OUR FAVORITE DAISY PETAL IDEAS

Respect Authority Game: The girls play a version of simon says. In this version, the girls only obey Simon if Simon is wearing a hat of authority, which we defined as a police hat, fire hat, or teacher hat. For the teacher hat, the leader took a cloth hat and labeled it teacher. The leader brought lots of dress-up hats and Simon kept swapping hats between hats of authority and silly hats (i.e. moose antlers, Donald Duck, Minnie Mouse, crown, hardhat, pirate hat). The girls enjoyed the game, enjoyed watching their leader wear a succession of silly hats, and really liked playing with the hats after the game. Take the girls on a field trip to our local police station for a tour. The officer gave an age-appropriate tour, including the holding cell, the firing range and the motorcycle garage. It made a big impression on the girls. Have someone in authority (principal, police officer, fire fighter, etc.) talk to the girls about what it means to have their job and how people depend on them. Take a trip to the fire department. They gave us a tour, allowed the girls to try on their uniforms, and squirt the fire hose. They talked about fire safety. We made them a special card to thank them. We also decorated all of their chalkboards while we waited for them to return from a fire. As we were arriving they were leaving. It was rather exciting for the girls to see. Courageous and Strong The girls acted out the book Paperbag Princess, by Robert Munsch. In this book, the courageous princess rescues the prince by outwitting the dragon. First, the leader read the book to the girls. Then, the girls chose to be either princesses or dragons. The princesses wore construction paper crowns and grocery bags (with head and armholes cut out). The dragons wore a zig-zag cut piece of construction paper on their backs like the ridges on a dragon. Then, each co-leader coached one of the two groups. Then, we acted out the story, with an adult playing the part of the prince, and an adult as narrator. The girls really had fun. The dragon part is actually more fun than the princess part because the dragon gets to do all the running around. If you do this, be prepared to let as many girls as want to be either princesses or dragons, as long as you have at least one of each. The girls really enjoyed this (and you can use the acting out a story as part of the read to lead patch). An alternate version of this is to have a Junior troop come to your meeting and act out the story the Paperbag Princess and lead a discussion of the story. Your consultant can help you find a junior troop. Junior troops like to help daisy troops, and they need to do it to earn certain badges/signs. Another troop used the story The Gruffalo for their read and act out activity for this petal. The leaders told the girls stories of strong and courageous women (Florence Nightengale, Juliette Low, Mulan, etc.). For being strong, the troop did exercises (sit-ups, stretching, jumping jacks or the standing broad jump). A troop leader taught her girls basic Tae Kwon Do kicks and punches. You might be able to arrange a free tae kwon do or karate class for your troop. The girls earned this petal as they practiced for their bridging ceremony. We talked about how it is sometimes scary to get up in front of people and that it takes "courage" and "strength". Then we practiced our ceremony until everyone felt comfortable with their parts. The troop played a game called emotions. It requires the girls to pick out of a hat a paper that has an emotion on it, like Happy, Sad, Mad, Glad, Excited, Hurt, etc. The adults help with the reading and each girl had to stand in front of the group and act out the emotion without talking. If your girls are shy, it could take quite a bit of courage to stand up there and do that in front of everyone

The girls did a field trip without their moms! We had parents from our sister Junior troop walk to McDonald's with us where we had dinner and then talked about one of the other petals while there. Then, we all (Jr. and Daisies) walked over to the ice cream place before walking back to our meeting place. The older and younger girls all had a good time. The girls were courageous and tried new foods. We are also going to be learning about what it means to be strong not just by lifting weights but strong in mind too. The troop went to one of our local athletic clubs where they were able to have a full hour class of gymnastics and complete a small agility course. Dance Studio - The instructor spoke to the girls about eating right and exercise. They were taught some dance steps and exercised with weights Use Resources Wisely The troop made maracas out of recycled materials (Pringle containers and beans). The girls made a girl scout game bag, largely out of recycled materials (paper, spoons, sytrofoam peanuts, paper bag, die, balloons). The girls made candle holders out of baby food jars. They painted on thinned Elmers glue and placed colored tissue paper on the glue. Then they smoothed out the paper and painted some more glue over it to ensure that it was flattened. Then they tied on a ribbon and added a small candle. This was a nice craft for the girls, didnt cost much, and illustrated how we can all re-use old stuff, even