It’s Your Story – Tell It! Daisy – 5 Flowers, 4 Stories 3 Cheers for Animals

One of the keys to getting all of the petals and Journeys done in a year is planning and aligning how they go together. We chose to do it this way because we only had Daisies and they wanted to do everything. It's difficult and all meetings missed have to be made up by the girls on their own or they just don't get it.

Out of our 17 girls, 15 got all their petals and all three journeys!

Here's how we used the 5 Flowers, 4 Stories 3 Cheers for Animals in our meetings.

Basic Description

• In this Journey, girls return to the Daisy Flower garden. The flowers help the girls

explore the animals in their garden. They also use stories to share about Mexico,

Japan (our Thinking Day Country), and Africa. The girls learn about some of the countries native animals, customs and food. We also talked out customs and traditions of our own.

• The book also talks about ways girls can care for themselves and animals. (respect myself and others petal)

• It gives examples of women who work with animals.

• The Journey includes healthy snacks. (respect myself and others petal)

What do they earn and how do they earn them?

Birdbath Award

• Girls understand that they can care for themselves and animals. (respect myself and others)
• To earn, girls name one way they can care for animals and one way they can
• care for themselves. (respect myself and others)

Red Robin Award

• Girls use their new knowledge and creativity to teach others how to care for
• animals and their environment.
• To earn, they choose animal care tips to share with others and then tell this “story of animal care” in a creative way.

Tula Award

• Girls have gained courage and confidence in teaching others about animal care.
• To earn, they share with one another the good feelings they experienced as they taught others in their community about animal care.
• Typically received at the final celebration
• Possible Field Trips or Community Partners

Visit a place with animals/Have animals brought to the meeting:

• Camp Winding River to visit the horses and goats
• A local zoo
• Pet stores, animal shelters or veterinarian offices
• Find out how animals help humans by visiting a dairy farm
• Visit a Girl Scout camp or nature center to experience a Sounds of Nature Walk
• Have animals/pets brought to your meeting

Petal Connections

Specifically, with this Journey, the following Petals would fit well as they are involved in the stories.

• Zinni – Spring Green – Considerate and Caring
• Tula – Red – Courageous and Strong (standing up for animals and their needs)
• Mari – Orange – Responsible for what I say and do (helping to support animals in the community)
• Gloria – Purple - Respect Myself and Others (show how caring for animals and ourselves is similar)
• Vi – Violet – Be a Sister to Every Girl Scout (learning about other girl scouts/supporting them)

Additional Ideas that helped tie things at Troop Meetings together:

• A world map available to show the location of the various countries described in the book.
• Using various recycled materials have the girls build their own nests or take pictures of nests they see in their yard, at school or their meeting space.
• Make origami animals or an animal collage
• Tie in healthy living – make a few snacks and try a few yoga moves during a meeting (they are named after animals!)
• Have the girls bring pictures of their favorite pet or animal for a show and tell – if you are really daring you can have them bring the animal.
• Play animal charades as a group
• Have a discussion about ways animals care for people – guide dogs, cows give milk, etc.

Take Action Project

For out take action project we made multiple bird feeders and hung them at our local botanical gardens in December to help feed birds during the winter months. The project was a huge hit and they asked us to come back again. While we were there we also collect trash.

Additionally, since we are meeting at my home, we talked about how it is important to clean up after ourselves for the safety of my dogs. All in all this was a super fun Journey!