Girl Scout Journey: It's Your Planet Love It!

Transcription

1 Girl Scout Journey: It's Your Planet Love It! WOW! Wonders of Water WOW! Wonders of Water Six-Session Session Girl Scout Journey Program WOW! calls on Girl Scout Brownies across the country and around the world to use their leadership skills and values to protect the waters of Planet Earth. The knowledge they acquire in this journey will be the springboard to caring about this precious resource now and throughout their lives.

2 WOW! Wonders of Water Journey Program Session 1- Love Water (2 Hours) Goal- For the girls to share their enjoyable encounters with water and to understand and experience its importance in the world. Materials Needed: Copies of the WOW! Girl s Book WOW! Leader s Guide Water Cycle Chart Butcher Paper Situation Cards Masking Tape Glass of Water White Paper Photocopies of Letter to go home Liquid tight container (one per girl) Watermelon slices Markers Water Bottle 1. Introduction-Gather the girls in a Share Circle. Explain to the girls they will be beginning a fabulous journey that is all about water. This journey has four Leadership Awards that they can earn as they venture along the journey s path. Ask them to share with the others their favorite water activity. Tell them to think of simple, enjoyable uses of water like swimming, showering, ice skating, stomping in a puddle etc Begin by mentioning your favorite. 2. Creating a WOW! Map- Put up the roll of butcher paper on a wall. Label it WOW! MAP. Tell the girls that the Water of Wonders or WOW! Map will be used at each session during the journey. Today they are to write or draw their favorite water activity they had just shared with the group. They should include their name. 3. The Water Cycle- Show the girls a filled water bottle. Ask them how old they think the water in the bottle is? After several guesses, let them know that it is as old as the earth! Ask them if we ever get new water? Tell them no. All the water gets recycled. Read the story in the WOW! Girl Book on pages 6-22 to help them understand a water drop s journey.

3 Show them a Water Cycle Chart or use the one in their book on page 15. Begin with a cloud and explain that it is filled with water droplets. Just like a sponge, when it gets too full, it releases the water droplets. They fall to the earth in form of rain, snow or sleet. Ask them where does it go from there? Get them to understand it goes on mountains and flows down mountain streams which flow into lakes and then rivers and eventually all of it flows into the ocean. Water that hits the ground can also be absorbed into the ground where it will actually find an underground stream and eventually become part of a river that flows into an ocean. Or when it goes into the ground it can be absorbed by roots in trees, bushes and plants that use it for food. The plants release water into the air through their leaves. The droplets are so tiny you can t see them with your eyes! 4. Water Around the World- Begin a discussion about how important water is to all the activities the girls listed on the WOW! Map. Ask them how they would feel if there wasn t enough water to do their activity? Ask them if they think all people around the world have all the water they need? Share with them that not all people have enough water to drink, to bathe and to use for crops. Do the Situation activity in the Leader s Guide on pages 44 & 45 to allow the girls to understand that water is not as readily available for all people around the world as it is for us. 5. Making Rainbows- Remind the girls of the Rainbow that Campbell, Alejandra and Jamila saw with the elf. Ask the girls if they have seen rainbows before. Ask them what was the weather like when they saw it? What did the elf tell the girls about rainbows and the weather? Do the Making Rainbow Activity in the Leader s Guide on page 46 & 47with the girls. Have the girls complete the colors of the rainbow in their Girl Book on page Snack- Bring Watermelon as their snack. As they eat it tell them that this is a good example of water filled food. It is 92% water. Show them a circle and color in all of it except 8% (approximately) to illustrate what 92% means. You can share with them other fruits that have a lot of water in them. (see Leader Guide on page 49). Explain to them that they will learn other fun facts during their journey through WOW! 7. Closing- Give each girl a liquid tight container and ask the girls to bring their favorite water with them for the next meeting (see Send it Home- My Favorite Water on page 48 in the Leader s Guide). Send home the letter to the parents/guardians (page 50 in the Leader s Guide or create one of your own). Form a closing circle and ask the girls one thing they learned today. Go around the circle so everyone gets a chance. Ask them if water is important to them and do they enjoy water. Tell them they will learn even more in their next meeting.

