Please keep these things in mind:
Troops usually have girls from just one grade level so even if you know there is a troop meeting at her school, it may not be a troop for her age.
Troops are run by volunteer parents, just like you, so they may limit the size of the troop to what they feel they are able to manage.  If you can help by being a co-leader, managing the cookie sale, or in other ways, it can help troop leaders feel more confident about making their troop larger.  Consider helping!

She will be a “Juliette” – an independent Girl Scout. We will keep trying to help you find a troop that works for her schedule but since you know her schedule best, you will have the best luck checking the MyGS website once a month or so. In the meantime, you can help her earn badges at home and she can participate in any events and activities for her age level that are on our calendar. You can also start a new troop since you will be able to control when and where it meets, ensuring the troop meetings match her schedule.

No! Most girls do participate in Girl Scouts through a troop. But some choose to be Independent Girl Scouts or “Juliettes”. When you register her, you can select the “Independent Girl Scout in Simi Valley” option. If she is already in a troop, let the leader know your daughter will be switching to “Juliettes” and call the council offices to have her removed from the troop.
You’ll help her earn badges and journeys, just like a troop leader, and she can still participate in the events and activities listed on our calendar.

First, be aware that this is not a rule. Troops can have girls from just one grade level, a few, or from all 13 grades (K – 12). It’s up to the leader and really depends on how many parents are willing to help.
Why?
Planning the activities for girls to earn badges takes time. Planning those activities so they are appropriate for multiple age groups, fun for all, and meeting the badge requirements for all of those different levels can take a lot more time. If other parents aren’t willing to help, most troop leaders are not willing to take on all of that work alone so they limit their troops to just one grade to keep things manageable.

While we understand that parents are eager to get their girls out into the world, learning life skills and participating in adventures, Girl Scouts does begin with full Kindergarten.

Girls in Transitional or Junior Kindergarten, Pre-K, or Preschool – who will be entering full Kindergarten in the fall – can join in the late spring and participate in Girl Scout activities over the summer as they get ready to become Girl Scout Daisies in the fall.

Girl Scout troops are not like classrooms in a school. For school, you walk into the office, register your daughter for school, and the office staff assigns her to a classroom. The teacher has no say about taking a new student.
Girl Scout troops are run by parent volunteers, people just like you. These amazing moms and dads have chosen to take time out of their own busy lives to plan lessons and activities but they are still volunteers. They get to choose what grade level their troop will be, how many girls will be in the troop, and when and where the troop meets. Because of this, new Girl Scouts can’t be randomly placed in existing troops.
If you are struggling to find a troop for your daughter, please consider starting a new troop!  We’ll be happy to help you get started.

Yes!  Every January, our council begins collecting nominations for Adult Volunteer Recognition Awards.  Who submits those nominations?  Parents just like you! You can find more information on their website.  And THANK YOU for taking the time to help officially recognize your daughter’s troop leader!

We have a Girl Scout shop in the Thousand Oaks mall.  Another option is to place an order online at the Girl Scout Shop.

There are four forms girls must have at every Girl Scout meeting or event:

Annual Permission – Gives permission for a girl to participate in various Girl Scout activities.

Medication Permission – Lists which medications from the troop first aid kit can be given to a girl.

Permission to Release – States who is allowed to take a girl from a meeting or event.

Health History – Given to emergency medical personnel in in case of an emergency.

Girls need to have all four forms with them (or in the leader’s possession) at all Girl Scout events.

While Girl Scout levels are tied to school grades, we know that sometimes it’s not the right fit.  A girl who repeats a grade may benefit from repeating a year of Girl Scouts, which might mean moving to a new troop, or she may do best staying with her troop mates.  A girl who skips a grade may be happiest being with her age mates in her Girl Scout troop or may need the accelerated pace and advanced social interaction of an older troop.  The same is true with girls receiving special education services.  It really depends on the girl’s needs.  You will need to work with your daughter and her troop leader to decide the best route for your family.

Be aware that some activities and awards for older girls require a girl to be in a certain grade or higher, with no exceptions.  This can complicate things when the girl’s grade level and Girl Scout level do not match.

Yes.  Girl Scout leaders and any volunteers who spend more than 20 hours a year helping directly with girls need to be background checked.

Girl Scout troops should be large enough so girls can work in a cooperative environment and small enough so each girl can learn to stand on her own – a tricky balance.

GSUSA recommends 10 to 12 girls for the Daisy, Brownie, Junior, and Cadette levels.  For the Senior and Ambassador levels, troops should have at least 5 girls.

