Cookie University for Brownies: Learning Has Never Been So Tasty
Dear Girl Scout Volunteers, As you may know, the Girl Scout Cookie Sale is the largest girl-led Business & Entrepreneurship program in the world. Through their cookie sales, Girl Scouts learn the following 5 essential skills that equip them to succeed in school, work and beyond: Money Management, Decision Making, Goal Setting, People Skills and Business Ethics. We have developed the Cookie University program as a way for girls to develop and build on these 5 skills through engaging in fun, hands-on interactive activities centered around the Cookie Sale and learning from older girls, who have Cookie Sale experience, when possible. This curriculum is meant to serve as a guide for you to offer the Cookie University program either to your Brownie troop at your troop meetings or for you, your Borough Program Committee and/or your Service Unit to organize your own Multi-Troop, Borough-Wide or Service Unit events. Through participating in this program, Brownies will earn their Meet My Customers badge and will fulfill much of their Give Back badge. Want some more activities? Refer to the Cookie Business badges in the Girls Guide to Girl Scouting and Little Brownie Bakers website. Need additional advice or information? Contact Nicole Weitzner, Coordinator of Younger Girl Programs at nweitzner@girlscoutsnyc.org. Enjoy! The Program Department Girl Scouts of Greater New York
The Five Skills: 1) Goal Setting: Girls set cookie sales goals and, with their team, create a plan to reach them. This matters because girls need to know how to set and reach goals to succeed in school, on the job, and in life. 2) Decision Making: Girls decide where and when to sell cookies, how to market their sale, and what to do with their earnings. This matters because girls must make many decisions, big and small, in their lives. Learning this skill helps them make good ones. 3) Money Management: Girls develop a budget, take cookie orders, and handle customers money. This matters because girls need to know how to handle money from their lunch money to their allowance to (someday) their paycheck. 4)People Skills: Girls learn how to talk (and listen!) to their customers, as well as learning how to work as a team with other girls. This matters because it helps them do better in school (on group projects, on sports teams, and on the playground) and, later, at work. 5)Business Ethics: Girls act honestly and responsibly during every step of the cookie sale. This matters because employers want to hire ethical employees and the world needs ethical leaders in every field. 3
Sample Cookie University Learning Labs 4
Learning Lab # 1: Cookie Connoisseurs Objective: Girls learn about their products in order to be able to answer questions from customers about them in an informed and knowledgeable way. Supplies: 1 Cookie card for each girl to read and enough cookie cards to tape 1 card on each girl s back, Scissors, Masking tape,1 old cookie box, 1 new fall 2012 cookie box with new packaging, Print-out of information on the history of the Cookie Program. 5
Instructions: Girls play Little Brownie Who Am I? game in which girls learn about their product as they become cookie detectives and try to guess which cookie they have taped on their backs. Invite girls to sit in a circle and give each girl a copy of the cookie card. Say, We have great news: It s time to get ready to sell Girl Scout cookies! Ask them: Do you have a favorite Girl Scout cookie? Can you name and describe all the different cookies? Go around circle and ask each girl to read the name and description of a cookie from the flyer, until all the cookies have been reviewed. While the girls are describing the cookies, walk around the outside of the circle, taping 1 cookie card to each girl s back, with the cookie facing outwards (If you have a large group, it s okay to have some girls with the same cookie variety and name). Do not tell the girl which card she has taped on her back. Tell the girls: You ve offered to bring some cookies to the cookie booth, but you cannot remember which cookie variety you are responsible for bringing. But with the help of your Girl Scout friends, you ll be sure to solve the mystery. Explain: They can stand up and walk around the room to ask each other questions and to view the cookie name on the backs of their Girl Scout friends. A girl can ask one yes or no question of each Girl Scout friend. For example: Is my box purple? Do have chocolate in me? Am I mint flavored? After she receives the answer to each question, she can make one guess to name the cookie on her back. If she is correct, her friend removes the card from her back and hands it to her. If she is not correct, then she can ask a new question of another friend. Continue playing until every girl has guessed her cookie variety. Then, show the girls both an old cookie box and a new fall 2012 cookie box and its new packaging. Ask the girls: How are these boxes different? (Girls might point out, or you can point out to them, that the new boxes now share the story of all the exciting things Girl Scouts do). Also, point out where the nutritional information regarding ingredients is, in case they are asked by customers when selling. If there is still time left over, have one or more older girls, using the information provided, ask the younger girls questions about the history of the Cookie Program (and then provide the answers). Activities taken from Girls Guides to Girl Scouting and Little Brownie Bakers 6
