Problem Solving and Communication Building Activity Idea

The Tarp Flip

Gather your group on top of tarp or sheet, preferably with two visually distinct sides. Instruct them to try and flip it over without stepping off of the tarp. Identify a consequence for teammates stepping off, such as having the entire team restart or continue on with out being able to speak to one another. You could time the group and then challenge them to set a goal to beat. For another variation, start blindfolding one participant at a time at random as the group works together to beat the challenge. By blindfolding a participant after each minute that passes, the group will develop a grater sense of urgency to complete the challenge, and it adds to the fun for older groups. For an even more advanced version, instruct participants that they may not use their hands during the challenge. Be sure to celebrate your success after flipping the tarp completely over, and discuss how teammates worked together to achieve their goal.

Fun Icebreakers and Name Games

Enjoy trying these activities, designed to break the ice, teach names, or simply provide a fun way for your youth group to get out the laughs.

Question Balls

Take just about any ball with a weatherproof surface, such as a beach ball, and use a permanent marker to write questions for participants to answer. Have your group form a circle and toss the ball from person to person, taking turns to answer the questions on the ball. I instruct people to answer the question their left thumb lands on. Use duct tape to cover old questions and write new ones. Consider themes such as the get to know you questions, like "What is your favorite food?" or "If you could have any superpower, what would it be?"

Questions can be themed to meet just about any need from "pop quiz" questions on a subject you've taught to more theoretical questions to generate conversation in the group.

The Buffalo Song

Best sung in a circle with clapping.

All: Buff-a-lo, buff buff a lo Buff-a-lo buff buff a lo… repeat 2x

Caller: Hey (Name)

Name: Hey what?

Caller: Hey (Name)

Name: Hay what, hey what?

Caller: Show me how you buffalo

All: Show us how you buffalo!

Name: My hooves are high, my hooves are low, and this (demo dance move) is how I buffalo!

All: Her hooves are high, her hooves are low, and this (repeat dance move) is how she buaffalos!

All: Return to Buff-a-lo, buff buff a lo Buff-a-lo buff buff a lo… and repeat the song from the top. The named becomes the next caller. The song ends after everyone has “buffaloed” once.

Quick Draw (Tarp drop)

After participants have played an initial name game, separate the group in half. Have two leaders/facilitators hold up a tarp or sheet, then each group will send one member up. The goal is to say the name of the person on the other side of the sheet first. Count to 3 and drop the sheet. You can just enjoy playing or keep score. Mix up the teams and play again!

Fostering Positive Body Image in Girls

On January 28th, 2012, I will be leading two workshops at the annual 'Discoveries' Conference presented by Girl Scouts Western Washington. This is the council's largest volunteer development event of the year, and I am excited to offer a workshop for adults who work with female youth, titled "Girls and Body Image". Girl Scouts USA has identified several critical issues facing young women today, including relationship between girls and mass media. Awhile back I wrote an article for the GSWW website on the issue and what troop leaders can do to create a positive environment within their group. Below you will find a basic overview, as well as evidence-based techniques for working with your group and an activity idea.

At the workshop on January 28th, I will provide more in depth and updated research, cover steps for effective advocacy on current legislation relating to girls body image and healthy media for youth, as well as teach engaging activities to use with your troop or group. To register visit https://www.girlscoutsww.org/current-volunteers/volunteer-learning/Pages/Conferences.aspx

Girls, Media, & Body Image

From birth to death, our bodies -- and how we care for them, cover them and think about them -- express our identity: what we think of ourselves and others, what we are passionate about, what interests us and so much more.

Many woman and girls have difficulty embracing a genuinely positive body image. Dissatisfaction with our bodies is often driven by factors including:

• low self-esteem
• teasing by peers
• family structure and dynamics
• depression
• trauma

Girls have an increasingly common obsession with achieving an unattainable "mainstream beauty ideal"*, one which girls see every day in the thousands of images and messages in magazines, TV, billboards, movies, the internet, advertising and other mass media outlets.

Girl Scouts of the USA recently published the results of a survey, Beauty Redefined: Girls and Body Image 2010, that polled 1,000 girls from across America. Here are some of the results:

• Nine in ten girls say the fashion industry and/or the media place pressure on teenage girls to be thin.
• 3/4 of girls surveyed say fashion is very important to them.
• 60% of girls report they compare their own bodies to images of fashion models. 48% wish to be just as thin, while 28% view most fashion models as ‘sick’.
• 31% of girls stated they had starved themselves as a way to lose weight.

