Bridging to Brownie

What do Brownie Girl Scouts do?

Brownies have a lot of fun together! They can sing the Brownie Smile song, sleep in tents, go on hikes, and tell stories around the campfire under the stars. They may want to visit zoos, meet people who have interesting jobs, or exchange SWAPS (Special Whatchamacallits Affectionately Pinned Somewhere) with new friends. They can earn Journey awards and do a Take Action project.

Earning the Bridging Award

To earn the Bridge to Brownie Award, complete one activity from the two bridging steps: Pass It On! and Look Ahead! These steps can also be found in the handbook section of the Daisy Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting.

Bridging Step One: Pass It On!

Inspire younger girls by sharing what it was like to be a Daisy Girl Scout. Do one or more of the following or create your own:

Teach younger girls the Girl Scout Promise and recite the Girl Scout Law to them. Share a story about how girls put the Promise and Law into action.
Share an activity from a Girl Scout Journey that the girls enjoyed.
Teach younger girls a favorite game or song and then play or sing along!
Make a little something to give to younger girls that shows them what Girl Scouts are all about. This is a great time to introduce younger girls to SWAPS.

Bridging Step Two: Look Ahead!

Spend some time with Brownie Girl Scouts. Do one or more of the following or create your own:

Say the Girl Scout Promise together. Then find out if the Brownie Girl Scouts have a favorite part of the Girl Scout Law. Were they friendly and helpful, or courageous and strong?
Ask some Brownie Girl Scouts to teach a favorite song or game, then sing or play it together!
Work together to make special “tickets” into the world of Brownie Girl Scouts. Ask the Brownies to write down three things they had fun doing as Brownies and then decorate the tickets together.
Ask the Brownies to show their Journey awards and explain what they did to earn them. How did they make the world a better place? What new friends did the Brownies meet on their Journeys?
Start exploring ways to help the community.
- Ask the Brownies to help you decorate a box or jar that will become a “Take Action Idea Bank.”
- Ask the Brownies how they helped their community.
- Get more ideas by talking to an adult who works in the community such as at a fire station, hospital, library or mayor’s office.
- Take a walk to see if there are needs in your neighborhood. You can use the ideas to Take Action as Brownie Girl Scouts.
- You can use the ideas to Take Action as Brownie Girl Scouts.
- Attend a council event for Brownies in the spring before second grade.

Bridging to Brownie Ceremonies

Plan a Ceremony

Celebrate earning the Bridge to Brownie Award with a favorite ceremony from a Daisy Journey—or make up a new one. Then proudly add bridging patches to sashes or vests! For more ideas, talk to other troops or go online. If girls are working online, remember to sign the Girl Scout Internet Safety Pledge.

The Girl Scout Promise and Law

Flag or opening ceremony
Recite the Girl Scout Promise and Law
Activity (see instructions/script)
Cross the bridge
Present certificates and other awards
Ending ceremony

Supplies:

Bridge, stepping stones, or arch
Materials to make 13 daisies to represent the parts of the Girl Scout Law and Promise
Copies of this script

Preparation:

Write one part of the Girl Scout Promise or Law onto the back of each daisy following the instructions/script below.
Invite guests (a Brownie troop or parents) to help. Inform them of the time and date of the ceremony and confirm their attendance. Send them a script.
Distribute the daisies the girls made evenly among the Daisy troop. Let the girls know that they are responsible for reading the promise or law on the back.
Use the script to practice.

Formation:
Line girls up in front of the bridge in order of speaking. Girls will step forward when they read. After reading is complete, girls will line up on one side of the bridge with one co-leader while another co-leader stands on the other side.

Instructions/Script

Co-leader 1: As our Daisy Girl Scouts prepared to bridge to Brownie Girl Scouts, we took the time to learn more about Girl Scouting and the Girl Scout Promise and Law. We’ve invited some friends to help us share what we learned. Guest: These flowers represent the spirit of Girl Scouting. This spirit is often represented with the Daisy, which was our founder Juliette Low’s nickname.

