introduce girls to the wonders of the world around them. It’s a great tool to use before taking girls on their first hike, or heading off to Girl Scout camp.
Many of the activities in this booklet can help Girl Scouts earn badges and awards—they are listed on the top of each page.
Let’s get started!
#1 Pick the Right Gear for an Outdoor HikeThis activity fulfills step 3 of the Brownie Hiker badge.
Just like you can’t play sports without the right
equipment (playing soccer without a ball would
be pretty tough!), you can’t hike
without the right gear. By the end of this
activity, you should have your hiker backpack
ready.
Visit an outdoor store or ask an experienced hiker what they pack for a hike.
Questions to ask:
Clothes: What will I need for cool days? For
warm days? For weather unique to my area?
Shoes: What kind of shoes will be best for my
hike?
Backpack: How do I know it fits me? How
much room should it have for supplies?
First-Aid Kit: What should I put in it?
Water: What will I carry it in? How will I keep it
cool?
Try It! Camp Fashion Show
Make a pile of all types of clothes and pick the best and worst ones for camping. Then show them off to your
friends or family and see if they can tell which are the best for camping and which are the worst and why.
What else might you put in your backpack to bring on your hike?
2
#2 TrailmarkingThis activity fulfills step 2 of the Brownie Hiker badge.
Trail Signs
this way
or
or
or
keep going
go ten stepsthis way
campthis way
wait here for next direction
end of the trailI have gone home
turn around and go back
split your group. half go left, half go right
stop, go another way
danger
Hikers use trail signs to leave messages so another group can
find or follow them in the woods. They can be made using sticks,
stones, or other available materials and should be placed where
they can easily be seen by other hikers.
It is important when making trail signs that any wood or plant
materials you use are “dead and down” before using them. You
want to make certain you are not directly disturbing any visible
habitats, or creating opportunity for excessive erosion or other
dangerous situations.
When going on a hike, be sure to:
• Go with an adult
• Use known trails
• Carry a trail map, compass, water bottles, first-aid kit, and
other supplies
• Dismantle trail signs once you have finished using them
Practice making trail signs
Create your own trail through your house
or yard for your friends and family to
follow. Remember to use materials
naturally found in the habitat.
Trying it inside? Mark your trail using
pencils, pens, the remote, a hairbrush, etc.
Trying it outside? Mark your trail by
writing in the dirt or snow, using fallen
twigs, rocks, etc.
Remember to put everything back when
you are done!
3
#3 Make it RainThis activity is part of the It’s Your Planet—Love It! Journey.
Try this activity to create your very own water cycle. Have an adult help you do the experiment below.
Condensation
Runoff
Evap
orat
ion
PrecipitationAs the air cools, the teeny-tiny droplets get bigger and heavier and fall to earth in the form of rain, snow, sleet, or hail.
The amount of water on earth is always the same, but it is constantly moving from the
oceans to the air to the land and back again.
The vapor turns into a cloud, which is a group of teeny-tiny
water droplets. The wind carries the cloud over to the land.
The water that falls on the land goes
into the rivers and lakes and then flows
back into the oceans.
The
sun
shin
es o
ver t
he o
cean
and
heat
s th
e w
ater
, whi
ch
beco
mes
a v
apor
.
Supplies:
• A drinking glass or glass jar
• Plate
• Hot water
• Ice cubes
• Index cards
Instructions:
• Pour about two inches of very hot water into the
glass container.
• Cover the container with the plate and wait a few
minutes before you start the next step.
• Put the ice cubes on the plate.
• Wait and watch what happens.
What’s happening?
When the plate gets cold it causes the moisture in
the warm air that is trapped inside the container to
condense and form water droplets. So you just made
it rain!
This is the same thing that happens when it rains
outside. Warm, moist air rises and meets colder air
high in the atmosphere. The water vapor condenses
and forms droplets (precipitation or rain) that fall to
the ground.
The Water Cycle
4
#4 Go on a Water in the World Scavenger HuntThis activity fulfills step 5 of the Brownie Hiker badge.
A scavenger hunt is a great way to exercise your mind and your body. Gather in small
groups and look for the items listed below. You might decide to look just inside, just
outside, or both.
See if you can find all of the items from the water list!
� Drop of water on a leaf
� Birds using water to take a bath
� Water in another form (steam, ice, snow)
� People using water
What are they doing?
� Animals using water
What are they doing?
� Vegetable garden or other food source that needs water to grow
� Children having fun playing in water
� Puddle
� Stream, river, pond, or lake
� Animals that live in or around a pond or lake
What animals?
� Someone using water to stay hydrated
� Flowers that need water to grow
If you found every item on this list, WOW! you’re good! See if you can come up with any
other water-related items to look for on your own.
P.S. If you’re thirsty from running around looking for all these Wonders of Water, you should drink lots of fluids. Drinking water is part of keeping up your Energy Balance. Water is not only important to our world, it’s important to our bodies. You need water to help boost your immune system, which helps keep you healthy. You also need it for good digestion. And every cell in your body depends on water to function properly. So drink up!
5
#5 Paint with Kool AidThis activity fulfills step 4 of the Brownie Painting badge.
Think of your favorite water place or your favorite kind of water. How do you like to enjoy water? Keep that idea in your
mind as you use Kool Aid crystals to paint a beautiful picture of your favorite water place or activity.