4 WOW! Wonders of Water Journey Program Session 2- Love Water (2 Hours) Goal- Through their appreciation of water, girls will consider what promises they will make to protect and conserve water in their home and in their community. Materials Needed: Copies of the WOW! Girl s Book WOW! Leader s Guide WOW! Map Decoration Supplies for jars o Markers o Labels o Stickers Water Droplets (pre-cut) pg. 50 Leaders Guide Pencils or pens Sample of Blue Planet Necklace Blue Planet Necklace Supplies o Pony Beads 97 blue (per girl) 2 white (per girl) 1 green (per girl) o Lanyard-enough for each girl to have a necklace and fit all 100 beads on it o Glass filled with water o Counting Every Drop- 7 copies per girl 1. Introduction- Gather the girls in a Share Circle. Have them bring their water they collected and give each girl an opportunity to share where they collected their water and what she liked about that water source. Ask the girls some specifics about the water such as Is it freshwater or saltwater? Is it clean enough to drink? Were animals living in that water? Allow the girls some time to label their water containers with their name and place where the water came from. Next have them decorate the jar with stickers and markers. Hang up the WOW! Map and ask the girls to add their favorite water source places to the map. 2. The Blue Planet Necklace- Explain to the girls that Earth is called the Blue Planet because so much of it is covered with water. However only a very small amount of it is drinkable and useable by plants and animals. Read with the girls pages in their Girl Book about the Blue Planet. Explain the difference between fresh water and salt water.

5 To demonstrate the percentages of fresh water, salt water and the percentage of fresh water we can actually utilize, show them your Blue Planet Necklace that you made ahead of time. It will have 97 blue beads, 2 white beads and 1 green bead on a piece of lanyard. Explain that the100 beads represent all the water found on our earth. 97 of the beads are blue representing the oceans which are comprised of salt water. There are 2 white beads and 1 green bead representing all the fresh water on the earth. The 2 white beads represent the fresh water that is frozen on the continents. The green bead represents the drinkable water available on earth. This shows that although there is a lot of water on our earth, very little of it is useable for us so we must conserve and protect what it available because as they learned in the first session, we don t get any new water. Allow the girls to make their own necklaces. Give them an opportunity to reiterate what each color represents so they understand the meaning of their Blue Planet Necklace. 3. Conserving Water- Read pages in their Girl Book. Explain how important it is to conserve (save) water. Ask them to list times they have seen water being wasted. Give them an example (leaving water running while brushing teeth, filling the bath tub too full, running the hose outside for no reason etc..) Chart their responses on the chalkboard or on chart paper. Part of our Girl Scout Law states that Girl Scouts should use resources wisely. Explain that water is a natural resource. Review the list they created and ask them ways they could help using water more wisely. Have them write an idea for conserving water on page 29 in their Girl Book. Read page 48 in the Girl Book with the girls to understand how much water we use. Read pages in the Girl Book to show ways people can conserve water. 4. Water Droplets- Hand out four water droplets to each girl (template found on p. 59 in Leader s Guide). On two droplets ask them to write two ways they pledge to conserve water. (i.e. turn water off when brushing teeth, ask mom to turn water off and on when washing dishes, shower instead of taking a bath or only filling tub half full). Have them write the same two pledges on the other two droplets. Have the girls attach two water droplets to the WOW! Map. They promise as Girl Scouts to honor those two conservation pledges this coming week and see how long they can do it. They will take the other two home to remind them of their promise. 5. Counting Every Drop- Give each girl 7 copies of the Counting Every Drop activity sheet. Explain to them how to use it at home for a week to monitor their water usage. At the end

6 of each day they should write down the amount of water used at the top of the sheet. At the end of the week they should add up all seven days to get their total usage. For water used by the entire family they can have an adult help them by dividing that consumption number by the number in the household. For example, a load of laundry uses about 40 gallons. If there are four people in the household they would divide it by 4 and their personal consumption would be 10 gallons. 6. Closing- Bring a cup of water to the closing circle. Have the girls carefully pass it around from one to another. Remind them that fresh water is scarce and we won t get any more new water on the earth so pass the cup very carefully and try not to spill any. As they pass it around have them chant: Careful, careful with each drop! There is no more, so waste must stop! Let the girls know that at the next meeting they will, as a team, come up with an idea to protect Earth s water. (Try to use the water in the cup for a plant or drink it instead of putting it down the drain!)