Learning Lab #2: Be a Successful Sales Strategist Objective: Girls develop a sales pitch that they can use to help them achieve success in their cookie sales. Supplies: Poster boards, Markers, Stickers, Glue sticks, Pictures of Girl Scout cookies to cut out 7
Instructions: Divide the girls up into groups of 3-5 girls, and tell them that they are going to work together to make cookie billboards that they can use in their Cookie Sales! Advise girls to think about how they would talk about cookies to different kinds of people (i.e.: a teacher, neighbor, family friend or someone their age). Ask them what kinds of fun/interesting facts/information they could include. They might mention the following (and if not, mention them in addition to their ideas): The different kinds of cookies, how much they cost, which are their favorites and why. The Girl Scout Cookie Sale is the largest girl-led business in the world. Through their Cookie Sales, girls learn how to set up a budget and track money. They also learn how money can do a lot of good in the world. After their Cookie Sales, girls decide where their money goes and how they use it (i.e.: to go on new adventures/to new places, or to support causes they care about). Suggest that they could mention some of the things their troops might do with their cookie money. Through the Cookie Sale and other activities they engage in as Girl Scouts, they learn that they can do anything and can be anything! Ask girls in their groups to come up with the top 5 things customers should know about Girl Scout cookies and have each group make a cookie billboard based on these. Tell the girls that they can display their cookie billboards at their cookie sale booths if they and their troop have made them together at Cookie University. If not, girls can take the idea back to their troops and do it with them at their troop meetings. Also, suggest that they remember these top 5 things customers should know so that when they are selling cookies, they can highlight these things as they speak with potential customers. If there is still time, have the girls take turns presenting their cookie billboards to the rest of the group. Activities taken from Girls Guides to Girl Scouting and Little Brownie Bakers 8
Learning Lab #3: Smart Cookies Objective: Girls learn how to interact with and answer customers questions, especially the more challenging ones, so they feel empowered to deal with any question they are asked. Supplies: Beach Ball, Permanent Marker, Table, List of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for older girls/adults to refer to, Paper, Pencils 9
Instructions: Warm-up activity: To prepare, write the following phrases on the beach ball: Greet your customer, Share your goals, Ask customer if she would like to buy cookies, Recommend your favorite cookie, Suggest cookies as gifts, Say goodbye to your customer. Invite girls to stand in a circle, and explain that this game gives them a chance to practice some of the things they will say to their customers. Read the phrases on the ball out loud. Instruct girls that when they catch the ball, they must freeze their thumbs on the ball in exactly that spot. Throw the ball to a girl. The girl locates the phrase closest to one of her thumbs, then demonstrates that part of her sales pitch. She then throws the ball to another girl, who does the same. Continue until all the girls have had at least 1 chance to practice, and all the topics have been covered. Girls then take turns role-playing as cookie sellers, with older girls or adults acting as their customers. Split the Brownies into 2 groups (explain that 1 group will first do the role-play, while the other group observes and takes notes; then, they will switch). Have the girls acting as cookie sellers stand behind the table, while the girls observing sit on the floor. Distribute paper and pencils to the group observing, and ask them to take notes as they watch on what they think the cookie sellers do a good job with and what they think they could use some more practice with. Activities taken from Girls Guides to Girl Scouting and Little Brownie Bakers 10