old tissue paper. Recycling relay: The leaders brought bags of clean recyclables, mixed types. They also brought sorting containers. The girls were split into teams. They had a relay race, where each girl had to correctly sort the recyclables into the correct container. If your troop has at least some Middlesex County members, contact the Middlesex County Improvement Authority (609-409-5033). They have a kid-oriented educational program called Catch the Blue Wave. A person will bring a robot to your meeting and make a 20-30 minute presentation about recycling. The kids will also be given a few items (we got pencils made of recycled money, and string for tying up newspapers). To emphasize the value of re-using items, not just recycling, go to a garage/yard sale and buy childrens books (should cost around 25 cents each). Wrap the books in previously used wrapping paper. Give each girl one of the books and talk about how it saves money to re-use items (12 yard sale books cost less than 1 new book), uses resources wisely, and reduces garbage. Plus, the girls really enjoy getting a present. The troop leaders brought stuff that would normally be thrown away (rolls of old fax paper, scraps of construction paper, shoe boxes, popsicle sticks) and miscellaneous craft stuff left over from other projects, then set it out with NO instructions other than "make something." All 20 girls were almost instantly busy. Some worked together on a long mural with the fax paper, others decorated shoe boxes, some made picture frames with the popsicle sticks. Collect aluminum cans for recycling. Visit a recycling center Take a trip to the local library. Make paper from all of our construction paper scraps The girls decorated re-usable plastic cups for our meetings...we discussed recycling and littering. Be a Sister to Every Girl Scout The troop made the game bag (see using resources wisely) for another girl scout troop and wrote the troop a letter.

The troop made contact with a Rainbow (Daisy equivalent) troop in the UK and made a small book about our troop with a personal page about each girl and then general info. Then they sent us one about themselves. The girls loved it. Make swaps for sister brownie troop Have a Daisy party for all the Daisy troops in town (thats assuming that theres more than 1 Daisy Troop!) For Thinking Day, a daisy scout troop can team up with a brownie troop, and assist that brownie troop with their activities. Also, in preparing to bridge to brownies, it is convenient to have the daisies attend a brownie meeting, in which the brownies discuss what it is like to be a brownie. Troops that did this either had the daisies later make thank you cards for the brownie scouts or made and distributed sister scout cards. Your assigned consultant can connect you with brownie troops from your school. Help a junior troop earn badges by having them teach the daisies stuff. Be sisterly by having a joint event with another troop. For example, go to Sayen Garden with another daisy troop from your school. Go caroling with another troop. Honest and Fair This one is actually suggested in the daisy leaders manual, only none of us used apples. The idea is to explain to the girls the concept of fairness, then give the girls the opportunity to divide up something fairly. First, we got a lot of a small inexpensive item. Then, we gave them to the girls and told the girls to divide them up fairly, while the leaders are outside the room. (One troop used daisy flower mini-erasers from Oriental Trading - we got a gross (144) for less than $5. Another troop used leftover Halloween candy. Another troop used pennies.) The troop played various games (tug of war, egg and spoon race) but the point was to use the games to demonstrate what is honest and fair. For example, the leader would demonstrate unfair ways to play the game before the game started. Also, the leaders showed the girls different ways to fairly make group decisions (voting, taking turns, drawing straws, flipping coins, drawing numbers from a bag). The girls seemed to enjoy the opportunity to draw straws, flip coins, and take numbers from a bag and the techniques were used to set up groups for games, decide who goes first, etc. Another troop played musical spots (musical chairs on spots instead of chairs) to talk about being a good loser and how games are not always fair. Truth/Lie Game: The leaders discussed with the girls the difference between the truth and a lie. Then, the leaders posted a happy face on one wall and an unhappy face on another wall. Then the leader would say something (i.e. Im wearing a green shirt, You girls are 14 years old). The girls ran to the happy face if it was the truth and to the unhappy face if it was a lie. Once the girls understood the game, each girl got to be the caller and say something that was either the truth or a lie (with the leader coaching girls who were hesitating). The girls enjoyed running back and forth, but really enjoyed being the caller. Have an Egg Hunt for the "honest and fair" petal. Each girl was allowed to find 5 eggs. Once they reached their goal they had to assist the other girls until everyone found 5 eggs. They were little troopers. I think that they had more fun helping each other. We read the book "The Emperor's New Clothes" and talked about being honest. We also made "Honest Pretzels" (checked out the book from the library) to eat for a snack. Responsible for what I say and do We played a game based on the book What do you say dear? You really have to have read the book to understand the silliness of this game. The leader put up signs in the room for the correct things to say (yes please, no thank you, thank you). Dont have too many signs and draw supporting pictures if you can so that non-readers wont be embarrassed. Then, the leader told the girls scenarios and asked them what do you say dear and they ran to the right response. The leader started with normal scenarios like if your friends asks you

