On Feb. 22 each year, Girl Scouts and Girl Guides from 150 countries celebrate World Thinking Day. (That’s one big celebration!)
This year’s theme is peacebuilding, and we’re sharing some ways you and your troop can get in on the action to celebrate. In doing so, girls can earn the World Thinking Day award (an official award that is worn on the front of the vest or sash).
Activities to earn the award are available as meeting plans in the Volunteer Toolkit or as Activity Packets at no cost online. Log in to the VTK to add the World Thinking Day Award to your year plan, or visit the GSUSA World Thinking Day webpage to learn more.
Looking for a few more ideas on how to celebrate? Here are some tips from our Program Team Member Susanne Wells.
When I was a girl, we celebrated World Thinking Day just in our troop. Each girl got to pick a country, usually a place their family has visited, or any country she wanted to represent. I always chose the Dominican Republic because I was born there. Each person made a dish from the country to share a taste with the group. Some made a display board with interesting facts about the country, taught a song or game, and shared a link to the country if it had Girl Guides. For virtual gatherings, girls can dress up and share a presentation about their country with videos, photos, and maybe even use an interactive world map to explore the different countries!
- Troops can learn about World Centers in different countries.
- Have your troop learn about the WAGGGS pin's meaning and present to the girls if they do not already have one. One of my favorite websites has a blog post for a World Trefoil game and other tips for having an International themed troop meeting.
- Explore Pinterest – there are a ton of crafts, games, and other activities to support girls and troops to learn about different countries – search World Thinking Day Activities.
- Girl Scout Council of Maine has an excellent toolkit for planning World Thinking Day events. It could come in handy, especially if a few troops or a service team want to put together an event last minute. Even though Thinking Day is on the calendar for Feb. 22 - groups can celebrate it around that time on a weekend.
