At Girl Scouts, we know that when girls are given the opportunity, they change their world. Every girl has an
important role to play, and every girl deserves the confidence to achieve anything she sets her sight on. But
we need help to ensure that girls in every U.S. zip code develop the confidence that Girl Scouts nurtures.
That's why we've launched ToGetHerThere, the largest fundraising campaign for girls in history.
ToGetHerThere is a Movement wide fundraising campaign with the goal of raising $1 Billion for girls by
2020. Every gift to every Girl Scout Council counts toward the goal. Together, we will get her there - to help
lead her troop, her family, her community, her company, her country, and her world. To learn more about
joining the largest campaign for girls visit girlscouts.org/invest.
Girl Scouting isn’t just about what we do; it’s also about how we do it. Over time, we’ve noticed that girls will
give almost any activity a try, as long as the adults guiding them take the right approach. Girl Scout activities
ask adult volunteers to engage girls in three ways that make Girl Scouting unique from school and other
extracurricular activities:
Girl-led: Girls of every grade level take an active role in determining what, where, when, why, and how
they’ll structure activities. Of course, you’ll provide guidance appropriate to the age of the girls. Plus,
you’ll encourage them to bring their ideas and imaginations into the experiences, make choices, and
lead the way as much as they can.
Learning by doing: This means that girls have active, hands-on experiences. It also means they have a
chance to think and talk about what they are learning as a result of the activities. This kind of reflection
is what helps girls gain self-awareness and confidence to dive into new challenges. So make sure girls
always have a chance to talk with each other—and you—after an activity. It doesn’t have to be formal,
just get them talking and see what happens.
Cooperative learning: Girls learn so much about themselves and each other when they team up on
common goals. Plus, great teamwork helps girls in school now and on the job later. Look for ways to
help each girl contribute her unique talents and ideas to the team, help all girls see how their
differences are valuable to the team, and coach girls to resolve their conflicts productively.
We call these three methods “processes.” You might be wondering how to put these processes into action
with the girls in your group. These steps should help you get started:
1. After you help girls choose a National Leadership Journey (there’s more information about those later
in this chapter), make sure you get the adult guide that accompanies the Journey. As you read through
that guide, look at how the activities, conversations, and choice-making options are set up using the
three processes. Once you start practicing the processes, you’ll probably find that they become second
nature when you’re with girls.
2. If you haven’t already, watch Girl Scouting 101, our online introduction to volunteering with Girl
Scouts. (The password is aboutGS101.) If you’ve already watched Girl Scouting 101, you may want to
review its “What Girl Scouts Do” section to brush up on the processes.
3. Want more detail about the processes? Take a look at the examples in Transforming Leadership
Continued, available online at
www.girlscouts.org/research/publications/gsoutcomes/transforming_leadership_continued.asp.
27