Co-leader 2: The first three flowers represent the three parts of the Girl Scout Promise.

Daisy Girl Scout: On my honor, I will try: To serve God and my country.

Daisy Girl Scout: To help people at all times.

Daisy Girl Scout: And to live by the Girl Scout Law.

Co-leader 2: The other daisies represent the Girl Scout Law.

Daisy Girl Scout: I will do my best: To be honest and fair.

Guest: This means that you will always tell the truth and that you will share things and take turns with others.

Daisy Girl Scout: To be friendly and helpful.

Guest: This means that you will ask a new girl to play with you and when you see a job that needs to be done, and you can do it, you will be willing to help do it.

Daisy Girl Scout: To be considerate and caring.

Guest: This means that you will respect the feelings of others and care about how they feel and what they think.

Daisy Girl Scout: To be courageous and strong. Guest: This means you are willing to try new things, even though you may be a little scared, and that you will stand for what is right.

Daisy Girl Scout: To be responsible for what I say and do.

Guest: This means that you will be careful about what you say and do so that you don’t hurt other people or things.

Daisy Girl Scout: To respect myself and others.

Guest: This means you will try to be the best person you can be, and will be courteous to others.

Daisy Girl Scout: To respect authority.

Guest: This means you will respect adults, obey the law, and will cooperate with others.

Daisy Girl Scout: To use resources wisely.

Guest: This means you will try not to waste paper, will turn off the lights, and turn off water faucets after you use them.

Daisy Girl Scout: To make the world a better place.

Guest: This means you will help with a neighborhood clean up, put litter in trash cans, and treat all animals kindly.

Daisy Girl Scout: To be a sister to every Girl Scout.

Guest: This means you will be a friend to everyone, not just a few people.

Co-leader 2: And there you have it! The Girl Scout Promise and the Girl Scout Law. (Make sure to leave some time to thank your guest(s), and for applause and photos!)

Co-leader 1: Great job! Now it’s time to cross over the bridge and become a Brownie Girl Scout! But first let’s put our daisies back and line up in front of the bridge.

The Brownie Elf

Flag or opening ceremony
Read or recite the Girl Scout Promise and Law
Activity (see instructions/script)
- Cross the bridge
- Change tunic/vest from Daisy to Brownie
- Join the Brownie Ring
- Read the Brownie elf poem
- Present Brownie pins
- Tell new Brownies to do three “good turns”
- Hand out certificates—use the Girl Scout Handshake
Ending ceremony

Supplies:

Bridge, stepping stones, or arch
Materials to make 13 daisies to represent the parts of the Girl Scout Law and Promise
Copies of this script

Preparation:

Write one part of the Girl Scout Promise or Law onto the back of each daisy following the instructions/script below.
Invite guests (a Brownie troop or parents) to help. Inform them of the time and date of the ceremony and confirm their attendance. Send them a script.
Distribute the daisies the girls made evenly among the Daisy troop. Let the girls know that they are responsible for reading the promise or law on the back.
Use the script to practice.

Instructions/Script

Cross the bridge and join the Brownie Ring
Once a co-leader calls a Daisy Girl Scout’s name, the Daisy goes across the bridge. She is met on the other side by a Brownie Girl Scout, co-leader, or helper who helps the Daisy take her Daisy vest/tunic off and put her Brownie vest/tunic on. Once finished, the new Brownie joins the Brownie Ring.

Find the Brownie elf and receive the Brownie pin
(While the co-leader is speaking, another co-leader or helper sets up the “pond”.)

Daisy co-leader: To prepare for bridging today, our troop read “The Brownie Story,” a story about girls who went to a forest in search of “very helpful persons” called Brownies. There they met a wise old owl who told them that they could f ind the Brownie if they looked upon the magic pond and f inished a magic rhyme.

Now we, too, will perform a little magic. I’d like to call all new Brownies to stand around the magic pond and listen carefully while I read this poem.