if you would like a piece of candy what do you say dear. Then, the leader gradually moved on into more silly scenarios, ending with a powerpuff girls story. The girls each made a job chart. The leaders made a weekly blank job chart. The girls either wrote in or cut/paste jobs already written down by leaders onto the chart. Then, the girls would take home the job charts and mark each day when they had done their jobs. The marking could be done with pen, stickers, or one troop made WOW symbols, with velcro to attach them to the job chart. The leader read the book David Gets in Trouble by David Shannon. Davids antics have consequences. Leader read Berenstain Bears Manners Book interactively with puppets. The girls decorated paper bags with faces and a verbal expression (please, thank you, welcome). Do a service project that helps the environment. Pick up trash around the school, park or playground (wear gloves, of course!). Talk to the girls about how each person should help take care of the earth. Maybe plant a tree or some flowers. Get a big sheet of paper and have the girls make a list of Troop rules. Copy a picture from a coloring book. Have the girls color the picture. Have the girls crumple the picture into a ball. Now smooth out the picture. Note all the wrinkles left on the paper. Explain when you say something bad or mean it will always leave a mark on that person. Some marks dont show but others do. A girl scouts job is to be responsible and not say things that might hurt someone on the inside. Discuss what words hurt and what words are nice. Responsible for what I do can be as simple as having the girls always wear their seat belts when in a car. Have the girls think about what chore they could do to help mom do around the house and one that they can do at the Daisy meetings to help out, like take out the trash or push in the chairs at the end of the meetings. They have a chart to take home and check off for two weeks. Considerate and Caring Two daisy troops joined together and sang holiday songs at a nursing home. It was good to have two troops. One troop made holiday cards with candy canes for the residents. The other troop made ornaments. It was a good experience for the girls to hand out their small gifts to the residents. Secret pals! - Have each girl pick out of a hat and have them bring a special gift to the next meeting something they've made (if you go with a purchased item, make sure you put a $$ limit on the spending!)... Or even better send the gift in the mail or drop it off on the front porch girls love getting mail. Then you could have each girl bring a card to the next meeting to reveal herself. The West Windsor-Plainsboro Service Unit usually makes ornaments to help the homeless/poor. This will be announced at a service unit meeting. We made get well cards for a few of our parents. Three of them had surgery all in the same week. We also made "thank you" cards right after the holidays to say thank you to some of their relatives that spoiled them rotten. Here is a craft we did with our Daisy troop during a Mother/Daughter Ice Cream Social. It was very well received. "I Love You To Pieces Frame" materials: 8 Popsicle sticks per frame lots of multi-colored small puzzle pieces one hand-made puzzle piece with the words "I love you to pieces" tacky glue, scissors, photo

Assemble the frame by gluing the Popsicle sticks into a square shape, with 2 Popsicle sticks per side. Glue the puzzle pieces haphazardly around the frame overlapping to make at least 2 layers. Cut the photo (we brought a Polaroid camera and took instant photos of the mom and Daisy) to fit into the frame. Once the glue is mostly dry and holding the frame together, glue the photo to the back of the frame. (optional: glue or tape a piece of clear plastic over the photo first). Then when it is all glued together, glue the handmade puzzle piece that says "I Love You to Pieces" onto the frame in your desired location. (I printed up the words on the computer in a fancy font and pre-cut them for the Daisies). If you like, to finish the back, you can glue cardboard over the photo and hot glue a wire to hang it with, or a triangle piece of cardboard for a stand, or however you like. Make the World a Better Place The West Windsor-Plainsboro Service Unit will provide information on both fall and spring community service activities, such as dune grass planting and planting baby trees. Most of the fall activities are Saturday mornings, which can be difficult if you have a lot of girls in soccer. At Village School, a brownie troop