During my troop's first summer, we earned the 5 Flowers, 4 Stories, 3 Cheers for Animals Journey Badge. I chose this one for the troop because one of the moms hoped we could find something that tied to animals since her neighbor had a farm and was willing to host us for a field trip.
Now, maybe this Journey has changed a little since we did it, but I remember finally finishing the Journey and never wanting to do another one! It took us five meetings to earn this badge, and that was with me consolidating some of the requirements. Once again, I was unhappy with the ideas in the Volunteer Toolkit (VTK).
Meeting 1 Plan for the 5 Flowers, 4 Stories, 3 Cheers for Animals Journey Badge:
Animals Around the World
I opened the meeting by asking the girls to name one thing they liked about an animal. Then I explained what this Journey was: an adventure where you see new places, meet new people, and have lots of fun.
Team Animal Mural
The first animal I talked about was the Bald Eagle. Before the meeting, I had sent the moms a blank Bald Eagle coloring page so that the girls could color it. Then, at the meeting, the girls glued their eagles onto a piece of posterboard we used as the Team Animal Mural.
Welcome to this Amazing Animal Adventure
Next, I read Welcome to this Amazing Animal Adventure, a short story available in the VTK. As I read, I asked the girls to act like the animals. Honestly, I don't remember them participating in that part.
Then I asked the girls what animals they see where they live, and if they have ever cared for animals in their yards or neighborhoods. From there, we talked about caring for pets. I also asked the girls about any unusual animals they'd ever seen.
Building a Team Birdbath
The last activity for our first meeting was to build a papier mache team birdbath. We did this using a balloon (blown up), plastic wrap, Mod Podge, torn strips of newspaper, and colored tissue paper.
This was a MESSY activity, but I think the girls had fun. Be sure to remove all Daisy tunics or vests first, and ask the girls to arrive wearing play clothes.
Essentially, we painted Mod Podge on the balloon using foam brushes. Then we painted on the newspaper and tissue paper. I had to keep this mess in my house to let the whole thing dry overnight. And once it dried, I carefully removed the balloon, and voila - we had a bowl.
As the girls finished the birdbath, I asked them about how people care for animals and how they are similar to how people care for themselves.
My notes also say something about the girls drawing pictures of caring for animals and putting those pictures into the birdbath, but obviously, our birdbath was not dry, so we added this step to another meeting.
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| our birdbath |
Closing Ceremony
Before officially ending the meeting, I sent the girls home with a story from the VTK about how the Flower Friends care for a cat. This was basically to save us time at the next meeting.
Did your troop earn this Journey Badge or another one? Let me know in the comments!
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