7 WOW! Wonders of Water Journey Program Session 3- Save Water (2 Hours) Goal- By understanding the need to save water from over usage and pollution, the girls will work as a team to create a plan that allows them to advocate for water. Materials Needed: Copies of the WOW! Girl s Book WOW! Leader s Guide WOW! Map Water Transportation Activity (see activity sheet) Pencils or Pens Markers Copies of pages in Leader s Guide (one per girl) Planning work sheet (see page 71 in Leader s Guide) 1. Introduction-Gather the girls in a Share Circle. The girls should have their report on how much water they used for a week with them. Ask them how they made out with their water drop conservation pledges. Have each girl share how much water they used in one week. Ask them if they were surprised at how much water they used. Ask them if they tried to conserve more each day after they realized how much they were using. 2. Tell the girls that today they will begin creating a plan to advocate (speak up for) for water. 3. Water Transportation-Have the girls read p. 49 in their Girl Book. Discuss the idea of having to put jugs of water on their head and transport it to their house every day. 4. Water Transportation Activity-This outdoor activity will develop an appreciation of our modern devices that allows us to have water transported to our communities and homes. It will relate how easy access to water can encourage people to use large amounts of water. 5. Brainstorming Solutions to Water Advocacy- Read pages in the Girl s Book with the girls. Discuss as a group or have the girls complete pages in the Girl s Book. Steps 1, 2 & 3 only. 6. Tell them it is time to come up with a team plan to help influence others to take care of our water. Read pages in the Girl s Book with them. 7. Do the LOVE, SAVE, SHARE activity on pg. 69 in the Leader s Guide with the girls.

8 8. Do the Choosing a SAVE Project activity on pages in the Leader s Guide with the girls. Review page 74 in the Leader s Guide before brainstorming with the girls on their plan. 9. Closing Ceremony- Use the ceremony found on page 70 in the Leader s Guide.

9 WOW! Wonders of Water Journey Program Session 4- Share Water (2 Hours) Goal-.The girls will prepare to share what they have learned by practicing their SHARE plan. They will prepare to educate, and inspire others to appreciate, conserve and protect our water sources. Materials Needed: Copies of the WOW! Girl s Book WOW! Leader s Guide WOW! Map Page 81 in Leader s Guide (copy and cut into strips) Container for the strips Arts & Crafts supplies for making posters or signs Poster board for signs Permission Slips 1. Introduction- Gather the girls in a Share Circle. We will be preparing to share our Save Plan with others. We need to practice our public speaking and decide who we will be sharing it with. 2. Communicate it! Tell the girls we will take some time today to practice speaking to others in a way that gets our points across. Do the Communicate it! Activity on pages in the Leader s Guide. Prior to the meeting copy and cut apart the Communicate it! Scenarios found on page 81 in the Leader s Guide. Next practice the proper way the girls want to convey their messages using their actual plan. 3. Preparing the Materials- The girls will need to decide how they want to share their plan and prepare materials for that presentation. Review page 74 with the girls to help them create their ideas. 4. Have the girls make posters, signs or other visuals to help them communicate their share plan. 5. Their plan should include sharing their reasons for loving water and why they want to help others understand its importance and how they should protect it.

10 6. Make sure you have decided upon some sort of documentation of the girl s impact on others on the day of the Share Plan. Ideas can be found on page 75 of the Leader s Guide. This will be needed to earn the WOW! Award. 7. WOW! Map- Have the girls write on their map a sentence they will use to get share their plan with others. Have them draw a speech bubble around their sentence and a picture of themselves saying that sentence. They could also draw the person to whom they want to share this information. 8. Underwater World Story- Tell the girls we want to talk a little about how important water is to animal life. Ask them to say a name of an animal they know that either lives in the water or needs water to survive (which of course are all animals!) 9. Read with the girls the story on pages Read just the story. Skip over the other stories and activities for now. 10. After the story, ask them how important was the water to these animals that the girls visited in the story. Allow time for the girls to share their thoughts. 11. Closing-Depending on your share plan, your next meeting should be at the plan site. Send home permission slips and other information they will need to share with their parents regarding the plan. Remind the girls to wear their vests to their next meeting. 12. In the Share Circle, remind the girls that they are fulfilling part of the Girl Scout Law by asking people to Use Resources Wisely. The girls should take pride in their efforts.

