Youth Programs for Girls as an Alternative to Girl Scouts
Though there are many clubs and youth programs for girls, Girl Scouts has been a part of American life for more than 100 years. Many women today have wonderful memories of camping, hiking, earning badges, and learning an assortment of useful life skills within their scout troop.
According to the Girl Scout website, “Juliette “Daisy” Gordon Low assembled 18 girls from Savannah, Georgia, on March 12, 1912, for a local Girl Scout meeting. She believed that all girls should be given the opportunity to develop physically, mentally, and spiritually. With the goal of bringing girls out of isolated home environments and into community service and the open air, Girl Scouts hiked, played basketball, went on camping trips, learned how to tell time by the stars, and studied first aid.”
During the last several decades, Girl Scouts has tried to stay relevant among other clubs and youth programs for girls by consistently changing their program. Their newest program, Journeys is so far removed from traditional scouting that it is no longer a good fit for many families seeking the traditional Girl Scout experience. For families searching for other clubs for girls as an alternative to Girl Scouts, we created Frontier Girls.
Frontier Girls is a scout like youth program curriculum for girls ages 3-adult. With a focus on patriotism, traditional values, community service and a love of learning, Frontier Girls helps our girls grow into caring and active citizens. Patriotism is encouraged in all our members. A formal flag ceremony begins all meetings and girls are taught a proper respect for both flag and country. We are also a strong supporter of our military personnel and veterans. Frontier Girls dedicates an entire section of its program to teaching the girls good character traits such as honesty, responsibility, modesty, and joy, and encouraging them not only to participate in community service projects, but to organize their own.
Through our youth program for girls, Frontier Girls offers over 1200 individual badges. Thanks to the Internet, most families, even in rural communities, have access to unlimited information, if not in their own homes, then at least through the public libraries. Frontier Girls offers badges on just about any subject a girl wishes to learn about as long as it is not a controversial topic we feel is better addressed by parents or religious leaders. Girls today have more opportunities than at any other time in our history. Their interests vary from home skills like cooking and sewing to cutting edge science and technology like aerospace and genetics. Whether a girl wants to learn about beekeeping and gardening, or about spies and world dance, we have something for everyone.
Frontier Girls is designed to work with multiple age girls in a single troop. All girls can work on the same badge at the same time, but at differing skill levels. Every troop is different. There are large troops with a wide age range, as well as small troops that may consist of a single age group. Some troops meet every week, some just once a month. Frontier Girls troops may also work closely with local Boy Scout or Cub Scout troops. Frontier Girls honors the badge requirements of other programs as long as they are age appropriate. Frontier Girls can therefore work alongside local Boy Scouts and use their requirements to earn a badge through Frontier Girls.
While Girl Scouts still has a lot to offer the girls of today, each family is different and should research the various scouting style options that are available today. Frontier Girls is just one. Before making a decision for your family, you may also wish to look into the following clubs for girls:
Quest Clubs (our sister program at www.questclubs.net)
Pilgrims of the Holy Family
Keepers of the Faith
American Heritage Girls
Baden-Powell Service Association
Good luck and happy hunting!