Our Brownie troop is very small. I have 4 girls registered but only have 3 that are attending meetings. The fourth girl is moving to a different area and has decided not to continue at this time. My girls are so much fun. We have our own challenges as a small troop and we have several bonuses as being a small troop.
Our recent cookie booth was a great success. The girls did a great job of putting themselves out in front of the customers. They made little signs for them to wear, which turned out so cute. Each girl made a commitment to working at the cookie booth the entire scheduled time. With only having 3 girls we couldn’t exactly split them up evenly. Of course they all wanted to work together, how can you say no.
We participated in World Thinking Day 2017. Our area gives troops a choice of creating a display from an assigned Country and presenting information about your country with the day split into two. The first half of our troop stays with the display and the other half travel to our displays learning. Then the switch for the second half. Our challenge: Only having 3 girls, splitting them up would mean someone would be by themselves for part of the day. The girls did not like that idea and choose to just be travelers and not make a display – which was an option. However, after attending the event, it was our first time, the girls were so excited and definitely wanted to make a display for next year. Hopefully we will have more girls next year, so no-one will be alone to travel.
As a smaller troop we are also able to coordinate outings easier, car rides, availability of the assistant, myself and the girls schedule. On the flip side a challenge is the girls I do have are responsible for more jobs at the meeting and when doing projects than if we had a large troop. In a larger troop they may only have one job.
The girls are extremely excited about badges and patches for their sashes and vests. Since we are small we have extra time to complete other activities for them to earn more patches for their uniform. They have a goal to fill their uniforms as much as they can.
My girls have big plans for what they want to do as Brownies and having a small troop makes those goals more obtainable. We can all fit in one car when traveling, it costs less for the events and for supplies, it’s easier for them to make decisions between them and they have become such very good friends.
I have an array of personalities. One very outspoken, one very shy and one in the middle. It is amazing to watch them work together and how much they help each other. They really bring out great qualities for each other. They are eager to learn and participate in everything we do. I think this is the most rewarding part of being a leader, watching them grow and become confident young ladies.
My name is Tracy Hoffman and I was a Girl Scout many years ago myself. I have 3 children, a daughter that is 17 years old, a son that is 13 years old and my Brownie and she is 8 years old. My husband and I enjoy spending time with our children. We have volunteered coaching for various sports for them over the years and are an active part of their lives. I love being a Girl Scout leader. I was a Daisy troop leader and now have advanced with my daughter to Brownies. We are in our 1st year of Brownies and learning so much together. I look forward to continuing with her any way I can over the years.
