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Girl Scouts / Girl Guides |
Junior Girl Scout STEM Program
Article used with permission of Janny Strickland and Holly Barr, Dallas (TX) Chapter Ninety-Nines
Disclaimer: Be sure to consult with your local Girl Scout Council as specific requirements may vary.
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Imagine being 10 years old with most of life ahead of you. Then imagine getting to meet a group of women pilots who open your eyes to the thrills and possibilities of working in a field relatively few women enter. This is why the Dallas 99s love working with Girl Scouts. In 2008 we developed an Aerospace Badge program aimed at Junior Girl Scouts (5th and 6th grades). We adhered to requirements documented in the official Girl Scout Badge Book, and used ideas published on the International website by other 99s chapters. Since our first seminar in November of 2008, we have educated approximately 85 girls per year through small seminars of 12-13 girls, and an occasional larger seminar. Our three-hour seminar includes topics such as basic aerodynamics and navigation, space food evolution with space ice cream samples, tales from the days of Powder Puff Derbies, careers, and visiting the tower and a GA plane at a local airport. The girls love the hands-on activities, and we feel inspired and energized after every seminar. |
Canadian Rockies Chapter Girl Guides Event |
In 2011 Girl Scouts moved to replace the emphasis on earning badges with completing “Leadership Journeys”, which encourage girls to investigate areas they care most about while striving to make the world a better place. As part of the Journeys, the Girl Scout organization promotes programs involving the four STEM topics: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.
In the Northeast Texas Girl Scout Council, community organizations and businesses can qualify as STEM Seal of Approval providers by completing a comprehensive questionnaire identifying how their program addresses the STEM topics. A STEM certified program must offer activities that meet a variety of criteria such as including science in the program, career exploration, and building enthusiasm for the topic. Content delivery method is also important. (These requirements may vary by Girl Scout Council. Please check with your local council for specifics.) The Dallas 99s applied for, and received, the Seal of Approval in 2011.
Girls who complete any STEM program qualify for a STEM patch. They are hexagonal in shape to encourage honey-combing on the back of scouts’ sashes or vests. We have designed a patch that any Ninety-Nines chapter is welcome to use. Pricing depends on the quantity ordered. Chapters could replace the word “Aviation” with the chapter name if they wish to customize it.
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Aviation Patch Designed by Dallas Chapter |
As a STEM program provider, our workshop can remain the same or change in content, provided we continue to adhere to the concepts described in our STEM Seal of Approval application. This past April we teamed with the Frontiers of Flight Museum at Love Field in Dallas, a Smithsonian-affiliated institution. Thanks to their larger facility, we were able to accommodate nearly 60 girls. This was a great help, as we’d had some troops on our waiting list for two years or more.
With Power Point presentations, demonstrations, and speakers, we covered the aerodynamic, navigation, space, careers, and Powder Puff Derby topics. An actress portraying Amelia Earhart captured the girls’ imaginations. Then docents from the museum took the girls on a 45-minute tour, introducing them to planes of all ages, a space capsule, and a display case highlighting women in aviation, created by one of our members.
Following every seminar, we ask the girls and leaders to complete evaluations. We use them and our own experiences to continually improve the program. Changes in venue, changes in weather, and of course, different groups of girls make each program unique. This keeps things interesting.
Resources:
Plano Pin Company
1410 Summit, Suite 3
Plano, TX 75074
www.planopin.com
972-867-5152
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Additional information provided in a powerpoint presentation at http://www.scs99s.org/AerospaceEd/GirlScoutPresentation.ppt. This powerpoint is provided with permission of Janny Strickland and Holly Barr, Dallas Chapter 99s. Photos and slides provided by multiple 99s Chapters.
Future projects will include a "How to Host a Girl Scout Event" manual and a manual for adapting the Junior Girl Scout Program to Cadet Girl Scouts. These manuals will be posted when completed.
| CHAPTER | CONTACT |
 Canadian Rockies Chapter Girl Guides Event If you are a Girl Scout or Girl Guide Council looking for a 99s chapter to assist you with an aviation badge event, or you are a 99s chapter looking for a local council to coordinate an event with, please contact International Aviation and Space Education Committee Chairman Jill Williams at aeroed@ninety-nines.org
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| Albuquerque (New Mexico) | Kathy Hancock | ||
| Canadian Rockies (British Columbia) | Kelly Sheret | ||
| Chicago Area (Illinois) | |||
| Connecticut | Glenna Blackwell | ||
| Dallas (Texas) | |||
| Delaware | Jane Waggoner | ||
| Houston (Texas) | |||
| Indiana Dunes (Indiana) | Diana Austin | ||
| Kentucky Bluegrass | Terri Donner | ||
| Keystone (Pennsylvania) | Diana Kelly | ||
| Nebraska | Diane Bartels | ||
| Old Dominion (Virginia) | RJ McGlasson | ||
| Orange County (California) | Linda Eldridge | ||
| Oregon Pines (Oregon) | Kim Lansdon | ||
| Phoenix (Arizona) | Stacy Howard | ||
| Reno Area (Nevada) | Kathy Walton | ||
| Jeanne Finimore | |||
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San Gabriel Valley (California) |
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| Sugarloaf (Maryland) | Joyce Saltsman | ||
| Tucson (Arizona) | Anne Silverman | ||
| Ventura County (California) | Carol Vautin | ||
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