OUTDOOR FUN

“There is something about the outdoors that is good for the inside of a girl…”
-Sara Louise Arnold, 1958

Since Juliette Gordon Low first included sports, nature study, and camping in the overall Girl Scout program, activities in the outdoors have been an integral part of Girl Scouting. Today's Girl Scout is more apt to use a gas stove than a campfire, but the basic the philosophy of outdoor education in Girl Scouting has remained the same, with adjustments made to reflect our increasing knowledge of environmental relationships and sustainability.

Leaders play an important part in providing effective outdoor experiences for girls:

• Remember that both quality and quantity of outdoor experiences count in developing an appreciation for the natural world.
• Go for the real thing. Video and indoor games about the outdoors are not the same as being there.
• Find ways to consider how everything you do and see is interrelated in the outdoors. Identify the parts and pieces in the web of life in an ecosystem, and determine how you fit in.
• Make outdoor activities fun and challenging. Differentiate them from indoor activities. Focus on motivating through individual interests and hands-on experiences.
• Involve girls in planning for outdoor activities. Let the outdoors be a catalyst for positive experiences, learning to be flexible, individual and group growth, and girl/adult partnership.
• Provide girls with positive role models. Don't fall back on "do as I say, not as I do." Share and facilitate the experience. Sometimes the "less than perfect" experience is the one that teaches the most and is remembered with the fondest memories.

Outdoor Fun Day Camp Resident Camp Camp