Alternatives to girl scouts, especially secular

[Janeway]

Are there any not-hyper religious alternatives to girl scouts?

 

I thought about AHG, but found out the kindergarteners memorize bible verses. The local girl scout troops are awful, I want nothing to do with them. There are no frontier girl groups in our area. 

 

I am open to religious, but also to non religious. Maybe there just isn't anything?

[lauraw4321]

Girl Scouts is secular. Just throwing that out there in case you were thrown by the GS promise.

[Wheres Toto]

It depends on what you are looking for and what's available in your area.

 

4-H

Spiral Scouts

Earth Scouts

Campfire Girls

[bettyandbob]

Campfire

 

YMCA has something I forget what it's called.

 

These are both co ed.

[Caroline]

You could start a Girl Scout troop. That's what I did.

[Beaniemom]

Navigators is secular I believe.

[Janeway]

Girl Scouts is secular. Just throwing that out there in case you were thrown by the GS promise.

No, I was thrown by how the leaders behaved here. I know it is not the same everywhere, but I live here so here is where she would do it.

[Ethel Mertz]

Earth Scouts

 

Also, Roots and Shoots (associated with Jane Goodall). Both are co-ed.

[Hilltopmom]

4 H- co Ed, secular, multi age, NOT just for farm kids:)

 

But like any group... Each one is only as good as the local leaders!

[redsquirrel]

My friend started a homeschool roots and shoots group.  they had a lot of fun

[UmmIbrahim]

For older girls (13/14 up to 18), venturing is a branch of the Boy Scouts of America that can be co-ed, all boys, or all girls, depending on the venturing crew sponsors.

 

It tends to cater to more "high adventure" type activities, and the secular nature depends on the group. Some are church sponsored and some are through public schools, etc.

 

Good luck finding a good scout group!

 

[mom2scouts]

For older girls (13/14 up to 18), venturing is a branch of the Boy Scouts of America that can be co-ed, all boys, or all girls, depending on the venturing crew sponsors.

 

It tends to cater to more "high adventure" type activities, and the secular nature depends on the group. Some are church sponsored and some are through public schools, etc.

 

Good luck finding a good scout group!

 

Venturing is for boys and girls up to their 21st birthday.

[amsunshine]

Girl Scouts is secular. Just throwing that out there in case you were thrown by the GS promise.

 

 

I'm not sure if this was specific to our troop, or not, but we quit our Daisy troop when it became clear the troop leaders were pressuring my daughter to express her belief in some kind of God, any God.  When my daughter told the leader she was Buddhist, the leader said she could profess her belief in Buddha (within the Girl Scout promise).  Um, just no.  When I talked to the leader, she said the Girl Scouts were not Christian, but still expected the girls to believe in some sort of God.

 

Based on our experience, I would not characterize the Girl Scouts as secular.  YMMV.

[Tanaqui]

If you don't like your local GS troop, you might have to do your own. It can be Girl Scouts or part of some other organization, but you may need to organize it yourself, is all.

[itsheresomewhere]

For older girls (13/14 up to 18), venturing is a branch of the Boy Scouts of America that can be co-ed, all boys, or all girls, depending on the venturing crew sponsors.

 

It tends to cater to more "high adventure" type activities, and the secular nature depends on the group. Some are church sponsored and some are through public schools, etc.

 

Good luck finding a good scout group!

Really depends on the group so really check it out. We just looked at a venturing group and it was religious. And they were not very adventurous. The next group we are going to try is supposedly not religious and very active.

[Daria]

But Venturing is part of boy scouts so not secular, right?  Or do they allow atheist scouts and leaders?

[poppy]

Be a Girl Scout leader. You have almost complete autonomy over how your troop operates.*  Be the Girl Scout troop that camps,  girls will flock to you.

 

I am a Girl Scout leader.  Traditionally GS say "On my honor I will try to serve God, my country, to help people at all times, and to live by the Girl Scout Law".

In my troop we say "On my honor I will try to do good, to serve my country......"

 

* But if someone is pressuring your girl to express a specific belief, that's not OK. Girl Scouts is very inclusive and always has been... founded by a Southern debutante who defied expectations by operated racially integrated troops in Georgia 100+ years ago.

[Ellie]

But Venturing is part of boy scouts so not secular, right?  Or do they allow atheist scouts and leaders?

 

I don't believe there are any requirements for adult volunteers or children to have any religious affiliation.

[Daria]

No, no atheists for BSA, but it's not "hyper-religious" as you mentioned. They do have to say the Oath and Law which includes Duty to God. The idea of God is pretty vague. 

 

Janeway was the one who mentioned "hyper-religious", I merely asked a question.