Instructions Cont d: Older girls or adults take turns going up to the table and acting as customers. They ask the Brownies questions (they can refer to the list of FAQs or come up with their own questions). After each group has a turn at both selling and observing, have the Brownies share how they think each group did well and how they could improve. Then, the older girls or adults also let the Brownies know what they think they did well on and what they could improve on. Activities taken from Girls Guides to Girl Scouting and Little Brownie Bakers 11
Learning Lab # 4: The Business of Buying & Selling Cookies Objective: Girls practice greeting customers, answering questions and making change, as well as purchasing cookies. They come away knowing better how to interact with customers and manage money. Supplies: Table, Cash box (or another similar-sized box), Fake money, Enough cookie boxes of all varieties, Bags to put cookie boxes in 12
Instructions: Girls run their own Cookie Store and visit it as customers. Show the girls the different money increments, and ask them what makes up a dollar. Break the girls into 2 groups (explain that 1 group will be the store owners and sellers, and the other will be the customers; then, they will switch). Owners/sellers should stand at the cash boxes, which should have change in them. Give each customer $20 to spend on cookies, as she chooses. Ask the girls what happens in a cookie sale? They might mention the following things, and if not, mention them in addition to their ideas: Cookie sellers greet their customers. They answer their questions. They tell them about the cookies and what the cookie sales help them do. They make change. They put the cookie boxes in a bag (if the customer wants them to). They thank their customers. Have a pair of girls, one acting as a seller and one acting as a customer, demonstrate a sale before having the groups go ahead. Have the girls do the first round. Then after about 5 minutes, have the groups switch. Activities taken from Girls Guides to Girl Scouting and Little Brownie Bakers 13
Learning Lab #5: Thank you, Objective: Supplies: Customers! Girls learn the importance of thanking their customers and think of creative ways to express their thanks in cards/postcards to customers. Enough paper, thicker paper if doing postcards or thank you card templates for each girl to make 2-3 thank you cards/postcards, Markers/crayons/colored pencils, Stickers, Other decorative crafty items 14
Instructions: Girls make thank you cards/postcards to thank their customers. Ask the girls what kinds of things they could include on their thank you cards/postcards, in addition to saying thank you. They might mention the following things, and if not, mention them in addition to their ideas: The types of trips the money will help them go on. The types of activities/projects the money will help them do. The types of things the money will help them improve in their communities. Tell the girls that they could write these things or draw them or both. Suggest that girls make more of either the same or different thank you cards/postcards at their troop meetings to give away to customers during their cookie sales. If there is still time, have girls present the cards/postcards they have made to the rest of the group. Activities taken from Girls Guides to Girl Scouting and Little Brownie Bakers 15
Learning Lab #6: Giving Back Objective: Girls learn about businesses/organizations that give back and the various ways they can help these businesses/organizations through their cookie sales. Supplies: If possible, pictures of businesses/organizations giving back and/or older girls working with these businesses/organizations and on their Take Action, Silver or Gold Award projects. 16
Instructions: The older girls or adults disseminate information to Brownies on what it means to give back. They might mention the following, and if not, mention this in addition to their ideas: It is a way of helping people or supporting causes you care about (i.e.: making sure people have enough food to eat, or that pets can find loving homes). Older girls or adults talk about some businesses/organizations that give back and how they do this. The older girls or adults share experiences they have had working with these businesses/organizations (i.e.: for their Silver or Gold Award projects) or talk about how they would like to work with them. Share pictures of the activities the businesses/organizations engage in to give back if these are available to them or pictures of them doing work for/working with the businesses/organizations. Answer any questions the Brownies may have. Give suggestions to the Brownies as to how they could give back to these businesses/organizations or others like these, whether by donating money they make from their cookie sales, donating cookies or donating their time. Activities taken from Girls Guides to Girl Scouting and Little Brownie Bakers 17
