• Understanding Our World
• Cultural Customs Patch Program
• Celebrating People Patch Program

Understanding Our World

Each year The Girl Scouts of Michigan Trails will gather to learn about and experience another culture. The staff at GSMT is committed to providing a large cultural event each year to provide an opportunity for girls to learn about cultures and traditions different from their own. Some of these cultures are right in our own neighborhoods. By offering these programs each year, Girls will be exposed to the diverse culture we live in. These programs will promote understanding and education that the Girl Scouts can use in their day to day interactions and as a tool for their future. Past programs have included: a Brazilian Carnaval in 2001, Teaching PowWow Traditions of Native American People in 2002, and an event focusing on Puerto Rico is scheduled for 2003.

Kids on the Block for Brownie and Junior Girl Scouts
Kids on the Block is a troupe of educational child-size puppets designed to teach children about disabilities and differences. Delivered at troop meetings and camp by Senior Girl Scouts. The KOB program on multi-culturalism is designed to introduce children to the concept of culture and how it affects our individual lives and society as a whole.

Face It for Daisy through Cadette
Face It is a team of teens and college students committed to facing it with the Girl Scouts. They teach peers and younger girls contemporary issues through interactive programs.

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Cultural Customs Patch Program

“Culture is the filter through which we view the world. It can connect us to others and give us a sense of uniqueness and power. Culture reveals itself in complex things such as religious beliefs, or simple things like leisure activities. Culture may provide models on which we base many of our beliefs, likes, dislikes, and interactions with others. Cultural awareness and sensitivity will serve present and future generations well as we become a more global society.”
-The Kids on the Block, Inc.

Breakfast
All cultures have that first meal of the day. Americans know this meal as breakfast. The word breakfast means to break from fasting, or to eat again. In America, there are several choices of breakfast foods to choose from. Find out what foods are eaten for breakfast in other cultures that you may not have heard of, seen, or eaten.

Hairstyle
Hairstyle swapping has gone international, from cornrows to British punk, flat tops to ponytails. Although it may be worn differently, one thing that all cultures have in common is hair.

Greetings
Hello, guten tag, que pasa, salve, bonjour! When should you bow or curtsy, show the peace sign, or give a high five, shake hands firmly or kiss on the cheek? The Greeting Patch activities will help introduce you to a variety of ways that greetings are communicated around the world.

Home
Homes come in all shapes and sizes. They can reflect many things: climate, natural resources, history, and occupations just to name a few. The Home Patch activities will give you insight to many places that people of the world know as “home sweet home.”

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Celebrating People Patch Program

“We live in a world rich in diversity. We are people who look different, live in different types of houses, eat different types of food, appreciate different arts, wear different types of clothes, and behave in different ways. Yet with our differences, we are in many ways very much the same. We all want to feel a sense of belonging, of caring, and to be valued for being ourselves.”
-Celebrating Diversity, Teachers Created Materials, Inc.

Celebrating People Patch Program focuses on the contributions and strengths of Native American, Asian, African, and Latin American cultures. Each ethnic group has its own culture which may include: language, demographics, religion, rituals, food or music. Within one country, there are many different cultures and dialects that exist. Each patch provides age-level appropriate activities that enable one to gain insight into the traditions and heritage of many countries worldwide.

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Girl Scouts Michigan Trails 3275 Walker Avenue NW Grand Rapids, MI 49544 (616) 784-3341 (800) 442-1401 FAX: (616) 784-8187