Get Started

Before you contact anyone or plan anything, take 15 minutes to think about what you want this troop to be. You don't need a formal mission statement. 

Write your answers down. You'll share a version of this with parents at your first parent meeting, and having it written down will keep you grounded when things get busy.

You need honest answers to a few questions:

How much time can you realistically give? 

Be honest with yourself. A troop that meets twice a month and does one field trip a semester is a perfectly good troop. You don't need to be a Pinterest troop.

What are your boundaries? 

• Are there days you can't meet? 

• Activities you're not comfortable leading? (Some volunteers aren't good with paperwork, or don't feel comfortable leading ceremonies, or have never camped. Others aren't comfortable leading crafts or STEM or remembering to send emails. If there's something about being a co-leader that makes you especially nervous or anxious, write that down because you can be intentional about asking someone else to take on that piece!)

• A maximum number of girls you can handle? 

• A maximum number of badges you're willing to lead? (I recommend a goal of leading 1 badge per year, the same as the other families, but different volunteers have different limits.) 

Pre-decide these things now so you can communicate them clearly to parents later. You can always change your mind, but it helps to be decisive when announcing your initial boundaries so that folks know that anything beyond these decisions, will need to be discussed and not assumed to be okay.

What do you want the girls to get out of this? 

You don't need to answer this perfectly. "I want them to have fun, try new things, and make friends" is a completely valid vision. So is "I want to focus on outdoor skills" or "I want them to earn lots of badges." There's no wrong answer.

Some decisions need to be made before you talk to parents. These are your executive decisions -- things the troop leader decides, not votes on. You can always adjust later, but starting with a clear plan prevents the first parent meeting from turning into a two-hour debate.

Meeting Schedule: Pick potential days, times, and frequencies that work for your family. "Every other Monday from 6-7pm September thru April" is a common starting point. "No School, No Scouts" is a good policy -- if the kids have a day off from school, you take a day off too.

Meeting Location: Schools, churches, community centers, and libraries are common options. Some are free, some charge a small fee. Your Service Unit may know which locations are already being used by other troops. (This can also be brainstormed during the parent meeting.)

Troop Size: Decide your maximum. Smaller troops (8-12 girls) are easier to manage, especially your first year. You can always grow later. If you already have more than 12 interested girls, consider having parents tag team on badges (so one family leads and one is the "assistant" who still knows the plan ahead of time), so you can split the girls into groups of 5 or 6, and each parent can lead one of the subsets. You as the co-leader would then either float between the two groups or you could stick with one group and your co-leader could stick with the other. The point is each badge-leading parent to only have to manage 5-6 girls at a time (versus a gaggle of girls).

Troop Dues: A small amount per semester ($10-25) covers crafts supplies and basic expenses. Some troops charge more for specific activities. Decide a starting amount -- you can decide in January if you need to collect spring semester dues, and then adjust again after your first year when you have a better sense of costs. 

Communication Method: Pick one primary way to communicate with parents and commit to it. Email, a group text chain, a GroupMe, the Band app, a Facebook group -- whatever works for you (if you're the one who will be spearheading communication). The key is using one consistent channel so information doesn't get lost.

Remember: These decisions may feel big right now, but none of them are permanent. You're setting a starting point, not signing a contract. Everything can be adjusted at your summer re-evaluation.

Your Council and Service Unit are your support system. Reach out early so you're on their radar.

Your Council is the Girl Scout unit that oversees troops across multiple counties in your area. Find your Council's website by searching "Girl Scouts <your city and state>" -- it'll be a site like GSXYZ.org. This is where you'll find training info, event calendars, forms, and your Council's specific policies.

Your Service Unit (SU) is a regional cluster of troops, usually based by geography (city, county, or school district). Your SU has a Service Unit Manager (SUM) or Service Unit Director (SUD) who is also a volunteer and is your most direct point of support. This is the person to email with questions like "Where do troops in our area meet?" or "How do I get started with cookies?"

If you don't know who your Service Unit Manager is, call your Council's Customer Care number or email Customer Care and ask. They'll connect you.

Emails to Send Now:

• Email your Council's Customer Care to confirm your troop registration is complete and ask any setup questions.

• Email your Service Unit Manager to introduce yourself, let them know you're a new leader (and/or new to Girl Scouting completely), and ask about the next monthly Service Unit Leader meeting, and whether the SU has a website or Facebook group.

• If your Service Unit has a Facebook group, join it. This is often where local events and advice get shared informally.

Your Council will require specific training before you hold your first meeting. The exact courses vary by council, but the process is the same everywhere:

1. Log into MyGS (mygs.girlscouts.org). This is your central hub for all things Girl Scouts.

2. Navigate to gsLearn on the left menu. Your required courses should appear on your dashboard automatically. If they don't, email Customer Care -- some courses need to be manually assigned.

3. Complete the courses your Council requires. Common required courses include a new leader on-boarding path, child safety / protection training, and a grade-level course for your troop's age group. See our Find My Role page for details on what training to look for by role.