Supplies:
• Watercolor paper or regular paper
• Spray bottle
• Kool Aid packets in a couple of different flavors
• Paintbrush or Q-tips
• Table cloth or something to cover your work surface
Instructions:
1. Begin by making sure your work surface is covered.
2. Sprinkle different colors of Kool Aid powder on your
paper.
3. Activate the colors by using a spray bottle to add water
to your picture. The goal is not to soak the paper, but to
spray just enough so the colors show up.
4. Add more sprinkles of Kool Aid powder if your picture
needs it or use a paintbrush or Q-tip to move the colors
around or make shapes.
Water is a very precious resource. It’s something that
we have a limited quantity of
here on earth. That means
that when we get water
dirty—by adding chemicals
and other contaminants—we
can’t just throw it away and
get new water. Water all over
the earth is connected: It’s
all the same water so let’s be
sure not waste a single drop!
6
#6 Make a Water PromiseThis activity fulfills the LOVE Water and SHARE Water award from the It’s Your Planet—Love It! Journey.
Show that you love water by making a water promise! Name two things you know and love about
water and make one personal promise to protect it.
What I Love About Water
I thought about all the things I like to do in and with water. Then I picked my two favorite things that
I love about water:
1.
2.
My Water Promise
This is how I’m protecting water:
Share Water
Educate others about your water efforts, inspire them to join in and ask them to
commit to a water promise, too.
I educated and inspired these people and they promised to:
People
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Promise
7
Across3. As you walk along the beach you see beautiful shells and driftwood. You stop to look at them
but do not take them with you.
5. Before you leave, you learn the rules of the park you are hiking through and you put your juice in a reusable plastic bottle because they don’t allow glass.
6. When you are finished with your snack, you put your wrappers in your backpack to put in the garbage when you get home.
7. A frog hops in front of you as you hike. You want to take a closer look so you move quietly and watch from a little ways away.
Down1. There is a family walking behind you on a trail. You step to the side and slow down so they can
pass and walk ahead of you.
2. You hike until you find a campsite with a fire pit.
4. You take the trail to the beach instead of through the woods.
#7 Learn How to “Leave No Trace”Before you go hiking, camping, or exploring, pledge to “Leave No Trace!” These seven important tips will help you keep
nature safe when you are outdoors.
Using the clues below,
fill in the crossword with
the correct tip, including
spaces.
The seven principals of
Leave No Trace:
1. Plan ahead.
2. Stay on the trail.
3. Carry out what you
carry in.
4. Leave nature as you
find it.
5. Be careful with fire.
6. Respect wildlife.
7. Be considerate of
other visitors.
1
2
3 4
5
6
7
1
2
3 4
5
6
7
e
e
8
#8 Make a One Pot MealOne way to cook outdoors is in a pot or kettle. One pot meals are easy to cook over a fire. Everything goes in the pot and
then the pot sits over a fire or in coals to cook.
Try a one pot recipe at home on the stove with an adult.
Bags of Gold• 1 can tomato soup• 1 can water• 1 can refrigerator biscuits• 1/2 lb. cheese (Velveeta, American, Cheddar)Put soup and water in pot and slowly heat. Cut biscuits into quarters, cut cheese into 20 cubes. Wrap dough around cheese, drop balls into hot soup, and cook covered until dough is done.
What are some “one pot meals” your family makes at your house?
9
#9 Get Ready for Camp with a SongThis activity fulfills step 1 of the Brownie Girl Scout Way badge.
Girl Scout summer camp promises hot days and one adventure after
another for girls. Learning new things and developing life skills as a leader
is what Girl Scout camp is all about! Songs and games are a tradition at any
Girl Scout camp. Get ready for camp by learning these songs and games.
With an adult’s help, go online to learn a few more Girl Scout songs and
games: www.youtube.com/GirlScoutsWISE
Alive Awake Alert
I’m alive, awake, alert, enthusiastic
I’m alive, awake, alert, enthusiastic
I’m alive, awake, alert
I’m alert, awake, alive
I’m alive, awake, alert, enthusiastic
Brownie Smile
I’ve got something in my pocket
It belongs across my face
I keep it very close to me
In a most convenient place.
I’m sure you couldn’t guess it
If you guessed a long, long while
So I’ll take it out and put it on
It’s a GREAT BIG BROWNIE SMILE!
10
#10 Track Some AnimalsHave you ever seen animal tracks when walking or hiking? With an adult to guide you, take a hike in a nearby park, forest, or
nature area and see if you can find any of the tracks below.
Beaver
Raccoon
Fox
Squirrel
Deer
Skunk
Duck
11
If you enjoyed the outdoor-
themed activities in this
book tell your parents or
troop leaders! They can
go to gswise.org and sign
you up for lots of outdoor
adventures with Girl Scouts.
From summer camp, to rock
climbing, to archery, we
have tons of ways to get you
outside! We’d love to see you
exploring the outdoors with
us this summer!
Finish what you’ve begun and earn Girl Scout Awards!
Some of the activities in
this booklet are from the
Brownie Hiker badge,
Brownie Painting badge,
Brownie Girl Scout Way badge, and It’s Your Planet—Love It! Brownie Journey. You c an
complete the remaining
requirements on your
own to earn the awards.
Get Outside with Girl Scouts!
12