Earth Day's Top Ten Environmental Troop Ideas

Alea, Troop 252
Explore More Day is an event at my school with a full day of fun activities, including science experiments, athletic activities and educational activities. There are lots to choose from like basketball, magic tricks, live animals and science experiments. A couple weeks before the event, they give you the option to select eight activities you want. After some activities you get to have an indoor or outdoor picnic lunch, then more activities, and then school was over. I really recommend Explore More Day because it's fun and a great break from school work.

Caitlin, 11, England
On March 12, 2008, the Girl Scouts of ACS Cobham visited the Cobham Veterinarian. When we got to the vet, we were led on a tour; the lady demonstrated her usual procedure on an animal that she loved dearly, her stuffed dog. She showed us how the anesthetics worked, what they do to animals in certain cases, how they brush the animal's teeth, and much more. We got to see X-rays from animals that had come in to be operated on! One dog had six golf balls in its belly, and one cat's leg was really badly broken, but after the operation everything was better. We were able to ask questions, and a vet answered them.

Hannah, 10, England
My Girl Scout troop and I went rock climbing. When we got there we found our instructors, they told us the rules, and then we put on our special outfits. After that, we went in, and we did a training to help us before we actually started climbing. We went because we earned enough money to pay for it, and it helped us earn our Adventure Sports badge. After our training, we moved on to the real thing. I thought it was easy, but for some people it wasn't. I had loads of fun.

Anna, 12, England
On Friday, February 1, Girl Scout Troop 27 visited Craggy Island Indoor Climbing Center. First, our instructor told us some riveting instructions, and then we put on our harnesses which were quite uncomfortable. Next we began climbing, starting out with a low horizontal wall. After that, we all climbed a series of vertical walls, and the difficulties varied. In the end, despite the uncomfortable harnesses, it was worth it.

Anna, Troop 209, Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts
Anna is a second grader from Massachusetts, and a Brownie Girl Scout in Troop 209 who is raising awareness about recycling plastic grocery bags. She heard about sea turtles getting caught in plastic grocery bags and decided to start a letter writing campaign. She asks people to reduce, recycle and reuse plastic grocery bags to make the world a cleaner place. Anna enclosed a postcard that people can sign if they want to help. She set a goal of receiving 50 postcards by Earth Day, April 21. So far, she has received 304 postcards from people in 11 states, including very nice notes from Senator John Kerry, Senator John McCain, former Governor Jane Swift and Laura Bush.

Alexis, 10, Troop 1352, Girl Scouts of Central California
Junior Troop 1352 always takes care of the earth. For Earth Day, we are going to work in our community's river cleanup. The cleanup allows groups to work while the water is still at a safe level, and also allows us to see the garbage to pick up. The effort also helps protect waterfowl and other birds that will be nesting along the shorelines later in the spring. Many plants and animals depend on access to the water for survival. We are also working with SMUD (Sacramento Municipal Utility District) planting ten trees in order to help the earth continue to grow strong! We will continue to recycle, reduce and reuse EVERYDAY.