4. Complete your Criminal Background Check (CBC) if you haven't already. This was likely started during your registration process. It can take a few weeks to process, so don't wait. If you didn't receive an email with a link to complete the Criminal Background Check, email Customer Care specifically asking them to send you the CBC link.

Don't try to take every available course right now. Focus on the ones marked as required. The optional courses are there when you're ready for them.

If you see more than 3 or 4 courses in the learning path (each course may have 1-6 modules to watch), then take a screenshot and email your SU Manager to see which ones they recommend prior to the first meeting. Sometimes Councils get a little... excited... about making sure you know all the things, but you don't need to know all the things before your first troop meeting. 

For example, there may be a couple that you need to see before your first troop meeting, but then another subset that's required before your first field trip, another subset before Cookie Season (about how to handle troop money), another subset before your first campout, etc. They may all be listed as Required because they ARE required eventually, but not immediately. Your SU Manager will be the best person to help you decide which ones you should focus on first.

It's normal for even the subset of courses that the SU Manager says to take prior to your first meeting, to be taken over the span of a week or two because there's still a lot of content. You're not expected to memorize anything. The idea is to give you a starting point on the vocabulary and rules that apply in various situations, so you can ask more nuanced questions later. 

Your first parent meeting is where you introduce yourself, share your vision, and ask families to commit to helping. This is a parents-only meeting -- the girls aren't there. 

Where are the girls? Ideally at home. This meeting is for adults only. It's hard to have a focused conversation about roles, expectations, and logistics with kids running around. If childcare is a barrier for some families, consider meeting on a Friday evening and bring spouses so one parent can watch the kids at the restaurant playplace while the other parent participates in the meeting.

How to Prepare:

You'll want to prepare for this meeting across at least three evenings: the first evening, you'll send a million emails to Customer Care to get specifics related to parent training options, and the second evening, you'll use that information to update your handouts. The third, you'll prepare the rest of your spiel.

You'll want to download the Troop Parents & Roles spreadsheet, and a copy of the Troop Committee Role Sample letters (found in Downloads). Read through the letters, taking special note of where there are blanks to be filled in for peoples' names and contact details, council courses, etc. If you don't know what to put in those blanks, that becomes an email to Customer Care. You very well might create a separate email to Customer Care for each of those letters and that's okay--they can handle it. Keeping questions for each letter as a separate email to Customer Care will make tracking the answers you get back, easier.

What to Prepare:

Your Intro and Vision. Keep it to 2-3 minutes. Share your name, why you volunteered, and your honest vision for the troop (from above). Include your limitations -- parents appreciate honesty about what you can and can't do.

Troop Committee Roles Overview. Print or share the Find My Role page. Walk parents through the roles and let them pick one. Have a sign-up sheet (like the Troop Parents & Roles spreadsheet) or use SignUpGenius or SignUp.

Badge Picking. Explain that every family leads one badge per girl. You can let families sign up for specific badges at this meeting or do it later via SignUpGenius. Warn the families that if they don't pick a badge, then they will be dropped from the troop communications. 

Yes, that sounds extreme. You're not kicking them out of Girl Scouts. You're setting a boundary that you're serious that you need help or this isn't going to work. Clear is kind. You're giving them the information they need to decide if this specific troop will be a good fit. Part of that decision-making process involes how much work everyone contributes.

Logistics. Cover meeting dates, times, location, troop dues amount, your preferred communication method, and how to register with Girl Scouts and complete the criminal background check. Anything that doesn't have an executive decision answer, can be discussed as a group.

Handouts to Have Ready:

• The completed role letter for each role

• Blank Health History Form for the girls and parents

• Instructions for online registration and background check

• First Aid kit supply list (ask each family to contribute 1-2 items)

• Craft Box Supply List (ask each family to contribute some items)

Reminder: The most important thing about this first parent meeting is the vibe. You want parents to leave thinking "This is do-able" not "This is a lot." Keep the meeting under 2 hours (strive for an hour, but realize it may run long depending on the number of folks attending). Be warm, be organized, and let them know they'll figure it out as they go, just like you are.

Sample Agenda (Adjust to Fit Your Style)

Introductions (10 min). Go around the room. Each parent shares their name and one word to describe their daughter. This is quick, warm, and breaks the ice.

Your Vision & Limitations (5 min). Share what you prepared earlier. Be honest about what you can and can't do. This sets the tone for a collaborative troop, not a one-person show.

Troop Committee Roles (15 min). Walk through the roles. Hand out the overview or direct them to Find My Role on this website. Let parents pick roles. Yes, you need them to pick roles today so that you can get their contact info on the Troop Parents & Roles form, which will become your troop roster. They're only signing up for one year. If there are a couple that folks are considering, let them see the role letters for each role they're considering to help them decide. When they've decided, they put their name and contact info on the Troop Parents & Roles page. (Make sure you can read their handwriting!)