Cross your little fingers, stand upon your toes,
That’s a bit of magic that every Brownie knows.
Now we all are standing inside a forest glade,
Listen very carefully; see the magic made.
And tucked inside this great big wood,
You’ll find a pond that’s pure and good.
Then turn yourself around three times,
Gaze into the pond; complete the rhyme.

One at a time, each new Brownie walks to the pond and is met by a co-leader or helper who turns her in a circle while another co-leader or helper says:

Twist me and turn me and show me the elf,
looked in the water and saw…

New Brownie looks into the mirror and says: “Myself!”

Each new Brownie then goes to their co-leader or helper who places a Brownie pin upside down on her new vest. Then she returns to the Brownie Ring.

Co-leader: Congratulations to our new Brownie Girl Scouts! The Girl Scout slogan is “Do a Good Turn Daily.” Go now and do three good turns for your family—one for each part of the Girl Scout Promise. When your good turns are done, have a member of your family turn your pin right side up.

Bake a Batch of Brownie Girl Scouts

Flag or opening ceremony
Recite Girl Scout Promise and Law
Activity (see instructions/script)
Present certificates and other awards
Ending ceremony

Supplies:

“Oven” (very large box decorated to look like an oven with a large opening in the back and a door in the front opening to the side, not the top like a real oven)
Large table
Aprons
Bowl and large mixing spoon
Containers of ‘ingredients’
Baking cups, measuring spoons, sifter
Baking pan

Preparation:

Invite guests (Brownie Girl Scout troop, family, or friends) to help during the bridging ceremony. Inform them of the time and date of the ceremony and confirm their attendance. Forward a script to them.
Decorate the box that will serve as the oven.
Make sure each bridging girl has a Daisy and Brownie tunic, vest, or sash.
Practice!

Formation:
Bridging Daisy Girl Scouts (in Daisy vests/tunics) line up near the table. Guests are the ‘bakers’ and stand behind the table, facing the audience. Co-leaders or helpers are stationed behind the oven with Brownie vests/tunics at the ready.

Instructions/Script

As they are called, Daisies will pour the ingredients into the bowl and then walk behind the oven. An adult will then help them change into their Brownie vest/sash. Once behind the oven, girls should not be seen or heard.

Co-leader: Have you heard that there is a shortage of Brownie Girl Scouts in our council?

Guest: Oh no! What can we do?

Guest: I know, let’s make some new Brownies!

All girls: Yes, yes, yes!

Co-leader: I’ve heard that there is a special recipe in our Girl Scout handbook. (Pull out a Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting).

Co-leader: Here it is! To make Brownie Girl Scouts, we must mix three basic ingredients: the Girl Scout Promise, the Girl Scout Law, and the Girl Scout motto.

Set the book out where people can read the “recipe” while one guest gets out a mixing bowl and spoon. Guests read from the recipe.

Guest: In a large bowl, we will cream together 1 cup of a promise to serve God, my country, and mankind.

Guest: Add two cups of honesty and two tablespoons of fairness. Mix together.

Guest: Stir in one cup of friendliness and a cup of helpfulness.

Guest: Beat in a half cup of caring and a half cup of consideration for others.

Guest: Now add two cups of courage and strength, pour in some responsibility for what I say and do, and mix well.

Guest: Add one cup of respect for authority and one cup of respect for myself and others. Stir until well-blended.

Guest: Sift together a half cup of a wise use of resources and three tablespoons of a promise to make the world a better place. Stir into mixture.

Guest: Sprinkle on some ‘sisterhood of Girl Scouting’ and mix well.

Guest: And finally, blend in a half cup of courage, confidence, and character.

Guest: In a prepared pan, spread the batter evenly. Pour the bowl mixture into the pan. Spread it out and then put it in the oven. Someone inside the oven should secretly take it so nothing spills.

Guest: Bake at a moderate temperature for five seconds. Can everyone count with me? One, two, three, four, five.

Guest: Now let’s see if our Brownies are ready. Open the oven door and the new Brownie Girl Scouts exit the oven one at a time.

All girls: Look! A new batch of Brownie Girl Scouts!