How to handle too many girls for a Girl Scout troop?

[Anonymous]

pP, I am sorry you are having that experience. The troop leaders may feel overwhelmed with the number they have already. There are at least three options;
1) ask them to put your daughter on the wait list in case girls drop out or if they have “invite a friend” events. As girls get older, spots tend to open up.
2) join a troop at another school. This is totally okay and fairly common. A big part of GS is making new friends and expanding horizons so this would be a good way for your daughter to help overcome her shyness.
3! Start a new troop yourself. It is pretty easy and all you need is a couple parents and some interested girls. Get in contact with your local membership specialist.
Good luck!

[Anonymous]

15 slots, first come first serve.

[Anonymous]

We had a wait list--DD was on it and I became a leader. I started with Dasies and stayed with it for quite a while. OP, I taught in a Title I school. If you can possibly work it out where all can get in, that would be wonderful. If you don't get enough leaders, you could consider having assistants and dividing up into groups for activities. I know one GS leader who said her leader when she was a child had something like 30 in her troop and they stayed together a long time.

Be aware, though, that there are lots and lots of rules in Girl Scouts and lots of training required. But, it's great for the kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:pP, I am sorry you are having that experience. The troop leaders may feel overwhelmed with the number they have already. There are at least three options;
1) ask them to put your daughter on the wait list in case girls drop out or if they have “invite a friend” events. As girls get older, spots tend to open up.
2) join a troop at another school. This is totally okay and fairly common. A big part of GS is making new friends and expanding horizons so this would be a good way for your daughter to help overcome her shyness.
3! Start a new troop yourself. It is pretty easy and all you need is a couple parents and some interested girls. Get in contact with your local membership specialist.
Good luck!

+1 to this advice. I'd add that the mom posting about her daughter not getting into the troop can also contact the "school organizer" or "coordinator" for GS for their school and ask that person's advice too. In our Service Unit (group for adult leaders in an area), there were designated coordinators for each school-a person (not a school employee, but usually a GS volunteer parent) who oversaw and helped with getting school-based troops going at the start of each year. That person would know things like options for a different troop or could help the PP set up a new one.

And I totally agree with the post above -- it is fine to join a troop not based at your school. In fact, GS is not officially based around school affiliations. It just happens that it's more convenient for parents to have "at school, right after school" meetings, but that is not a formal GS "requirement" and neither is having troops by grade. Again--"third grade troop" etc. is for convenience but isn't a rule. In fact GS encourages mixed-grade troops. There are community troops and troops that have kids from more than one school. Our longtime troop had girls from two to three different schools at various times over the years. So it IS doable and actually good for getting kids to interact with others who are not in their classes and with them all day!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is one 3rd grade Brownie Group at my daughters school and they are not taking anyone else. She is just 1 girl and her best friend and other friends in her class are in the same troop. I explained why my daughter want to be with Lucy, she is very shy and being with a good friend would help her. But no they are not willing to make an exception. To top it off one of the girls in her class told my daughter she could not be in her troop. That made me mad ?, she had no right tell my child anything just because her mother is leader.

Have you offered to be one of the troops co-leaders if they would enroll your daughter?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is one 3rd grade Brownie Group at my daughters school and they are not taking anyone else. She is just 1 girl and her best friend and other friends in her class are in the same troop. I explained why my daughter want to be with Lucy, she is very shy and being with a good friend would help her. But no they are not willing to make an exception. To top it off one of the girls in her class told my daughter she could not be in her troop. That made me mad ?, she had no right tell my child anything just because her mother is leader.

Girl Scouts have really strict adult:child rations (for all sorts of legit safety reasons). If there's not room, there's not room, and it doesn't matter how much your DD wants to be with Lucy.
If you're willing to become a coleader (and complete the training and registration and background checks to go with it), mention that to the leader. She may be willing to open the troop if she can get an additional adult.
If not, as a PP said, just ask to be on a waitlist in case a spot opens up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is one 3rd grade Brownie Group at my daughters school and they are not taking anyone else. She is just 1 girl and her best friend and other friends in her class are in the same troop. I explained why my daughter want to be with Lucy, she is very shy and being with a good friend would help her. But no they are not willing to make an exception. To top it off one of the girls in her class told my daughter she could not be in her troop. That made me mad ?, she had no right tell my child anything just because her mother is leader.

Girl Scouts have really strict adult:child rations (for all sorts of legit safety reasons). If there's not room, there's not room, and it doesn't matter how much your DD wants to be with Lucy.
If you're willing to become a coleader (and complete the training and registration and background checks to go with it), mention that to the leader. She may be willing to open the troop if she can get an additional adult.
If not, as a PP said, just ask to be on a waitlist in case a spot opens up.

And, Lucy may be just one girl, but perhaps Alice and Joan and Susan also want in the troop?