MiCaSa Girl Scouts
of the Girl Scouts of California's Central Coast
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This Troop from Orange County earned their Silver Award through this helpful video on flag ceremony protocol and flag etiquette.
This video is from Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, and demonstrates how the Girl Scouts should hold their hands during recitation of the Promise and the Law.
These Girl Scouts explain how a typical meeting is closed with the friendship circle and singing of "Make New Friends" There are many songs your troop can sing, but this is a traditional song for the close of meetings.
Beginning Your Troop Meeting
- Flag Ceremony (not required, but an American flag should be present and posted during your meeting) GSUSA offers guidelines for how to have a flag ceremony.
- Pledge (right hand over the heart, and face the American flag)
- Promise (hold right hand up with middle three fingers together, representing the three parts of the Girl Scout Promise.)
- Law (it is not required to recite the Girl Scout Law at the meeting, but the girls will need to be familiar with the law. If reciting at your meeting, keep three fingers up during recital of the GS Law.)
Expert Tips:
- Have the Girl Scouts lead! This is a great way to have the Girl Scouts take ownership over the meeting.
- Assign different roles for your flag ceremony, as well as Promise and Law Leader as part of your troop's Kaper Chart (this helps have the Girl Scouts lead, just be sure to rotate jobs)
- Make a large sign that has the Promise, Law and even the Pledge of Allegiance on it (one with the Girl Scout Law is pictured here)
- Have Snacks. This is a job that can be shared through a sign-up. Keep allergies in mind. Here's a sample sign-up sheet, and a list of snack ideas.
Closing the Meeting
Clean up
Clean up is another job on the Kaper Chart. Clean up is really everyone’s responsibility, but one or two girls can be assigned as checkers to make sure the meeting place is left clean and in good order. Resist the temptation to clean up for the Girl Scouts. Girl Scouts live by the rule to, "Leave a place cleaner than they found it."
Finish with a closing ceremony
Some popular closing ceremonies include the friendship circle, squeeze, and singing a song. Check the video on this page to see an example of a closing ceremony circle and song. Here's a list of other Girl Scout songs.