In addition, girls thrive when the troop members come from more than one school.   When girls get the chance to interact with girls who aren’t aware of “playground drama” or embarrassing things from the classroom, it helps them put those issues behind them and move on.

How big should YOUR troop be? No larger than you feel comfortable leading. Larger troops often break into smaller groups to rotate through activities during meetings, smaller troops often join with another troop for larger outings. You get to decide what YOU are capable of handling.

Here is the Adult-to-Girl ratio chart from the 2017 Volunteer Essentials guide. This guide shows the minimum number of registered and background checked adults you need at each meeting as well as on outings or at events.

Here are a couple of examples:

Your Daisy troop has 14 girls. How many adults do you need at a meeting? The first column shows that you need two adults for the first 12 girls. The second column shows you need one more adult for every six additional girls. With 14 Daisies, you need 3 adults at a meeting.

Your Junior troop has 20 girls. How many adults to you need on a camp out? The third column shows you need two adults for the first 16 girls. The last column shows you need one more adult for every 8 additional girls on the camp out. With 20 Juniors, you need 3 adults on the camp out.

In addition to the adult to girl ratios, please remember that all adult volunteers must be at least 18 years old and must be registered as an Adult Girl Scout volunteer. At least one volunteer must be First Aid and CPR trained if you do anything beyond regular troop meetings.

Some situations will also require at least one of the adult volunteers to have specialized training. Check with the most recent Safety Activity Checkpoints.

The Annual Permission Form gives a girl permission to travel to, attend, and participate in activities that are:

• Within 60 miles (about 1 hour’s drive) of your regular meeting place
• Are not longer than six (6) hours (including driving time)
• Are not considered high risk activities as outlined in the most recent Safety Activity Checkpoints.

You must have a copy of all four Annual Forms for each girl at the meeting or activity.  You need a copy of these forms in each vehicle for quick access in an emergency. You also need to leave a list of your itinerary and a copy of the Annual Forms with your at-home-emergency contact.

Kaleidoscope? Savannah? Somewhere else that’s exciting? Traveling with your troop can be a lot of fun – exposing both your girls and YOU to wonderful adventures. But you need to fill out the proper paperwork – months and even years – ahead of time.  Check with our Girl Scout Council for the needed forms and timelines.

Stepping Out training is required for any overnight trip. However, Stepping Out training does not permit outdoor overnights, outdoor cooking, campfires, barbecues, or fireplaces.

Outdoor Training Certification is required when spending the night at a camp ground, cooking outdoors, and/or building a campfire.

You must have your approved (signed) copy of your Trip Forms, including the Specific Trip Permission forms and Annual Forms, with you during the trip. If you do not, and a medical emergency occurs, the participants are not covered by Girl Scout insurance for the event.

Always remember to check the most recent Safety Activity Checkpoints when planning your trip.

When you have a background check done, you specify what organization, like your employer, is requesting it and should get the results.  You can’t go back and add other organizations to prior background checks, you have to have a new check done anytime a new organization, like Girl Scouts, needs one.

You are thinking about hosting an event and you have questions.

First: THANK YOU!  Fun events keep Girl Scouts exciting and interesting.

Click here for more information about hosting events.

Your troop has big plans!  And they knock the fall and cookie sales out of the park.  But to make their plans work, they might need more funds.

Now what?
Girl Scouts are allowed to fund raise for specific goals.  There are several rules that must be followed.  Among them are:

• The troop must have participated in the two most recent sales.  The troop must sell at least 12 boxes of cookies and 12 nuts/candies in order to be eligible to hold a fund raiser.
• Fund raisers may not take place during either of the official sales (roughly October through early November in the fall and February through mid-March in the Spring).
• Fundraisers can be events where other girls come and learn and do fun things or they can be garage sales and other pure fundraisers.  Be aware that this can not include any games of chance where prizes are awarded to the winners.  If in doubt – ask info@simivalleygirlscouts.com.
• Fundraisers can not put the girls in a position where they appear to be selling things for a business or raising money for another organization.  This includes (but is not limited to) restaurant fund raisers, catalog sales, and “Tupperware” type demonstration parties.
• Girls are not allowed to ask directly for a cash donation.  They can accept money to pay for cookies and nut sale items that will be donated through a council-approved donation program.
• Girls can choose to donate some of the money they’ve raised to another organization HOWEVER they can not actively ask people to donate money to be given to that organization or display signs saying the money will be donated to another organization.
• Troops must submit a Money Earning Report within one month of the end of the event.  Troops who do not turn in this report will not be allowed to hold future fund raisers.