Thankfully, one conclusion of the study was very clear: 81% of the girls surveyed want to see more ‘real’ or ‘natural’ images used by the fashion industry.

Tips and Techniques for Working with Girls

The seeds of courage and confidence have the best opportunity to grow in a girl who is secure and comfortable with her own appearance.

As a facilitator for ropes courses, I have observed girls who have exceptional problem-solving skills and creativity, who clearly want to participate, stand quietly aside because of an insecurity about their own body.

Some girls confessed they do not like to be touched because a peer might ‘feel their fat’. Another felt she could not trust the group to catch her due to being ‘too heavy’ for the spotters, even though she was one of the lightest in the group. These girls need help, and Girl Scouts is a great place to find it.

Help your girls discover themselves by creating a safe, positive environment for your troop, where girls feel comfortable discussing personal issues. Discourage youth from talking about others' body parts in either a positive or negative way. Try to reduce the focus on appearance during your troop meetings. For example, don’t apologize for "looking bad" or not having time to put on make-up. These small statements speak volumes to girls about how women "should" look.

It is our goal for Girl Scouts to grow and develop through the Girl Scout Leadership Experience, yet each girl needs to discover herself before she can fully connect to her community or take action through advocacy and service.

Tween and teen girls often experience periods of high and low self-esteem. Realizing this, and helping your girls see it in themselves, will aid the girls in understanding that cycles of emotions are normal. As a troop leader it is important to check-in individually with girls to make sure they have a safe space to talk.

Leader "Dos & Don'ts"

DO talk about this issue with your troop. Make group discussion and one-on-one check-ins a regular part of your routine.

DO be a role model by enjoying music, writing and performances by artists who have positive, affirming messages regarding women’s bodies. Avoid playing music that over-sexualizes or demeans women at any Girl Scout activity... even on a car ride for a field trip!

DO check out all the empowering movies out there, from Little Miss Sunshine to Barbie Nation.

DO encourage girls to attend Girl Scout summer resident camp. This all-girl environment provides an awesome opportunity for young women to escape daily pressures and find a safe space to learn more about themselves and try new things.

DO eat a healthy diet. Provide a balanced variety of snacks at your troop activities.

DON'T put yourself down or make self-depreciating remarks in front of your Girl Scouts.

DON'T make negative remarks about other peoples' appearance.

DON'T put off taking care of yourself! Often caregivers have trouble making time for themselves, but your physical and mental health is key to being a great mentor.

Group Activity to Build Body Image

Try this activity with your troop or girl group!

1. Gather up a variety of magazines, preferably the ones your girls love. Be sure to include some local and national news, sports and arts magazines.
2. At your meeting, put girls into small groups and give each group a few of the magazines.
3. In their small group, ask them to count the number of images of women and of men and observe what types of scenes the women are in and what they see the men doing.
4. Have the groups come together and report back. What are the common observations between groups?
5. Find a picture of a model who is severely underweight. Share the image with your troop as a small group discussion piece. Encourage girls to share what they feel and think when viewing the image. Share the facts you have learned in this article. Understanding how unrealistic images are used in sales can take away some of the power mass media and the fashion industry have over girls’ self esteem. Discuss how the images they see of women in the media are different from the actual real women they see around them everyday.

Backpacking the North Fork of the Quinault River

September is the month for backpacking in Washington! Many of our trails are prime now as the snow finally melts, and the grey clouds seem to be at bay. I just had the pleasure of spending six days in Olympic National Park, backpacking the North Fork of the Quinault River to the Low Divide, for a total of 34 miles and 3,000' in elevation gain. This wonderful hike leads from Lake Quinault and the rainforest 'Valley of the Giants' with world record Cedars and Spruce, to the subalpine meadows blanketed in a variety of wildflowers. The elevation gain is steady from Wolf Bar to 16 Mile, followed by a couple short segments of switchbacks, and then a moderate climb to the camp at Low Divide. This hike could be split up to be completed by hikers of nearly any ability and is easily navigated. For more info on this trail visit

http://www.nps.gov/olym/planyourvisit/north-for-quinault.htm. The Washington Trail Association also provides a description of this and other trails statewide, http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/map.

I love backpacking for the personal challenge it provides, as well as the meditative state of walking all day. My next trip will be up in North Cascades National Park with a group of young women I mentor. It will be our third backpacking trip together, and they've become very vocal about wanting a "flat" trail this go around. It is wonderful to hear them talk about previous trips, taking pride in cooking their own meals, carrying their own gear, and so on.

And so I am reminded of this quote from

Booker T.Washington:

"Few things can help an individual more

than to place responsibility on him,

and to let him know that you trust him."