Trees Badge

1. Try some tree fun.

Take a tree trip.
We went to the farm, took a hayride to the orchard, and picked Golden Delicious apples. It was fun! We had homemade ice cream after the picking. We made apple cobbler with the apples.

2. Dig into the amazing science of trees.

Be a naturalist in your neighborhood.
We took a walk through our neighborhood and identified more than five types of trees and recorded them on a tree map, along with some notes about the trees and if they were planted or naturally occurring. The trees we saw were hemlock, flame maple, magnolia, Bradford pear, cherry, dogwood, and blue spruce. Most were planted in the recent past.

3. Make a creative project starring trees.

Capture a tree on your canvas or the page.
I made a sculpture of a tree out of clay.

4. Explore the connection between people and trees.

We visited the arboretum to observe the kinds of trees that grow well in our area, and I made a landscaping project that included those trees as well as other plants.

5. Help trees thrive.

Plant a tree:
I planted several trees and helped some that didn't look healthy by planting them in special pots and nurturing them.

Babysitter Badge

1. Get to know how kids develop.

Find information at the library or online.
We did this activity for each of the age groups in the American Red Cross Babysitting Training class.

2. Prepare for challenges.

Attend a babysitter training course.
I attended the American Red Cross Babysitting Training course.

3. Focus on play.

Volunteer for at least two hours.
I observed two babies playing. They were so cute! They were playing with baby toys and teethers, and one of the babies took a toy away from the other baby when she wasn't looking, but she didn't realize it!

4. Find potential employers.

I made a flyer for advertising babysitting services.

5. Practice your babysitting skills.

I was a mother's helper on a Saturday morning. We had a reading activity, finger painting activity, snack, and playing with toys. The time went by fast! We changed activities very quickly and cleaned up after each one. The kids move quickly, too!

2013 World Thinking Day

Today (February 22) is World Thinking Day - a day when girls honor their sister Girl Scouts and Girl Guides around the world and celebrate being part of a global community through the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGS).

This year, girls worldwide say "together we can save children's lives" through studying issues affecting children's lives. This is stated in the UN Millennium development goal #4 which focuses on reducing child mortality rates worldwide.

We read through all of the Cadette activities and discussed parts of each. We went more in depth with the study of malaria and the malaria net program, and also watched the video about the girls' education program Healthy Girls, Healthy Villages.

We also watched the Peace Corps volunteer informational video and I realized that I will have to wait until I am 18 to volunteer!

Cadette Safety Award

1. Learn how to make a room safe for a young child.

Young children can be hurt easily if rooms are not made safe for them. You can make a room safe for a young child by putting covers on the electrical outlets, putting things that you don't want kids to touch near the center of the table out of reach, remove all breakable objects such as vases or glass decorations, putting hair bands (or locks) around cabinet doors and drawers so they can't be opened. Sometimes houses have a special toilet safety lock that only adults can open (hopefully). Get a fence for the yard to keep the little ones safe. Also good are the child safety gates for stairs. Pick up pet water and food bowls and place them out of reach. Keep electrical cords out of reach.

2. Find out about water safety.

3. Teach a Daisy or Brownie what to do if she gets lost.

Today I ran a program that included teaching Daisy Girl Scouts what to do if they get lost. I also read a story called "Officer Runkle and Gloria" which was about asking a police officer for help to stay safe.

4. With your family, make sure you have enough food, water, and medical supplies.

We have enough food to last at least 3 days in case of a natural disaster. We also have family contact information in case family members are separated.  We had two severe storms last year- a hurricane and an early snow storm. We went to the store to buy extra batteries and water but they were out of water. We got the batteries but waited in long lines because everybody was stocking up. So- it is very important that you have batteries and water in addition to your food and medical supplies in case of emergency. We also get water delivered to our house so we always have extra water on hand. You should also always have a First Aid kit in your car and in your house.

5. Discuss bullying with your Girl Scout group, friends, or family.

I wrote and signed a personal responsibility statement that covers how I'll behave at school, at home, and online.