Why do we need programs?
Planning is the key to a successful unit. It is not just a way to make your life easier - it is an important part of your role as a Guide Leader to teach young people to be involved in decision making, to set goals, and to carry them out. It is a major part of training patrol leaders. Good planning is essential to good leadership, and in Guides we do this in a practical way.
Process
- Get the Guides thinking about what they want to do.
- Talk it over with Patrol Leaders’ Council, and the other adult leaders.
- Develop a long term plan (the older girls can do this with your help).
- Program each meeting.
- Delegate jobs
- Run the meeting
- Evaluate it.
Constructing a program is a very important part of your job as a leader.
- It gives a theme and structure to your Unit meeting or activity.
- It allows it to be planned in detail.
- It allows you to keep to time.
- It lets other leaders know what is happening.
- You can see at a glance what materials or resources you need and can prepare them.
- It ensures that you achieve your aims for that night or activity
Programming Activity in Patrols
Give each patrol (five patrols) some butcher’s paper, pens and sticky tape.
They have ten minutes maximum to make their presentation.
Instructions
- Plan a 1–1 ½ hour meeting program for a Pre-Junior Unit on a circus theme. You have 12 Guides.
- Plan a 1½–2 hour meeting program for a Junior Unit on a science and technology theme. You have 24 Guides.
- Plan a 2 hour meeting program for a Guide Unit to prepare them for outdoor camping. You have 20 Guides.
- Plan a term program for a Guide Unit. You have 15 Guides in three Patrols, and there are ten weeks in the term.
- Plan the program for a 3 day camp for Junior Guides or Guides with a medieval theme.
Links
Here is a fantastic resource with lots of programs for younger groups (Cub Scouts) and middle groups (Scouts), plus programs for pack holidays and district camps. The rest of the website is well worth a look too. In fact, I plagiarised the introduction (with permission from the webmaster) to this programming session from this site!
http://www.scoutingresources.org.uk/programs_index.html
Below are the posters that were created in the session by the patrols.
12 Pre-Junior Guides (5-6 years)
Theme: Circus
Girls come dressed up as clowns
Do face painting
Opening parade - use music from Dumbo
Scooter Relay
Hula Hoops
Tight rope - balancing (rope on the floor - girls walk along it)
Pass across the Lion's Den
Learn to juggle (can 5 year olds really learn to juggle?)
Finish with fairy floss and lemonade
24 Junior Guides (7-11 years)
Theme: Science and Technology
Time: 4:00pm - 6:00pm
| 4:00pm |
Game: Rock, Tree and Bridge |
| 4:10pm |
Opening Ceremony |
| 4:25pm |
Four Patrols of 6 girls doing different activities (15 minutes per activity): |
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Make a compete outfit out of recycled materials |
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Use the Braille alphabet to write your name |
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Use information provided to use the telephone book |
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Use directions provided to make a model plane |
| 5:30pm |
Evaluation and explanations |
| 5:45pm |
Closing ceremony and badges |
20 Guides (10-14 year olds)
Theme: Outdoor Camp Preparation
| 6:30pm |
Running Game - girls to organise |
| 6:40pm |
Informal (camp) Colour ceremony |
| 6:45pm |
Four bases, 20 minutes each, four patrols of five girls each |
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Base 1: bedding rolls and bag packing. Include bed roll relay. |
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Base 2: Gadgets and knots/lashing |
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Base 3: Fires and outdoor cooking (s'mores) |
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Base 4: Camp etiquette |
| 8:05pm |
Tent peg hammering relay |
| 8:10pm |
Parents' meeting/Patrol Time with PLs om charge |
| 8:25pm |
Closing |
I'm not sure what happened with the other two scenarios. I'm still looking for the posters!
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