HERstory

 

            The National Womenıs History Project (NWHP) sponsors National Womenıs History Month every March. Their mission is to ³honor, recognize, and celebrate the diverse historic accomplishments of women by providing information and educational materials and programs. . . The 2009 theme is: Women Taking the Lead to Save our Planet.² Resources are provided below for troops interested in learning more about women in our history.

 

 

Celebrate!

            NWHP suggests ways for Promoting Womenıs History Month. Download a pamphlet or order celebration materials (30 bookmarks are $6.95). There are low-cost stickers, fun tattoos, buttons, bookmarks, and pencils. Also available is the Heroes In Our History: A Women's History Coloring Book, which includes a page on Juliette Low. A wealth of educational activities to help write women back into history is available through the NWHP Resource Center.

 

Successful Girl Scouts

            ³In order to better understand what success means to the women of America and what role Girl Scouting plays in their success, GSUSA commissioned a study, Defining Success: American Women, Achievement, and the Girl Scouts. The study conducted by Louis Harris & Associates, Inc., underscores just how strongly Girl Scouting is linked to success in later life. ²GS of E Massachusetts provides a listing of Famous Girl Scout Alumnae in the USA and Founding Women in Girl Scouting. Or, expand your search to Famous Former Girl Guides and Girl Scouts.

 

Women in the Arts

The National Museum of Women in the Arts located in Washington DC has developed a program called Discovering Art: A Museum Guide for Girl Scouts.  Designed for Brownie and Junior levels, "these materials strengthen girlsı understanding of the art world and encourage an appreciation of the important contributions that women have made to the arts". Materials may be used in conjunction with a field trip to your local art museum.  A patch may be ordered upon completion of the program.

            Girls could learn about women artists with activities suggested by Kinder Art including: Georgia OıKeeffeıs Abstract Flowers, Georgia OıKeeffeıs Flowers Galore, and Emily Carr's Trees.

 

Punctuation Education (author unknown)

An English professor wrote the words: ³Woman without her man is nothing" on the blackboard and directed the students to punctuate it correctly. The men wrote: "Woman, without her man, is nothing." The women wrote: "Woman! Without her, man is nothing." See what your girls come up with when asked to do this activity!

 

Womenıs Day

March 8 has been designated as International Working Womenıs Day. ³This tradition began in 1857 with a demonstration in New York by female garment workers. The holiday was first officially proclaimed in Helsinki, Finland, in 1910, and celebrated its 50th anniversary in Peking, China, in 1960. In Russia, gifts and flowers are given to women.²(crayola.com)

The United Nations has expanded upon this theme, marking March 8 as a Day for Womenıs Rights and International Peace. ³The theme for 2009 is: Women and men united to end violence against women and girls.² 

 

Girl Scout Program Links

               The following program links are some ways to tie this theme to Girl Scout awards that your girls may enjoy earning:

 

If interested in the below council-own programs, please contact the council first to request permission and obtain ordering information.

 

In addition, Patchwork Designs has developed a number of patch programs, including Fabulous Fifties, The 40ıs, Girls of the Past, Victorian Days, Colonial Days, and Medieval Merriment which offer activity suggestions to help bring your troop history programs to life.

 

More Resource Links

 

 

Updated February 2009