Meredith Daisy troop leader plans with new Girl Scout Experience Box

BEDFORD — A Girl Scout Daisy is in kindergarten or first grade student. Everything Daisies do — from planting a garden to making a circle of friends — sparkles with that “first time ever” newness. Along the way, Daisies gain important social skills, learn how to be a good friend, and discover the world around them.

But how does a volunteer new to Girl Scouts learn how to lead a Daisy troop? Girl Scouts of the USA has made it easy with the introduction of the Girl Scout Experience Box last August. This is a series of free monthly boxes that come packed with ready-to-

go supplies, step-by-step instructions and thought script suggestions that make it easy to plan and run meetings.

Louisa Cartier of Meredith agrees they make it easier for new leaders to be successful.

“If people knew they could get the boxes,” she said, “more people would be willing to become Girl Scout leaders.”

Cartier, a lifetime member of Girl Scouts herself, has used the full series of boxes provided so far to her troop, starting with the Welcome Box, which introduces the new Daisies to the concept of being a Girl Scout.

At Cartier’s troop meeting on Jan. 22, her Girl Scouts made toy cookie booths from popsicle sticks, finger puppets from paper, and then acted out the process of running a cookie booth to give them an idea of what is to come in real life when they will make Thin Mints, Samoas, and more available to the public to fund their troop goals.

Each box arrives with enough supplies for two or three meetings, covering the entire first year of a troop’s participation. A Welcome Box starts the experience with a family meeting where they learn about the Girl Scout Promise and Law. Further boxes allow the kindergartners and first graders to learn about friendship, money, cookie business skills, respect, responsibility, making the world a better place, and more.

New Daisy Girl Scout troops can be formed at any time and the council welcomes caregivers to consider starting a troop with this new free Girl Scout Experience Box series. The council provides much more support to new leaders, as well.

For more information, visit girlscoutsgwm.org.