Learning Lab #7: Go for the Goal! Objective: Girls decide how to set goals by deciding how they might like to use the money they make from their cookie sales. Supplies: Sticky notes (2 different colors),goal posters, Markers, 2 pens 18
Instructions: Girls play The idea game. -Invite the Brownies to sit in a circle and ask them: - Why do we sell Girl Scout cookies? (Likely responses: because it s fun, people like them, they taste good, etc.). Tell them, We also sell Girl Scout cookies to raise money. -Ask them: Why would we want to raise money? -If they don t mention, say: In addition to helping us pay for fun things we do together, the Cookie Program benefits all the Girl Scouts in our area and helps run camp and other programs. We can also use our cookie money to help make the world a better place. Share that they get to decide what they will do with their money. -Tell them, Now, we are going to play The Idea Game! -Explain that they are going to play a game that will help them work together to decide which two goals they and their troops might choose to work towards this cookie season. -Explain to the girls that a great goal usually starts with lots of ideas. -Explain that the sticky notes on the wall represent ideas and that one color of notes features fun and learning goal ideas and the other color features service goal ideas. -Have one girl at a time get up and read aloud an idea on one of the sticky notes on the wall. -To play the game, invite the girls to stand in a circle with their hands clasped in front of them like in the game One potato, two potato. -Go around the circle, touching a girl s hands as you say each word, one idea, two idea, three idea, four five idea, six idea, seven idea, more. Activities taken from Girls Guides to Girl Scouting and Little Brownie Bakers 19
Instructions Cont d: -When the play stops at a girl, she chooses her favorite sticky note of each color and places them on the floor in the center of the circle, categorizing by color (and announces her choice). - Now this girl becomes it, and she goes around the circle for another round. -After each girl has been it, she should return to her place in the circle and have a seat on the floor. -Play continues until every girl has chosen idea sticky notes. -Ask the girls, Do you have any additional ideas? If so, enthusiastically add these to the group. -Now girls can discuss the ideas they have narrowed down. Ask them, which ideas do you like best? Is there any idea you don t like? (Place the sticky notes in 2 or 3 piles as you discuss them according to Yes! No! Maybe!). -Help girls narrow their choices and choose both an activity goal and a service goal they would choose to do with their troops by using voting or consensus. -Record the goals on the goal poster (or if time doesn t allow, stick the sticky notes on the poster). -Explain to the girls that they will be selling Girl Scout cookies so that they can reach either these same goals or different ones, depending on what they and their troops decide on as their goals. -Congratulate them on their teamwork! - Discuss the costs of their plan and as possible, break down how many boxes of cookies each girl must sell to achieve the goal. State this is a team effort, so some girls may sell more boxes and others fewer. Everyone s goal is to do their best. If there is still time, have the girls come up with a giving goal (either money earned by selling cookies or cookies themselves): -If money, have them set a goal for the number of boxes they would have to sell in order to reach their goal. -If cookies, have them think about people who would love to have cookies (i.e.: soldiers mention the Operation Cookie program, which allows them to donate to and send boxes of cookies to soldiers overseas; people in senior citizen homes; or people who can t afford cookies). If there is still time, have the girls create a budget for a Take Action project or to use their money to help their community. Or if they want to donate cookies, have them make a plan for how to do that (i.e.: If donating cookies, they could offer their customers a chance to buy cookies for people who would enjoy them, then make cards to send with the cookies and display them during their cookie sales). Activities taken from Girls Guides to Girl Scouting and Little Brownie Bakers 20
Additional Resources: Little Brownie website GSUSA website Oriental Trading Company website to order materials (i.e.: graduation caps, etc.) Diploma Template Flyer Template 21
Evaluation : Have girls complete the evaluation survey upon completion of Cookie University and send to: Girl Scouts of Greater New York, 43 West 23 rd St., 6 th Floor, New York, NY, 10010. Attn: Program Department 22