OP, where do you live?

There's an organization for girls and boys called "Baden Powell Scouts" (technically Baden Powell Service Association or BPSA because the term "Scouts" is under license or agreement to BSA supposedly). They are organized a lot like the original Boy Scouts started by Robert Baden Powell way back when, and are open to girls and boys. Very outdoors, active, skills based program. But around the DC area there aren't a ton of groups active yet. It's a great group and a great concept, but anyone interested in joining would need to probably be interested in helping out to get a group started as well.

http://bpsa-us.org

I am a Girl Scout troop leader and my coleader and I started our troop with a lot of active, outdoor oriented, skills based ideas in mind. It's been great, but it didn't just happen. The program nowadays isn't built that way so you have to be intentional about making it happen. As a PP said -- someone has to be willing to go out and get the training, do the legwork etc. (That has to happen in Boy Scouts too, of course, but it seems more people are willing to do it for boys or for the Scout program or something.)

If you are interested in trying to get a girl scout troop up and running the way you like it, I'd suggest looking around your son's cub scout troop for parents of both boys and girls. They would be likely to be willing to lend a hand.

Our local Girl Scout Council has a list of "high adventure" activities that require special planning or insurance. Once way we keep our troop active is that we have a goal -- to do EVERYTHING listed, at least once, with the girls. We probably won't make them all (some are very expensive) but we try to be the opposite of the leaders who say "Oh no, that's too risky/too much effort". If all it requires is a special permission slip and some extra insurance, we're on it!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:why can't she join?

You may just need to find a troop that is not 'tame'.

oh i misread - you were saying she can't join BS - I took that as she couldn't join GS.

LOL, I wondered the same thing.

OP, it's just a matter of finding a troop that fits. I'm in my 30's so I'm talking decades ago, but in junior high, I was bullied by some girls in mine. I switched to the troop at another junior high, and stayed with those girls through high school. We did camping and hiking, because that was our thing. I'm not sure what girls are into now, but the right fit is out there.

My daughter is very active and not an indoor arts and crafts girl at all. The troop that she was in was dull to her. So I stepped up and became a leader.

When I held the parents meeting I made it clear that the focus of our troop would be outdoor and STEM activities. To make this happen, I had to become the camp certified adult, the first aided, and the troop leader. Basically I can fulfil any role that is needed in the troop.

The girls in our troop like the activities we do. We do some hiking and cookouts now. Next year they will bridge to Juniors and they've requested to go kayaking, camping, archery, ropes course and an overnight at a museum. They've also figured out that many girls don't get a chance to be in the outdoors so we are starting to think of a service project that they can do either with Daisys or Brownies to introduce them to the outdoors.

Girl Scouts is what you make of it. If you don't like what's offered, change it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:why can't she join?

You may just need to find a troop that is not 'tame'.

oh i misread - you were saying she can't join BS - I took that as she couldn't join GS.

She could probably could join BS if your Dd became transgender!

Anonymous wrote:why can't she join?

You may just need to find a troop that is not 'tame'.

oh i misread - you were saying she can't join BS - I took that as she couldn't join GS.

why can't she join?

You may just need to find a troop that is not 'tame'.

Great advice, thanks!!!

And why "oy"? I wasn't complaining that she couldn't joint the BS. It's a fact of life.

Anonymous wrote:Are there any good alternatives to Girl Scouts? We go to all the boy scout events with big brother and she loves it, but alas, she can't join. The GS seem so tame to me for what my daughter's personality is like.

DD's elementary school girl scout school troop was very tame and just plain dumb. But, those are her classmates so she went sometimes.
She also joined a different troop - a friends troop from a nearby city - that did tons of fun things - camping, hiking, lots of stuff. At the same time. It was not a problem -
you just join multiple troops at the same time. I did ask a contact at girl scouts and they had nothing negative to say about doing that.

At the time I had angst about what I should do - but this was a good option and we had fun (I went to on camping trips).

It's also a good option to start your own 'action adventure' kind of small troop with some other moms if you can. The school troop refused to camp or do
anything like that (except once they had this group camping trip thing at a girl scout camp - forgot what they called it but since the local organization
planned the camping trip and did most of the work many troops that wouldn't otherwise camp went) but you could do those things with a different
troop.
The girl scouts have so many wonderful properties that you can use for a song it's a shame not to take advantage of them.
The summer sleep away camps are wonderful as well.
Have fun!

She can join the Venture Crew when she's 14. It's an offshoot of the Boy Scouts that is co-ed. http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/Venturing.aspx

I don't have any offers for younger girls, though.

4-H

You can always start a troop and make it as adventurous as you like.

Root and Shoots

The "tameness" factor you refer to varies by troop abd by age level.

The troop I lead is super active, my niece's troop has yet to go camping. So, big variation based on the leader and parent involvement.

There's also American Heritage Girls.

Oy.

Are there any good alternatives to Girl Scouts? We go to all the boy scout events with big brother and she loves it, but alas, she can't join. The GS seem so tame to me for what my daughter's personality is like.