11 WOW! Wonders of Water Journey Program Session 5- Share Water (2 Hours) Goal-.The girls will share what they have learned by carrying out their SHARE plan. They will prepare to educate, and inspire others to appreciate, conserve and protect our water sources. Materials Needed: Copies of the WOW! Girl s Book WOW! Leader s Guide Signed Permission Slips First Aid Kit Any materials, posters, signs etc needed for the site Invitations for guests (either made by girls or ones leader prepared to hand out) A reminder note to take home regarding their special stuffed animal for the celebration 1. Introduction- Gather the girls in a Share Circle. Remind them of their role in today s activities. Remind the girls to advocate in a clear and loud voice 2. Carrying out the Plan- Assist the girls in caring out their plan at the site. Read and share some ideas for sharing on pages in the Leader s Guide. 3. Closing- Remind the girls that Girl Scouts always leave a place better than they found it so make sure they clean up properly. In a Share circle commend them on a job well done! Ask them how they feel their plan went and how do they feel about themselves? Do they think they made a difference today? Treat them to a special snack at the site or on the way home! 4. WOW! Celebration Preparation- Tell the girls that the next meeting will be their WOW! Celebration. Ask them to bring a special stuffed animal that would live in the water (if not available then one that would use water to survive) with them to the next meeting for their WOW! Celebration. (see page 110 in the Girl s Book) Ask the girls if they would like to invite anyone special to their celebration (i.e. parents/guardians, special community members that they worked with) Special Snack- Share the snack on page 111 in their book. Ask them if they would like to have that or something else? Other ideas? (You can share ideas you might have too!) Determine what time you would like the guests to arrive. There will be need to be preparation time before they arrive. See Session 6 for more details. Have the girls make and bring home invitations to their guests (optional).

12 WOW! Wonders of Water Journey Program Session 6- WOW! Award (2 Hours) Attend the Stream Stompin program or other water-oriented program offered for by GSNNJ Girl Scout Brownies. This is an optional session to take place before or after Session 6. Goal- The girls will culminate their Wow! Journey by identifying and showing proof of their powerful message and change they have brought to their community. Materials Needed Copies of the WOW! Girl s Book WOW! Leader s Guide WOW! Map Pens or pencils Copy of the Girl Scout Promise and Law poster size Make a poster with a photo or drawing of the 4 Journey Awards Write ups for each award that a girl(or girls) will read to the guests Copies of the Pledge (1 per girl-found on inside back cover of Leader s Guide) All four Awards (one per girl of all 4) Refreshments that you discussed with the girls in Session 5 Extra Stuffed animals for those who might have forgotten theirs 1. Introduction-Gather the girls in a Share Circle. Congratulate them again on a job well done. Ask them what they liked best about their plan. Was their message delivered? How? (what proof did they see?) 2. WOW! Celebration Preparation- Have the girls complete pages in their Girl Books to review their Journey accomplishments. Display the WOW! Map and review with the girls all the parts of the map. Ask them to explain their contributions to the map to their guests when they arrive. Have all the girls recite the Girl Scout Promise and Law. Afterwards ask them which part of the Promise and/or Law did they fulfill during the Journey? This will be practice as they will do this again with their guests. Either select 4 girls or put all the girls into 4 groups. Assign each an Award that they will explain and point to the picture for the guests. While standing in a Share Circle, have the girls hold their stuffed animals. Each girl in turn will share her animal s name, why it is important to her and how her animal uses water to survive. They will share this with their guests. Have the girls practice reading their pledge out loud. They will share this with their guests.

13 3. Guests Arrival- The girls should greet their guests and show and explain their part of the WOW! Map to them. Have the girls stand in front of the guests. You might want to have a flag ceremony or just a pledge of allegiance. Have all the girls recite the Girl Scout Promise and Law. Afterwards ask them which part of the Promise and/or Law did they fulfill during the Journey? Give every girl a chance to share. While standing in front of the guests, have the girls hold their stuffed animals. Each girl in turn will share her animal s name, why it is important to her and how her animal uses water to survive. They can also explain what people should do to protect these waters so animals can survive in them. The girls or groups of girls will present the Awards and explain and point to each as practiced. The girls will read their pledge out loud as a group. Present the girls with all their 4 Awards. 4. Refreshments-Invite guests to share in refreshments. 5. Closing-Invite the guests to join the Share Circle. Do the friendship squeeze with all.