badges at camp

[ocean]

While at camp do you guys have programs where the campers can earn badges? I know at ours we do, just wanted to compare to see if other girl scout camps do this as well

[camplover86]

We don't focus on earning badges but at the end of the session the counselors go through the badge book and write down what steps they have completed to each badge, to take home to their leader.

[Flukie]

Haha. I actually had to FORCE this at camp this summer - I had a staff member say to me, "Maybe you don't know this, but we're a sailing camp, not a Girl Scout camp..." I just looked at her, shook my head and responded that were were owned and operated by the Girl Scout Council and that all our girls were registered - whether it was just for camp or through the year. I didn't want them to DO badges in the unit - I just wanted them to send home the paperwork that says that yes, in 2 weeks of sailing, your daughter did complete the Smooth Sailing IPA! I found that if you have staff familiar with GS, it is a lot easier for them to understand badge work. I'm working on this for this summer. Girls definitely complete parts of badges in just doing the everday activities - but we're going to try to pair them up so that staff know what badge their girls are mostly working on based on the programming.

[ocean]

Haha. I actually had to FORCE this at camp this summer - I had a staff member say to me, "Maybe you don't know this, but we're a sailing camp, not a Girl Scout camp..." I just looked at her, shook my head and responded that were were owned and operated by the Girl Scout Council and that all our girls were registered - whether it was just for camp or through the year. I didn't want them to DO badges in the unit - I just wanted them to send home the paperwork that says that yes, in 2 weeks of sailing, your daughter did complete the Smooth Sailing IPA! I found that if you have staff familiar with GS, it is a lot easier for them to understand badge work. I'm working on this for this summer. Girls definitely complete parts of badges in just doing the everday activities - but we're going to try to pair them up so that staff know what badge their girls are mostly working on based on the programming.


That is a really good idea

[Trees]

Hey Flukie, I just told you a little about how we incorporate badgework in the specialist topic...

We have a few units that sign up knowing they're going to work on a specific try-it/badge/IP/charm, but most sign up for general camp or certain activities. We also do the badge-sheet-at-the-end-of-the-week thing. We do pretty intensive training to make sure the staff are familiar with the different badge books and how to complete the requirements (including earning a badge during staff training). Also, one of my duties last year was to work with the ULs to make sure the girls were completing the appropriate badge work, whether it was promised in the program description or simply a natural part of what they already signed up to do (i.e. canoeing badgework for the canoeing girls). This was new, but I think it worked well, especially for the unit leaders with very little GS experience.

[Indigo]

My Girl Scout camp doesn't have any emphasis on badges. If a girl comes aiming to earn a badge, we can plan activities that will help, but many of our campers don't really care much about badges, at least at camp.

[S_R_Star]

We have many sessions where it is expected that the girls will earn or work on the majority of a badge. Being the photography specialist i have to make sure that girls who sign up for the photography program work on the badges. It can sometimes be hard to do this as i have 8 girls and only one enlarger so they don't really do too much work. I try to make sure i do as much for them as i can.

We have some counselors who are very good at incorporating badges into the unit llife. I find i never had time to do that. This year it was never really explained in staff training about badges and how they work so not alot got done. I hope to do more on this in staff training next year to help staff realise that they do lots of things from badges in everyday camp life.

[Fallen]

My council plans the programs at the camps and each one has a badge or two that the campers have to earn. So we have to figure out what they can do to earn those badges. Outside of that we don't really force badge requirments.

[ocean]

thanks everybody for your responses

[Rainbow]

The GS camp I work has themes each week and the badge work goes along with that theme for all levels to some extent most of the time. At all the program areas they work on badge requirements in additions having to do some in unit. Horse camps just do horse ones, teen leadership camps just go over camp aid material.

[ocean]

thats cool

[audur]

A few of the descriptions for programs at my camp promise that the kids will work on specific badges, so of course we do those. Other than that, it's pretty much up to the counselors - we are expected to do some badgework, though, and do fill out a sheet at the end of the week. Most of the time, my girls will have done quite a bit of badgework even though I don't focus on it. A lot of the time it just happens - we have a lot of specific programs (art, water, horses, leadership, trips) and so the working on badges thing just sort of "happens", most of the time.

[Whimsy]

At my camp badges are definately not the main focus, but at the end of each session, the counselors go through the badge books and mark on a sheet all the requirements the camper has completed. Very rarely will they have finished a badge, but often they have a great start.

[campnerd99]

There's no specific program at camp for the girls to earn badges but just so long as they participate in the usual camp activites they all earn atleast one badge.

[Marzz]

My camps used to not have much of a focus on badges, but they would send home a badge sheet to show what the girls had completed just by "being" at camp. Since I went back this summer, I noticed they have placed a huge emphasis on badgework. Maybe a little too much. Each and every camp program has a binder with specific instructions of what the girls are supposed to do. There is very little room for variation. There were activities we were forced to do that the girls found very boring - a lot of classroom stuff. But they went home having earned like three badges in a week.

[Mouse...]

Some of the programs have specific badges for the girls to earn and the counselors are expected to try and have the girls earn at least one badge.

[facade1138]

At the GS camp I work at some programs have badge focuses but most don't. At the end of the week each girl goes home with a badge sheet which lists all the requirements of any badge that she has completed. For instance all juniors normally go home with a requirment done of the swimming badge because they all learend and used the buddy system in the pool

[Smudge]

When I was at Wabasso in 2001 we actually used the badge books to plan some of the programmes (particularly the one week drama program - the badge was great cos it gave me my sylabus for the whole week) But they didn't specifically do badges - the program manager that year encouraged to see if what they had done would earn them a badge. If they did earn a badge then they went home with a certificate.

When I was at Hoffman we did work on badges - again the badge requirements were used tto guide the programming and most campers earned at least one badge during a session (except the 3 day ones)

[Possuumm]

for me.....camp is camp...and badges aren't specifically involved

[Flukie]

Yeah, GSPTC is going badge oriented this summer. That makes it sound like we're a tad obsessed - but really, what we're doing is that different programs work on different badges and, if they finish, they actually will get it. HUGE step up from other years where I was told I would have to make my CITs pay for their insignia out of trading post. Hahaha. We didn't. It came from petty cash. But I'm very excited about the girls actually getting the badge.

[Possum]

At our camp, badges aren't the focus of our themed units. For some (like with our equestrian progression program), certain horse related badges are required to move up, but girls can get these by attending our weekends - which they love, as they get to come to camp and ride in the off-season.

At the end of every unit, counselors go through and look at the steps for badges to see which they've done and record them on a form that it sent home with the girls. If they've completed a badge, great. If not, at least they've got a head start.

[Tootsie]

Each girl has the chance to earn at least 3 patches at my camp. In order to earn those patches they have to complete of a series of different things, but it's not hard to do. Each session we have a different theme, which means different patches. So a lot of cool patches can be earned.

[happy_camper]

Tootsie -- do they earn patches or badges??

[Tootsie]

badges...sorry about that

[happy_camper]

it's okay! There's a difference so I was just wondering which one you earned!