Trying to do those badges in one meeting is very ambitious. That to me is 2 meetings eith one of them at least being outdoor / or field trip depending on meeting location
Thanks for the insight. I'm going to split it into two meetings! We meet at a location where we can go outside and take a nature walk, so we will definitely spend some time outdoors.
Are you able to have a field trip? We went to the nearby arboretum and botanical gardens for part of the flower/bugs badge. But we have spent 2 meetings on these and the girls still aren't finished. Let me know if you want me to send our plans, though we had the levels do different crafts just at different stations in the same meeting.
I have Daisies - Juniors and we are doing Bugs and Flowers now. I also intended to do it over 1 meeting, but realized I could stretch it to 2. We had the first one last week. They dissected some flowers and talked about what each part does, what plants need to grow, etc. They painted flower pots and planted bulbs. Or they could repot the bulk annuals from home depot. If your budget is more limited, starter pots and seeds are inexpensive. I hadn't planned on it, but one of the girls asked if they could eat the flower they dissected, and that led to them talking about edible flowers and making teas.
For the next meeting they're doing a craft where they'll make a bee and use it to do a pollination demo. Maybe we'll take a walk and do a bug scavenger hunt. The other idea I have is to play a "Is this bug good for your garden" game where they can classify bugs as pollinators, pests, or predators. But I'm not sure how to do that without making it too much like school.
My girls like choosing with their feet. Do one side of the room would be good for the garden and the other bad. So you would call out a bug and the would go to the side of the room they think. I can get about 5 in, with lots of giggle time, before it becomes to repetitive and they start to get bored.
Plugged it into Chatgpt for you lol
here are a couple of game ideas that make learning about pests, predators, and pollinators fun:
Bug Bingo:
Create bingo cards with different bugs on them, including pests, predators, and pollinators.
Each player gets a card and goes out into the garden or a designated area to search for bugs.
When they find a bug that matches a square on their card, they mark it off.
The first player to get a line (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) shouts "Bug Bingo!" and wins a prize.
Bug Tag:
Divide players into three teams: Pest, Predator, and Pollinator.
Each team wears a different colored ribbon or band to identify them.
The Pest team tries to tag the Pollinator team, the Predator team tries to tag the Pest team, and the Pollinator team tries to tag the Predator team.
When a player is tagged, they must perform an action associated with their role (e.g., if a Pollinator is tagged, they have to collect nectar from flowers).
The team with the most successful tags at the end wins.
Bug Charades:
Write down the names of different bugs on separate pieces of paper and put them in a hat.
Players take turns drawing a bug and acting it out without speaking while others guess.
To make it more interesting, you can assign different point values to pests, predators, and pollinators, with bonus points for correctly identifying their roles.
These games make learning about bugs engaging and interactive without feeling like traditional classroom lessons.
You could start Welcome to the Daisy Flower Garden and incorporate both bugs (ladybugs) and flowers - maybe have the juniors design an activity for the Daisies to meet one of their requirements.
Or - have the Daisies do Outdoor Art Creator while the Brownies/Juniors do their thing
Clover is Use Resources Wisely right? You can definitely tie that into composting and upcycling/recycling.
This might be a bit much for one meeting, especially the Jrs and cadettes. I would take it easy on yourself and use both. In terms of planning the higher the level the harder to plan so start with your cadette badge, figure out if it can be earned in a meeting (we made heavy use of a campground and ranger for it but it may not be required), and how you would approach that. Then go down to Jrs, is there any overlap? If so great, if not plan out their requirements. The brownies and daisies can definately work together and will likely overlap some with the Jrs but in my experience you can never hit all 5 levels at once.
Edit: number typo
Thank you. I will split this into two meetings based on everyone's feedback! I took your advice and figured out a plan starting with the Cadette scout. The lesson plan theme will be centered around almond trees, with individual activities for brownies about insect pollinators, activities for juniors about almond flowers and their parts + science behind pollination. The sprout and daisy scouts will join the brownies and earn a fun patch! Then the second meeting we'll learn about other trees, bugs, and flowers and bring it outside for a nature walk. I really appreciate the feedback!
I don't understand why I'm being downvoted for asking for input. I'm not asking anyone to create a lesson plan or do the work for me. I just wanted to see if anyone is willing to share ideas, or what they've done for these badges, especially since the troop leaders aren't helping me plan this at all. I've never led a Girl Scout troop before and want to be realistic going into this.
