New Interest Projects - Fun
& Exciting for Teen Girl Scouts!
Resource: http://www.studio2b.org/lounge/gs_stuff/ip_intro.asp 11/2/05
HERE THEY ARE!
These new Interest Projects (IPs) are available online
only and are free for you to download or print:
In the Pink http://www.studio2b.org/lounge/gs_stuff_pink.asp
Join the fight
against breast cancer by thinking “pink”.
Uncovering the Evidence http://www.studio2b.org/lounge/gs_stuff/ip_evidence.asp
This is CSI – One Cool Science investigation of the forensic
kind!
Couch Potato http://www.studio2b.org/lounge/gs_stuff/ip_potato.asp
Make the most of your TV watching by becoming an expert at
it.
Sew Glam
http://www.studio2b.org/lounge/gs_stuff/ip_sew.asp
Clothes may be store bought, but fashion is what YOU make it!
MORE Interest Projects to come in the near
future: BXtreme, Global Girls, Home
Is Where the Heart Is, On Your Own, G.O.Girl! These are supposed to be online during November/December
2005. Check the website for Studio 2B for more info – http://www.studio2b.org
It's All About YOUR Voices and Choices
The
awards for the new IPs are the product of your feedback—some of them were
designed by girls and all of them incorporate contemporary elements you
asked for. Two of the IPs ("In the Pink"
and "Home Is Where the Heart Is") offer a choice between a patch,
a charm, or a pin.
Positively Certifiable
All
of the new IPs offer the choice of either a patch or a certificate (suitable
for framing or a portfolio). Your accomplishments can be recognized with a
certificate as a stand-alone award or as an additional award. The certificate
is designed so it can be awarded not just for the new IPs—but for any IP
earned.
Wear It Proudly
No
matter which type of award you choose to earn, wear, or display, be proud of
it—it symbolizes all you have learned, accomplished, and shared. The awards are
available for purchase from your local Girl Scout council shop, the online Girl Scout shop or from
National Equipment Services (800-221-6707).
Wait!
In some very significant ways, these IPs are different from
those offered in the Interest Projects for Girls book. In addition to fresh topics, the IPs'
activity structure, category names, requirements, and awards are new!
All the changes can be traced to something you, your sister Girl Scouts, or an
adult volunteer/staff person suggested.
Big Changes in the New IPs
The LEARN, DO, SHARE
Model
In
the feedback we received, an overwhelming number of you mentioned the need to
update the structure of IP activities and the requirements for earning them.
What Girls Said
When asked to create an IP of their own, girls consistently
used words like "learn," "try," "do,"
"share," and "teach" in the activities they proposed (like
the one pictured here from a focus group).
What We Did
To reflect the ideas suggested by girls like you, the
four activity categories (Technology, Skill Builders, Service Projects, and
Career Exploration) have been merged into three:
LEARN: Acquire new skills
while building your knowledge of a specific topic.
DO: Practice your newfound
skills and knowledge. Many of these activities engage you in exploring a career
path that might potentially interest or benefit you in the future.
SHARE: Really shine by
demonstrating your new skills and knowledge in a leadership role. Many of these
activities ask you to develop and plan a sharing project in your community.
The Next 'Steps': What does it
take to earn one of the new IPs?
There are six steps, described below, for completing each of
the new IPs:
1. BUILD: Build a skill foundation by doing the IP's
REQUIRED activity (each IP has one REQUIRED activity separate from
the LEARN, DO, SHARE activities).
2. LEARN: Do ONE activity of your choice from the
LEARN category.
3. DO: Do ONE activity of your choice from the DO
category.
4. SHARE: Do ONE activity of your choice from the
SHARE category.
5. DESIGN and DO an activity of YOUR OWN
(based on a SMART goal you'll plan with the help of an adult advisor).
Designing a goal and activity of YOUR OWN is a great way to build and flex your
leadership skills! See How do I
design a SMART goal? Separate page.
