Scouting For Girly Girls.

[SanFranciscan]

I know nothing about most organizations for children because I have none of my own. My friend wanted to put her daughter in Girl Scouts, but the little one is not a good candidate for many of the outdoorsy activities. She is a real girly girl who shuns anything dirty. Are there troops for children like her? What sort of activities do they do?

 

[golfgal]

I know nothing about most organizations for children because I have none of my own. My friend wanted to put her daughter in Girl Scouts, but the little one is not a good candidate for many of the outdoorsy activities. She is a real girly girl who shuns anything dirty. Are there troops for children like her? What sort of activities do they do?

There are very few badges that require outdoorsy activities for girl scouts so she should be ok.

 

[Jennasis]

Troop Beverly Hills?

 

[LaraK]

It really depends on the troop. We tend to do a lot of camping, but some troops don't do any. Talk to other parents and find a troop that works for you. Remember that you can opt out of any of the activities and still be a scout.

 

[Hannathy]

Girl Scouts is not Boy Scouts. You can be a girl Scout and never go camping or go every chance you get it depends on your troop and leaders. My Mother and my Best Friends Mother were my leaders when I was a girl scout and we NEVER went camping never did any outdoor activity (well maybe went to the apple orchard-lol) learned knots on licorice strings! We did all the other badges and social service type activities. When I was a leader for my DD we did a few things went camping twice and a few hikes etc. I wasn't able to go get fully certified to take them on real wilderness trips but they did go with the council on a few camping trips that were open to anyone. I also know troops from our council that never went camping. I think she just needs to talk to the leader of the troop and see what they plan on doing. If one troop is outdoorsy just keep looking she'll find one that isn't.

 

[DaisyLynn]

Troop Beverly Hills?

Love it!!!

OP, I was a very girly little girl, and I had a great time in Girl Scouts. Nothing sticks out in my mind as being too dirty or outdoorsy.

 

[MaggieMoo'sMom]

My DD5 just became a Daisy in August. We love it! The only "outdoor/dirty" thing we have done is have a Songs and Smores night which was a bonfire and singing. Other than that, they have studied facts about homeless people to get some kind of badge (compassion and understanding?), and they are having a Reinaissance Fair this weekend to learn about Medieval Times. We love it! They talk about being a strong girl with self worth. I wish I could have been involved with a troop like that when I was a kid. JMO...

 

[NotUrsula]

She should just ask the troop leader of the troop she is considering if this is a "camping troop". These days lots of them are not.

A friend of mine was very surprised to find that the big troop "event trip" of the year for her school's troop was a shopping trip -- they took their cookie money to Build-a-Bear.

 

[Katie's Butterflies]

Troop Beverly Hills?

That's what I was thinking

OP, I agree with the others, many troops no longer do the camping/outdoor activities.

 

[zoemurr]

has "non campers". We have camped at the YMCA, local college, aquarium... but not outside, and they are all 12 now.

Also, the leaders need extra training if we were going camping and none of us are interested enough to do it.

Just ask!

 

[Rora]

I was a Girl Scout and we went camping once. But, it was in someone's backyard. We had full access to the bathroom, kitchen, etc.

We certainly were a bunch of girly girls.. OP, I would just ask!

 

[TLuvsD]

I'm a huge fan of Girl Scouts, D is an Ambassador Scout (high school), I volunteer at the council level, service unit, troop, you name it. I do not camp. Standing joke in the area is that I will do anything for Girl Scouts but camp. I just don't like it. (yes, I've done it, I've done the training, etc. It's just not for me). There are plenty of things for girls to do in Girl Scouts without camping. I had the most "girly" troop for years, they did community service, learned about new things, did crafts, had fun. Took them to Sea World to sleep with the Manatees at the end of third grade, they had a blast. Just ask around for a troop that doesn't camp much. If D had been in a very camp oriented troop I doubt she would have stayed.