Distribute Handouts & Supplies Lists (5 min). Hand out role letters, health history forms, first aid kit supply list, and craft supply donation list.

Logistics (10 min). Meeting schedule, location, dues, communication method, how to register online, and the background check process. Parents/adults should register online as either Troop Leader or Friends & Family, the Adult Member option is a trap--don't use that option!

Uniform (5 min). Show what the uniform looks like for girls at this level, where to purchase it, and that each family can decide for themselves which of the 2 uniform options they want. This uniform will remain with the girl until she finishes 1st grade, or 3rd grade, or 5th grade (whichever is soonest), so be sure to size up to allow for growth.

Badge Sign-Up (5 min). Explain the "one family, one badge per girl" approach. Either sign up now or tell them you'll send a SignUpGenius or SignUp link. They do need to have signed up for a badge and meeting date before the first troop meeting occurs or they'll be dropped from troop communications. Again, you're not trying to be mean. You're trying to be honest about the fact that you really don't have time to be chasing after folks, and you really do need this help, in order for the troop to work.

Questions (10 min). Open the floor. Answer what you can, and for anything you don't know, say "Great question -- let me find out and get back to you. Are you on the roster?" That's a perfectly acceptable answer.

Note: Don't panic if not every role gets filled at this meeting. Follow up with a email the next day thanking everyone for coming and reminding them of any open roles so they can help with recruiting folks with those skillsets. 

What to Expect: It will be chaotic. The girls will be excited. Some will be shy. Some will be loud. Half will want their parents beside them. At least one will need to use the bathroom within the first five minutes. This is normal. 

Your only goal for this meeting: The girls have fun and want to come back, and the grown-ups know where they're supposed to sit/be during the troop meeting(s). In the first year, this will likely be off to the side, in the same room as your girl meetings.

That's it. You are not trying to earn a badge. You are not trying to teach the Girl Scout Law. You are trying to create a space where the girls feel welcome and excited about this new thing they're part of.

A sample agenda can be found here.

The sample agenda above covers how future troop meetings will go, towards the END of the first meeting. This is intentional. The girls and parents will be nervous/excited, and less likely to listen and absorb information at the beginning of your meeting. The girls need a healthy way to expend that energy, hence the active games in that agenda.

When you have 15-20 minutes left, you'll cover the order of operations for future troop meetings (arrive and hang out in a specific area, say the GS Promise, do activities, clean up, give reminders, then close with the Friendship Circle).

Reminder: Plan for 60 minutes total. If things go faster, let the girls play. If things go slower, cut the Either/Or activity short. Flexibility is your friend. The girls will not remember which favorites they selected during the Either/Or game. They will remember whether they had fun.

What to Expect: It will be less chaotic than the first meeting. The girls may know each other's names, they know the space, and they know you. This meeting can start introducing some structure.

Sample Agenda for 2nd Girl Meeting

Opening (5 min). Start teaching the Girl Scout Promise and/or Law. For Daisies, the Promise is plenty. Practice it together a couple of times and move on -- they'll learn it through repetition over the coming weeks.

Badge/Petal Activity (25 min). You can use the activities in the Sample 2nd Girl Meeting agenda above if you're running the meeting, or you may have a parent who's running a badge. Know that when running a badge, the badge booklet has everything you need. The parent leading the badge should have reviewed the booklet ahead of time and picked the most fun activities. You and your parents are encouraged to expand activities or adjust activities to meet your girls. Most Daisies won't actually sit through story time after a long school day. So you may need to find an alternate activity online for that badge step (for example). That's okay! Any particular badge step is a starting point, not a hard and fast requirement.

The "Magic Trash" Game (10 min). At the end of the activity or meeting, give the girls a few minutes to clean up. Use the game of Magic Trash. The Co-Leader picks in their head, a single piece of trash that is "it". The Co-Leader announces "1,2,3, Go!" and the girls then scramble to pick up as much trash as possible to show the Co-Leader, before throwing it away. The more trash they pick up, the better their chance of having picked up the Magic Trash. Once everything is all cleaned up, the Co-Leader announces which piece of trash was actually the Magic Trash and who picked it up. Then that person is the girl who starts the Friendship Squeeze during the Closing Ceremony.

Closing Ceremony (5 minutes). Gather in a circle. If you know the Friendship Circle (everyone crosses arms and holds hands with the people next to them), teach it here. If not, a simple "What was your favorite part of today?" go-around works.

By your third meeting, you're no longer "getting started" -- you're running a troop! Congratulations!

From here, your meetings will follow a rhythm: opening, optional snack, badge activity (led by whichever family signed up for that badge), cleanup, reminders, closing. The specifics will vary based on what badges you're working on, but the structure stays consistent. Girls (and adults) thrive on predicable structure.

When you're ready for what comes next, visit our Your Troop Year page for guidance on navigating your first Investiture, first field trip, first cookie season, and all the other "firsts" that make up a troop year.