Volunteer Essentials

Meeting With Girls for the First Time When you first get together, you’ll want to get to know the girls and give them a chance to get to know one another. Icebreaker games that let girls share simple details about themselves are a great way to start off your first gathering. You can check the Eastern Missouri Emerson Resource Center or search the Internet for ideas. Ask the girls how they would like to spend their time together. Be sure to include opinions from all the girls. Ask direct questions of those who seem to be holding back or are unsure about answering. You might also want to work with the girls to establish a code of conduct for troop meetings. It is essential to get input from all girls, so each feels a sense of responsibility. Choosing Activities How can you, as a Girl Scout volunteer, determine whether an activity is safe and appropriate for Girl Scouts? Good judgment and common sense often dictate the answer. What’s safe in one circumstance may not be safe in another. An incoming storm, for example, might force you to assess or discontinue an activity. When preparing for any activity with girls, start by reading the Girl Scout Safety Activity Checkpoints, girlscoutsem.org/safetyactivitycheckpoints, for that particular activity. You can find these on the Eastern Missouri website and on the Volunteer Toolkit. Each Safety Activity Checkpoint offers you information on where to do the activity, how to include girls with disabilities, where to find both basic and specialized gear required for the activity, how to prepare for the activity, what specific steps to follow on the day of the activity and so on.

In addition to reading these checkpoints yourself, you can email or print them for troop volunteers, parents/guardians and the girls themselves. The

checkpoints are formatted as checklists, so you, your troop volunteers and the girls can check off each step that has been accomplished. When planning activities with girls, note the abilities of each girl and carefully consider the progression of skills from the easiest part to the most difficult. Make sure the complexity of the activity does not exceed girls’ individual skills. Bear in mind that skill levels decline when people are tired, hungry or under stress. To standardize registration for all Girl Scout-sponsored activities, girls will be considered at the next grade level after June 1. Activities Not Listed in Safety Activity Checkpoints If you are uncertain about the safety of an activity, call your Volunteer Support Coordinator and don’t proceed without approval. Remember, the safety of girls is your most important consideration. A few activities are allowed only with written pre- approval from the Director of Camping Services and Risk Management, while some are off-limits completely.

Using the Buddy System

The buddy system is a safety practice in which two or three girls of approximately the same age and ability are grouped together to keep watch over each other. Under the buddy system, each pair is responsible for staying with her buddy at all times, warning her buddy of danger, giving her buddy immediate assistance and calling for help or going for help when the situation warrants it. The buddy system does NOT relieve the leader of their responsibility for knowing the whereabouts of each member of the troop, but it does serve as a means of involving everyone in the group and having them share the responsibility.

Starting a Troop 37