Monday, November 28, 2016

Daisy Girl Scout Christmas Ornaments Are a Memorable Gift

*This post contains affiliate links.

Updated November 2019

Chances are if you are a Daisy Girl Scout leader, then your daughter or granddaughter is in the troop. With the holiday season fast approaching, you may be considering what you can give her that is related to her first or second year as a Daisy Scout.

If you celebrate Christmas and put a tree up every year, then here are some wonderful Daisy Girl Scout ornaments for you to choose from. They are available on Amazon and you can also find these and more on eBay.



This Daisy Girl Scout Christmas Ornament makes a wonderful memory for your tree.


Daisy Girl Scout Christmas ornament for the girl who loves to paint and craft.

Zazzle has a huge collection of Daisy Girl Scout ornaments. They come with all skin hues and hair colors, and can be personalized with names and the girl's troop number. Here are just a few of the dozens of choices.



Monday, November 21, 2016

How to Earn the Girl Scout Daisy Talk It Up Leaf

Discover how to earn the Girl Scout Daisy Talk It Up leaf as your troop learns how to use the money it has earned.


Updated January 2021

*Please bear in mind that we are in a pandemic. Skipping cookies this year or having a small sales goal is perfectly acceptable. Years ago, Girl Scout Daisies were not permitted to sell cookies. Their safety and yours is paramount.

The final leaf that your Daisy Girl Scouts can earn is called Talk It Up. At this point, the girls are starting their cookie sales and you will be tracking your progress to reach the goals that you made with the Count It Up leaf. Armed with knowledge about the different types of cookies, what money looks like and knowing what things cost, the girls are ready for the big time!

Here is how your girls can earn the Girl Scout Daisy Talk It Up leaf.



How to Earn the Daisy Girl Scout Talk It Up Leaf-A Complete Meeting Plan


By Dsafdy (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons and altered by the author on Canva

Step 1 How to Earn the Girl Scout Daisy Talk It Up Leaf

Decide How to Use Your Cookie Money

Ask girls if they know what saving money means and discuss why it is important to save. If the girls want to go on a big trip with their earnings, then it cannot all be spent on other things during the rest of the scouting year.

At the end of the sale, make a chart like the one in the Daisy binder and have the girls see the numbers.

Step 2 How to Earn the Girl Scout Daisy Talk It Up Leaf
Talk About How to Use Cookie Money to Help Others


Life isn't always about us. It also has to be about others...that is the crux of the Girl Scout Promise. Friendly and Helpful, Considerate and Caring, Respect Myself and Others... it is what scouts do.


After you have decided on where you want a portion of the money to go, have the girls create a poster to share at your booth. If it an animal shelter, you can print out pictures animals and the organization's logo.


Step 3 How to Earn the Girl Scout Daisy Talk It Up Leaf
Inspire Your Customers


Some girls do not mind talking to strangers while others can do it easily. It is a good idea to role play different cookie scenarios with them so they do not get upset if someone says, "No, thank you" or asks them how the money they raise is used.



Monday, November 14, 2016

How to Earn the Girl Scout Daisy Count It Up Leaf

Discover how to earn the Girl Scout Daisy Count it Up leaf as your troop undertakes the tradition of selling Girl Scout cookies.


Updated January 2021

*Please bear in mind that we are in a pandemic. Skipping cookies this year or having a small sales goal is perfectly acceptable. Years ago, Girl Scout Daisies were not permitted to sell cookies. Their safety and yours is paramount.

The third Daisy leaf in the quartet the girls can earn is called Count It Up. This can be done at the start of cookie selling season. Although I am not a fan of first year leaders selling cookies, if you are going to, start by reading this blog post on 10 Girl Scout Cookie Selling Tips for New Leaders.

Here is how your troop can earn the Daisy Girl Scout Count It Up Leaf.



How to Earn the Daisy Girl Scout Count It Up Leaf-Complete Meeting Plans

Photo from Pixabay


Step 1 to Earn the Girl Scout Daisy Count It Up Leaf

Find Out What Cookies Cost


Depending on where you live, Girl Scout cookies cost $4.00 or $5.00 a box. How many one dollar bills is that? If someone gives you a $5.00 bill, how much change should s/he get back?


Step 2 to Earn the Girl Scout Daisy Count It Up Leaf
Learn About the Different Kinds of Cookies


Here is an opportunity for a taste testing party (of course, if there are allergies, you will either have to skip this or make sure that child/children does not eat something she shouldn't).  This also does not mean that you have to open one of every flavor, maybe one or two of the classics and one of the newest flavor to join the cookie family.



How to Earn the Daisy Girl Scout Count It Up Leaf-Complete Meeting Plan
Photo Collage by Hannah Gold

On my Girl Scout Cookie Selling Ideas Pinterest board, there are a few games that you can make (if you want) to help the girls learn about the cookies they will be selling. 

Step 3 to Earn the Girl Scout Daisy Count It Up Leaf
Set Sales Goals


Materials

  • Posterboard
  • Markers
Before the meeting, make a large thermometer on a piece of posterboard and entitle it "Troop 12345's Cookie Goals". This is a TROOP GOAL POSTER and not to be an individual girl poster. Cookie season brings out the worst in leaders. Troop money is troop money and if you do not believe me, it is written on page 21 in the official Girl Scouts Blue Book.

Cookie selling is voluntary and I wrote about it in depth in this blog post on my main Girl Scout leader site and in this post on my Daisy blog.

I also have a blog post on why girls do not sell 1,000 boxes of Girl Scout cookies and why leaders need to stop stressing over it. You can read it here.

Talk to your girls about how many boxes they want to sell as a troop. Are they realistic? Young children really do not have a strong concept of numbers that are large, or even small for that matter. It is hard for them to visualize the difference between 100 and 1000. You may want to bring in some kind of visual, like a bag of beans or math chips, to demonstrate the difference.

You may want to make incremental goals with a small reward as you go up the chart. For example, at the 100 box mark you may want to give them a special sticker or a small, edible treat. While not necessary, it does give little girls a reward for the work they are doing.