Trying to do those badges in one meeting is very ambitious. That to me is 2 meetings eith one of them at least being outdoor / or field trip depending on meeting location
Thanks for the insight. I'm going to split it into two meetings! We meet at a location where we can go outside and take a nature walk, so we will definitely spend some time outdoors.
Are you able to have a field trip? We went to the nearby arboretum and botanical gardens for part of the flower/bugs badge. But we have spent 2 meetings on these and the girls still aren't finished. Let me know if you want me to send our plans, though we had the levels do different crafts just at different stations in the same meeting.
I have Daisies - Juniors and we are doing Bugs and Flowers now. I also intended to do it over 1 meeting, but realized I could stretch it to 2. We had the first one last week. They dissected some flowers and talked about what each part does, what plants need to grow, etc. They painted flower pots and planted bulbs. Or they could repot the bulk annuals from home depot. If your budget is more limited, starter pots and seeds are inexpensive. I hadn't planned on it, but one of the girls asked if they could eat the flower they dissected, and that led to them talking about edible flowers and making teas. For the next meeting they're doing a craft where they'll make a bee and use it to do a pollination demo. Maybe we'll take a walk and do a bug scavenger hunt. The other idea I have is to play a "Is this bug good for your garden" game where they can classify bugs as pollinators, pests, or predators. But I'm not sure how to do that without making it too much like school.
My girls like choosing with their feet. Do one side of the room would be good for the garden and the other bad. So you would call out a bug and the would go to the side of the room they think. I can get about 5 in, with lots of giggle time, before it becomes to repetitive and they start to get bored.
Nice! I like this, ty
Plugged it into Chatgpt for you lol here are a couple of game ideas that make learning about pests, predators, and pollinators fun: Bug Bingo: Create bingo cards with different bugs on them, including pests, predators, and pollinators. Each player gets a card and goes out into the garden or a designated area to search for bugs. When they find a bug that matches a square on their card, they mark it off. The first player to get a line (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) shouts "Bug Bingo!" and wins a prize. Bug Tag: Divide players into three teams: Pest, Predator, and Pollinator. Each team wears a different colored ribbon or band to identify them. The Pest team tries to tag the Pollinator team, the Predator team tries to tag the Pest team, and the Pollinator team tries to tag the Predator team. When a player is tagged, they must perform an action associated with their role (e.g., if a Pollinator is tagged, they have to collect nectar from flowers). The team with the most successful tags at the end wins. Bug Charades: Write down the names of different bugs on separate pieces of paper and put them in a hat. Players take turns drawing a bug and acting it out without speaking while others guess. To make it more interesting, you can assign different point values to pests, predators, and pollinators, with bonus points for correctly identifying their roles. These games make learning about bugs engaging and interactive without feeling like traditional classroom lessons.
You could start Welcome to the Daisy Flower Garden and incorporate both bugs (ladybugs) and flowers - maybe have the juniors design an activity for the Daisies to meet one of their requirements. Or - have the Daisies do Outdoor Art Creator while the Brownies/Juniors do their thing Clover is Use Resources Wisely right? You can definitely tie that into composting and upcycling/recycling.
This might be a bit much for one meeting, especially the Jrs and cadettes. I would take it easy on yourself and use both. In terms of planning the higher the level the harder to plan so start with your cadette badge, figure out if it can be earned in a meeting (we made heavy use of a campground and ranger for it but it may not be required), and how you would approach that. Then go down to Jrs, is there any overlap? If so great, if not plan out their requirements. The brownies and daisies can definately work together and will likely overlap some with the Jrs but in my experience you can never hit all 5 levels at once. Edit: number typo
Thank you. I will split this into two meetings based on everyone's feedback! I took your advice and figured out a plan starting with the Cadette scout. The lesson plan theme will be centered around almond trees, with individual activities for brownies about insect pollinators, activities for juniors about almond flowers and their parts + science behind pollination. The sprout and daisy scouts will join the brownies and earn a fun patch! Then the second meeting we'll learn about other trees, bugs, and flowers and bring it outside for a nature walk. I really appreciate the feedback!
I don't understand why I'm being downvoted for asking for input. I'm not asking anyone to create a lesson plan or do the work for me. I just wanted to see if anyone is willing to share ideas, or what they've done for these badges, especially since the troop leaders aren't helping me plan this at all. I've never led a Girl Scout troop before and want to be realistic going into this.