 

[LisaNJ25]

I have 2 troops and we camp all the time. I am taking my daisies in 2 weeks and cadettes in 3 weeks. I DO NOT tent camp We usually go to our councils camps and rent cabins. I need an indoor bathroom

There is nothing dirty about it. I also have some girly girls and they get over it quick. I think the worst problem with my older girls is when we hold their cell phones for the night.

During the years we sometimes do hikes but nothing major. (The girls just went letter boxing last month in the woods)

 

[minkydog]

DD17 was a Girl Scout all the way up to Cadettes, 10th grade. She is pretty girly, although she does like to camp. Her troop did a few camping trips, but mostly they did other things, like community service projects, sewing, cooking, and crafting. There were a few girls who never went on the camping trips and everyone was okay with that. As a troop, they took horseback riding/horsemanship, pet care classes, a science course, and some kind of course in World Cultures. I think DD earned about 12 badges, only one in any form of camping.

 

[RUDisney]

I'm a leader of a Cadette/Senior/Ambassador troop. These girls have been together since Daisies.

We did our big outdoor thing this weekend. We went to a pumpkin farm that rents fire pits. The girls would go through the corn maze and through the other fun things and then join us back at the pit for food.

We have girly girls in our troop. Our big events this year are going to be a trip to King of Prussia Mall for the after-Christmas sales, a musical by our local broadway theater league and a trip to NYC to go to Madame Tussaud's and handsome carriage rides in the spring.

We've done a hair, makeup and nail night for a badge, we've constructed ponds to donate to our GS counsel and we do lots of crafty and cooking projects.

We'll go to sing at one of the local homes for handicapped children, we'll play bingo at a nursing home and we go carolling around town before Christmas.

Before you register your DD, ask the leaders what activities they do. If it's heavy into camping, then that's not the troop for your DD.

 

[PatsGirl]

Definately depends on the troop. I was a leader of a juniors' troop for several years and we had a mixed agenda. We always went camping, spring and fall,, and learned the various camping/survival skills and games that I believe are a part of the girl scout "life". The trips were not mandatory and we occasionally had a girl who would spend the day but not overnight. We would earn two or three badges each weekend camping trip, consolidating the requirements into a weekend made it so much easier.

Our year was broken up into 9 month segments, each one earning a badge and taking a relevant field trip. All the girls in the troop voted on both the badge and trip. I think this is the only fair way to run a troop. FWIW, our big trip last year at the end of "Juniors" was to Rocking Horse Ranch, a semi-dude ranch in NY where the girls learned to snow ski, ride horses, tube, etc. and also joined in karaoke contests and swimming fun A little bit of everything for everyone.

 

[chamonix]

I was a GS leader for several years, and i agree it just depends on the troop. Our troop did a lot of "outdoorsy" activities, but we certainly had girly girls! We camped, hiked, etc because that's what i like to do, and it's what i wanted to expose the girls to. I figure they get enough girly stuff from the rest of our culture, they didn't need that from me, lol. It was rewarding to see the girly girls learn that they actually did like camping, nature, etc when they were exposed to it, perhaps your daughter will be the same. i will always treasure the memory of the faces of the girly girls when they first called an owl and one answered.......

Now that my dd is a teen we've joined a co-ed Venture Scout troop because they do ALL outdoorsy stuff....next weekend we're going on a wilderness campout, hiking several miles into the wilderness with backpacks to go rock climbing and caving. They'll be cooking on the fire, and have to filter their own drinking water from the lake, dig a latrine, put up their tents (though most of them wont even use a tent preferring to sleep on the ground around the fire) etc.....

 

[tlbwriter]

My daughter is NOT a camper (she thinks she would be, but I know better ) and she still enjoys GS. They have done non-camping but still "outdoorsy" things like plant flowers, make pine cone bird feeders, etc., so the girl is averse to *dirt* and not just camping her mother might want to talk to the leader.