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| Photo from pixabay.com |
There is a very strong likelihood that some of the
girls in your troop will have siblings both younger and/or older. What should
you do with them? In this blog post, I
go into a lot of detail about this issue.
What you permit now lays the groundwork for the future, and once you
start with one way, it is hard to undo later down the road.
Dues
In the beginning, your need for items is small. There are so many things that you can do for
practically nothing! Crafts from recycled materials, free field trips to the
police station or to the firehouse, you can definitely get by with little
during your first year.
Dues should pay for petals and fun patches, and any
craft materials you will be using.
How much in dues you collect depends on the makeup of
your group. One check at the beginning
of the year should cover your expenses.
I always asked for $25 during the Daisy years, and increased the amount
to $30 for Brownies.
Whatever you do, do not ask for weekly dues. This
creates more work for you. What happens if a girl misses a week because her
parents forgot? What is the policy if
she is sick and misses a meeting?
One check for dues, one trip to the bank and you are
done. You can budget better knowing how
much you have to spend at the beginning of the year.
Uniforms
What kind of uniform do you want the girls to have? It does not matter if the girls wear a vest
or a tunic-let them choose what they want to wear. That is all that is required. My girls wore a
white shirt and jeans as well, just because they all had these things in their
closet already and they looked so darn cute!
I have always been a firm believer in parents buying
the uniforms for the girls. Why? Because
if a girl decides not to return for your troop or to Girl Scouts, you are out
the money you give them for the uniform.
If a parent buys it, they are out the money.
Snacks at Meetings
Should you serve snacks at meetings? I wrote about this in detail on my main Girl
Scout blog. You can read about it here.
Drop Off and Pick Up Times
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| Photo from pixabay.com |
Having parents come on time so you can get the meeting
started is imperative. It is not fair to
make the girl who arrived on time wait for the others. Having a “sponge activity” (something easy to
do that relates to what the meeting is about) for the early arrivals keeps the
girls engaged and out of trouble.
If a meeting is supposed to begin at 6:30, that is when
you start it! Do not wait because you
are teaching the parents that it is okay to be late and that your time is not
valuable.
Prompt pick up times are also a must. You have a life
as well, and you need to leave and get home to your family.
You need to have a written policy that is signed by the
parents so that they know you mean business.
I am not talking about the parent who was late only once, but someone
who is habitually late. You need to have an action plan for this parent.
I hope this checklist gets you on the road to fun and productive meetings!
I hope this checklist gets you on the road to fun and productive meetings!
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