I find myself in all sorts of conversations about programs, awards, trips, and camp. It is interesting to me, because too frequently I hear why this and that didn't or doesn't work and it all rolls back to the adult involved. It doesn't have anything to do with the girls. When GSUSA moved toward high capacity councils, one of the many facets of their new business plan was to focus more on the GIRLS and less on the adults assisting. Don't get me wrong, the adults that are assisting are critical to the delivery of the mission. But for us to be and remain relevant, we must be GIRL LED.
What does that mean if you are a troop leader with a group
of Brownies? I was talking to a really
good leader awhile back. She said she
had tried very hard to get two things out of each meeting that took a lot of
time. They were talking when they all
arrived and coloring. She thought both
took a lot of time and she had things she wanted to accomplish. In her wisdom, she had decided that talking
was important to the girls. At any
gathering affording the girls free time at the beginning to share what is going
on, often shapes the interaction to follow.
One of the values of the Girl Scout experience that I hear from alumnae
is the relationship with the other girls of their troop. When I meet with alumnae group their focus
through the years is with their fellow Girl Scouts.
The issue of the coloring book with this leader was an
interesting one. She didn't see the
value of it, but she said the girls insist.
If they don't get to color, they aren't happy with their meeting, no
matter what they did that day. I
suspect this is more of the same.
Coloring is a time when they can enjoy themselves, talk with their
friends, and enjoy their own creativity.
It is what the girls want. This
leader decided she would simply have to plan her meetings in relation to what
the girls' needs and preferences were, not hers. If they didn't earn all the Try-Its, that
was fine. The girls simply want to have
fun.
One of our board chairs always emphasized the fun of the
program. Early on, she was always
chiding me to be sure whatever we were planning, the girls were learning while
having fun. And what I have seen is
sometimes the adults get in the way of what the girls really want. Do you ask?
I used to work in student affairs at a university. For years and years we saved the yearbook. The students wouldn't get it done; someone
from the professional staff would "fix it."
Things went much better at our university when I allowed the students to
fail at some things. It was expensive,
but it improved their learning. The
students were telling us something about the yearbook and we weren't listening.
There is a very fine line between encouragement and
discouragement. I find that I am not
too old to learn from children. Their
world is different than mine and when I can see through their lens, I find some
of my views change, for the better. Are
we deciding for the girls or asking?
Are we involving the girls or telling?
Do we need control or are we flexible enough to allow them to make
decisions, even though we don't see the wisdom in the decision? Are we coaching and nudging or pushing and
demanding? Were they given options or
told what to do? Trust them and be
prepared to be surprised.
