Progression in the Out-of-Doors

Whether you are planning a hike, cook out, camp out, or more, you need to prepare your troop for the best experience. Progression in the Out-of-Doors is the Girl Scout way of helping you get your troop ready. Working through these steps will let girls learn the simple skills before moving on to more complicated ones, help them overcome fears, and make them more likely to have successful and positive experiences in the out-of-doors. Exploring Nature Look Out Your troop is just getting started to observe the Out-of-doors. They do an activity that gets them looking out the window at nature. Meet Out Your troop steps out of your meeting place to observe the sight, sounds, touch, and smell of nature. They learn nature songs and games, learning about protecting and improving the world around them. Move Out Your troop takes a walk around the block to see what they can see. They do an activity to help them explore nature a short distance from their homes. Getting Ready to Hike and Cookout Explore Out Your troop is ready to plan a hike. They learn what to wear and take, make a snack, and how to stay safe Out-of-doors. They plan and take a hike. Cook Out You're trained in fire building, stove use, and cooking outdoors. Your troop is ready to plan a cook out. They learn about fire safety, lighting a stove, building and putting out a fire, and preparing a meal. They plan and cook a meal outdoors. Getting Ready for a Campout and More Sleep Out Your troop is getting ready to sleep out. This is practice for going camping. They learn about camping gear and what to pack and eat. They plan an overnight close to home. Camp Out Your troop is getting ready to camp out. They have done a sleep out. They learn about tents, knife use, and simple first aid. They plan and go on a camp out. Travel Out You will want more specialized and advanced training for your troop to do more extensive outdoors travel such as backpacking. When The Trip Is Over – Evaluating The Activity Outdoor activities are learning and growing experiences. To gain the full value from an outdoor activity the girls should talk about what they did, what they learned, what they would change if they went again. Applying the lessons learned to the next activity is a sure sign that this experience was worthwhile. Schedule time at the end of an outing to review your outdoor experience by asking questions, discussion, rating parts of the activity, or brainstorming the good and the bad. Let's Review: 1) Progression in Girl Scouting is important because      A)  it lets girls master simple skills before moving on to more challenging ones      B)  it prepares girls for camping experience by going through the steps then girls can better overcome their fears      C)  girls are more likely to be successful when they've already developed needed skills      D)  All of the above 2) Your troop is ready to plan and go on a hike after they have      A)  looked outside to discover the great outdoors      B)  met outside to experience the out-of-doors      C)  moved outside taking a walk around the block near home      D)  All of the above 3) Your troop is ready to cook a meal outside when      A)  they have planned what to cook      B)  they've watched you cook      C)  you've completed the Firebuilding and Outdoor Cooking class      D)  you've taken required training and taught the girls meal planning and outdoor cooking skills 4) Your troop is ready to plan and go camping when      A)  you have completed the appropriate training      B)  they have developed the skills necessary      C)  they have experienced a sleep out      D)  All of the above 5) A good time frame for preparing a new troop to go camping is      A)  2 or 3 meetings      B)  one month      C)  when you've spent enough time to go through all the steps in progression      D)  as soon as you have completed this training 6) A good starter trip for my Daisy troop is to go on a nature walk near the troop's meeting place.      A)  True      B)  False 7) Evaluations after a trip aren't of value because they only point out what went wrong.      A)  True      B)  False

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