planted mums by the front entrance to the school in the fall and a daisy troop planted flowers in the spring. This was arranged by talking to the school vice-principal. The girls wrote letters to veterans. Sayen Garden is a flower garden in Hamilton Square, just a bit south of Mercer County Community College. It has an Azalea Festival on Mothers Day, every year. It is spectacular in the spring when the tulips and azaleas are blooming (typically about the 2-3 weeks before Mothers Day). You can bring your troop there just as a field trip in the spring, or you can bring them to plant bulbs in the fall mid-October to mid November. They have had girl scout troops before. The troops come after school (4-5:30PM), in groups of 10-20. The staff dig the holes for the bulbs in advance, so it is something that daisies or brownies could do. Then, you could bring the girls back in the spring to see their flowers in bloom! If you are interested, contact the Supervisor of Horticulture, Harry Robinson, Sayen Botanical Gardens, 155 Hughes Drive, Hamilton Square, NJ 08690, 609890-3543, fax 609-581-4122. The planting goes fast, so plan another activity for the girls to do at the Garden. The Garden has lots of winding paths and occasional areas of lawn. So, it is a nice place for an outdoor snack, and modest outdoor activities. You could have the girls color for Color-A-Smile for this petal. This organization (colorasmile.org) has coloring pages that you can print. Then, the girls color them. You mail them to Color-A-Smile, which then mails them to people who have asked for regular mailings of friendly kid-art. Plant sunflower and daisy seeds for the girls to take home. Go to a recycling center and practice recycling at home. Do a local community clean up or plant trees on earth day. Plant a flower garden as a "thank you" to the church/school for allowing us to use it as a meeting place Make baby quilts to donate. We did a quick unit on taking care of pets and animal safety. We also visited our local veterinarian's office, and made a pet supplies donation to our local animal shelter. Make bird feeders out of recycled materials. Friendly and Helpful Girls gave ornaments to the elderly as part of a caroling event. You could also do Color-A-Smile for this petal. Read the Brownie Story. Each time the girls hear the word helpful, have them stand up and shout "Helpful!" Then send them home with little sheets of paper that say, "A girl scout was here". Each time they do a good deed/chore without being asked, they can leave a slip of paper.

Help other troops earn badges (i.e. junior troops earn badges by working with younger troops). Respect Myself and Others Do little skits with the girls where they have to role-play using good manners. For example, set up some chairs in bus formation and have one girl get on the bus who needs to sit down for one reason or another (is elderly, expecting, carrying many bags, all of the above.) Of course there are no seats available! Who will be nice enough to offer a seat. The leader assigned the parts by choosing straws and set up the scenes. You can do telephone calls, offering to share an umbrella, whatever. Be creative. They liked all the props cane, baby dolls, overstuffed shopping bags and more. Have a nurse come to talk about respecting your body by taking good care of it. Show them how to apply sunblock. Use glitter to demonstrate how germs can spread. Have a doctor, nurse or dentist talk to the girls about how important it is to take care of themselves, maybe visit their office. We put together care packages of toothpaste, toothbrushes, hairbrushes, wet wipes, soap, and combs. The girl each received one and we donated the others to a shelter. We talked about proper hygiene and why it is important. This one was a little tough at first....it was planned for the end of our year which coincided with Mother's Day, so we talked about showing respect for our mom's, and had a Mom's Day tea, where the girls made gifts for them, as well as serving them a special tea menu...I also explained that using manners and showing respect is a way to respect one's own self, in that others will treat you the way you treat them. What to do about girls who missed daisy petals: Some troops did not worry about this. Some troops had the parents individually work with their daughter. One troop had a make-up meeting. At the makeup meeting, they did four petals (2 leaders each did 2 petals at 30 minutes per petal) with small groups of girls. Each girl could make up 2 petals. Girls who didnt have to make up a petal, made decorations for the bridging party/ceremony. The make-up meeting enabled 7 girls to earn all the daisy petals. It really wasnt too hard for the leaders because the leaders just did shorter versions of the original daisy petal program. Other Advice: Start the meeting with a simple flag ceremony and end it with a song and circle. The girls respond well to a standard routine. Have a simple story to tell the girls that relates to the petal (part of the GS law) that you are doing (i.e. a Princess being considerate and kind, a story about a bunny family recycling different things every day of the week). Talk about that part of the law with the girls. Then do an activity/craft or game related to that petal.