6. REFLECT: Prepare a short REFLECTION describing
what part(s) of the Promise and Law relates to what you did while earning the IP.
Think about how this IP has given you skills or greater understanding to help
you live out that part(s) of the Promise and Law in your own life and then
prepare a REFLECTION that best expresses your experiences and personality, such
as a:
1-2 paragraph description
Poem
Song/rap
Drawing/painting/photograph
Short movie
How do I keep a
record of my REFLECTION?
If you'd like, use the MY REFLECTION form (see attached) for recording your
REFLECTION and what part of the Promise and Law applies to it. You may want to
keep forms in a binder you design to create a journal of your experiences and
personal growth. Of course, you always have the option of creating your own
format for recording your own REFLECTION.
Food for Thought!
Many
of the activities work hand-in-hand so you build on skills first learned in the
REQUIRED and LEARN categories. You can then use those skills or knowledge to
accomplish one of the DO or SHARE activities as well as YOUR OWN goal. As you
plan which activities you'll do, keep these connections in mind.
What's
with the Chicken Nugget?
The graphic of a chicken nugget appears in a few places within the new IP content as a friendly reminder against "double-dipping." One of the BGFG Committee members (Allison, age 15) came up with the idea of having a "Chicken Nugget" warning alongside activities where you might be tempted to "double-dip." Remember, you can only count an activity once toward completing an IP and you must do six different activities in order to earn the IPA.
What about the Other IPs?
You, your sister Girl Scouts, or an adult volunteer/staff
person suggested these changes to IPs—and they also had some recommendations
for updating the current structure of the IPs found in Interest Projects for
Girls 11-17. See What
Happens with the Other IPs on the website so they can be modeled like new
IPs: do 2 Skill Builders, do 2 activities of your choice from the 4 categories
(different categories), design and do one goal of your own (Smart Goal), and
prepare a short Reflection.
SMART GOAL: Build and Flex Leadership Skills: Design a Goal
of YOUR OWN
How do I design a
SMART goal?
Earning
one of these 10 new IPs requires you to exercise the freedom to design a goal
of YOUR OWN. While your own imagination is the best resource, you're free to
use activities you find in other sources, too.
Ask SMART
Questions
Before starting work on it, discuss your goal with your
adult advisor. They'll be able to coach you on creating a goal that is SMART
(Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timely)
by:
- Asking
if you're stretching your skills enough or too much
- Assisting
you to define what you'll learn and how you'll benefit
- Helping
you think of new ideas you've never considered before.
In
addition to our suggestions, there are many other resources in your library or
on the Web that can help you with writing SMART goals.
Three steps to
make YOUR OWN goal a SMART one
1.
Write one paragraph or so explaining what the goal of YOUR OWN activity is.
When writing the goal, take time to consider questions like:
- What
interests you most about this topic?
- What
would you most like to learn, do, or share?
- What
do you hope to accomplish?
- What
do you want to come away with from this experience?
- When
you have completed your activity, what will you have learned, done, or
shared?
- How
will you measure your success?
2. Once you've written the explanation, list the steps
you'll take to achieve this goal.
3.
Review what you've written with your adult advisor before beginning work on
YOUR OWN goal's activity. Discuss how the chosen steps will enable you to reach
your goal.
#5: MY OWN SMART GOAL
IP Name_________________ Girl Name___________________________________
- I hope to accomplish:
I
expect to LEARN…….DO…….SHARE (circle one):
I want to come away from this
experience with:
- Steps I’ll take to achieve this goal:
- I have reviewed this with my advisor
(advisor comments):
Signed: (Girl)__________________________ Date___________
(Advisor)_________________________ Date___________
#6. REFLECTION
Part(s) of the
Promise and Law that relates to what I did in this IP:
My Reflection:
Signed: (Girl)__________________________ Date___________
(Advisor)_________________________ Date___________