Girl Scout Troop Leader
Leading Young Girls in Scouting
Catalina Currier
For the past year and a half, I have been a Troop Leader with local Girl Scout Troop 3050 in Henrico, VA, a volunteer position. My troop consists of more than 35 young girls between the ages of 4 and 11 years old. We meet bi-weekly at a local church, and work towards several goals, including earning badges and patches, selling cookies in the springtime, and developing activities and programs to keep the girls engaged and excited about scouting. Most recently with the impact of the pandemic in the spring of 2020, I have developed an online learning curriculum for girls since we are unable to meet in person.
When I first started in the troop, I was an outsider in a group where I didn’t know anyone, and they didn’t know who I was. I was introduced as a “Big Sister Scout” who could share my own experiences of growing up as a scout and would help within the troop. As the troop got larger and more responsibilities were needed, I took on a volunteer aide role, where I would help facilitate activities, and occasionally plan out the meeting. Around 6 months into working with the troop, one of the two troop leaders went abroad for two weeks for a business trip, and I was tasked with planning out and running two meetings, as the other troop leader went over important information with the parents. Right after the success of leading those meetings, I took on the official title of Troop Leader, and began working in tandem with the current troop leaders to develop plans of action on which badges and patches we wanted to earn, and working on programs for the girls to take part in- such as designing our parade float, building structural materials, and more complex issues. Over the past 3 months, I have created a timeline and outline of which patches we will be earning over a 7 month time period, and successfully accomplished three earned badges so far.
Due to the impact of the pandemic, this outline has shifted to an online curriculum that I share not only with my troop, but dozens of troops around the country. Girl Scouts USA and our council, GS of the Commonwealth of Virginia have provided some online options for the girls, but all of them are parts of the whole badge. I developed follow-along activities that are flexible and family-friendly for the girls and their families at home, which are all different from my own. Whether the parents have to work or work from home, have one child or many, the online model is developed to include just the girl or the whole family, providing options for a flexible experience that doesn’t exclude anyone.
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I have developed badgework for girls to complete at home in the area of Cooking and Healthy Food Models, Healthy Bodies and Healthy Minds, Engineering, Bird Watching, Coding Basics, Storyteller and my favorite, a Choose Your Own Adventure activity based on the book series and includes a section of coding basics integrated into the work. By providing these opportunities, girls have more flexibility to pursue what interests them, and allow me to see what is engaging them in their respective spheres of influence. At this point, we have had girls work on badgework involving food and sports the most, which means when we get back together in person, I want to focus on those aspects to engage them in different capacities.
Relating to the Leader-Member Exchange Theory, I also want to recognize that this position allows me the opportunity to get connected and build foundations within the community. Since getting engaged, I am more likely to venture out into the community and get connected to, and provide, resources such as the Henrico County Police Department and local State Parks. Without having joined this group, I wouldn’t take the opportunities and risks going forwards. While working on the online badgework, I have shared it with over a hundred troops across the USA, and formed valuable relationships to help my girls grow, and impact countless others.
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This leadership position is important to me, because I have been a Girl Scout since I was five years old, and growing up in a position environment with strong female role models was vital to that development. The vast majority of girls who join Girl Scouts at a young age, don't make it to the Cadette or Senior level (high school), and quit before they even get their Gold Award. I think by showing them that someone exactly like them could do it too, they would be more likely to be excited and inspired to continue on with their own Girl Scout Journey.
I also want to connect this experience to the Servant Leadership Theory. In the definition given to us, servant leadership begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, and to serve first. This conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead. I have connected my experiences to this theory, because every time I interact with these girls, I do it with the thought that I am helping them to succeed first, not myself. An example of this is during the camping trips, it was a struggle to try to manage 15 to 20 girls each day, and make sure that everyone was abiding by the camp rules, staying safe, and staying comfortable in the space that we were in. For a lot of the girls this was their first camping experience and I had to be that figure who showed them that it was okay to be nervous, but to overcome that fear. By taking into account how they felt, and leading authentically with enthusiasm and encouragement instead of fear, they listened to me and had a good experience while staying safe.
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Being with this troop now for over a year now, I've really grown in my ability to talk openly to these girls and lead in a different style than I had been before. When leading college students, they already know the basics of anything that we are doing, and they have the mental capacity to adapt quickly to what's happening. With young girls between the ages of kindergarten to 5th grade, they're still developing and their mind moves at a different rate than my own, so I have to be sure that I'm saying things in a clear and concise manner so that the girls aren't confused, and can follow what I’m saying. This leadership position has shown me that in any leadership position, there has to be adaption and communication to different styles of followers, and that sometimes there will be a reward for the hard work that you do, but as long as everyone is having fun- I think that that is the most important part in leading for younger children.
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I found a love in being able to work with these young girls who are so imaginative and excited to learn and grow. Going forward with volunteering until I leave this area, I want to make sure I provide them with ample opportunities to grow themselves, but also speak their mind and be who they are without fear of being judged by myself or the group. I hope they gain these skills by watching me and want to take on greater challenges and become their own leaders because of it.