 

I will say that I don't have issues with faith based programming.  I work for a Catholic organization, and previously worked for Episcopal and Quaker organizations.  My kid enjoyed his time at Jewish summer camp, as well as Baptist daycare and Quaker preschool.  

 

However, I wouldn't expect my kid to take an oath to something he doesn't believe in, anymore than I'd sign him up for another role that required a certain belief (e.g. First Communion class, or a Bar Mitzvah).  

 

I also find the notion that you can be moral while believing in any religion on the planet, but not if you don't believe in any, odd.  It makes sense to me, even though I disagree, when people believe that others who share their beliefs are more moral, but I don't understand the logic of accepting all belief systems except one.  

[Epicurean]

The Wild Explorers Club.

 

It's for ages 6-12, both genders, and you can either do it as a family or start your own group. The cost of the Wild Explorers Club is $14/mo for each family and includes:

 

+ Weekly adventure assignments for each animal level
  (plus bi-weekly emails to chart your progress)

+ A monthly "Wild Explorers" print magazine in the mail
  (ships only to US & Canada / PDF for the rest of us)

+ A free logo patch in the mail for starting / A free patch per account after applying for each animal levell

+ Certificates for completing the weekly assignments
  (with the opportunity to purchase patches for $8)

+ An online video show from our wilderness outpost
  (with Ranger Kyle explaining each week's assignment)

 

I like that it's very nature-focused, with each patch/level having a specific theme. I don't have personal experience with it since my DD isn't old enough yet, but it sounds neat.

[Alessandra]

Both dd and ds are in Venturing. We love it! When kids are older (14 through 20), it great not to be with 10-11 year olds, lol. I have attended several camporee said and am very impressed by the maturity, capability, and kindness of the Ventureres I have encountered. There seems to be more interaction among members of different crews than there is among members of different troops. Also, as a parent, I love doing activities with both dd and ds.

 

Some councils have great Venturing programs, others not so much. We go out of council for a lot of events.

 

I believe a Venturing crew can focus on things like STEM and other areas of interest. But the only crews I know are outdoors/adventure.

 

BSA has a put a bit more emphasis on God in some of its rules since it started to admit People of varying sexual orientations. Some BSA groups attend religious camporees and want kids to earn religious medals. Other groups -- even though they may be sponsored by a church -- do absolutely nothing religious. Just ask.

 

Btw, I have been told that USA and Phillipines are only places where actual Boy Scout troops are not coed.

[Janeway]

By hyper religious, I mean I don't want to sit around reading the bible or memorizing bible verses. Faith based is ok, but I don't want to spend time on that.

[ocelotmom]

Frontier Girls is another one. They are not purely secular - there are religious badges available. But they leave the extent to which this is included up to the individual or group. (Quest Clubs is their co-ed version)

 

I'm not sure if this was specific to our troop, or not, but we quit our Daisy troop when it became clear the troop leaders were pressuring my daughter to express her belief in some kind of God, any God.  When my daughter told the leader she was Buddhist, the leader said she could profess her belief in Buddha (within the Girl Scout promise).  Um, just no.  When I talked to the leader, she said the Girl Scouts were not Christian, but still expected the girls to believe in some sort of God.

 

Based on our experience, I would not characterize the Girl Scouts as secular.  YMMV.

 

That was the individual troop. Official Girl Scout stance is that anyone can join, and that girls who are not religious can substitute something appropriate in place of "God" in the promise. "The Earth", or "the greater good", for example. They definitely do not have an official anti-atheist stance like the BSA.

Edited June 30, 2016 by ocelotmom

[TravelingChris]

All three of my kids were in Venturing and though all three met in churches or base chapel, there was nothing like Bible versus or Bible readings or anything like that in the program.  My youngest spent the longest amount of time in a crew and really enjoyed it and developed a lot of skills through the program, including leadership. My son had some of the coolest experiences since he was in it in Europe.  He got to rappel down a castle wall and he went on a camping trip to Barcelona and nearby areas.

[KungFuPanda]

I'm not sure if this was specific to our troop, or not, but we quit our Daisy troop when it became clear the troop leaders were pressuring my daughter to express her belief in some kind of God, any God.  When my daughter told the leader she was Buddhist, the leader said she could profess her belief in Buddha (within the Girl Scout promise).  Um, just no.  When I talked to the leader, she said the Girl Scouts were not Christian, but still expected the girls to believe in some sort of God.

 

Based on our experience, I would not characterize the Girl Scouts as secular.  YMMV.

 

I was a Leader for 7 years.  This would not be tolerated in my council.  I hope you reported it. Believing in "some sort of god" is more of a Boy Scout thing and the two groups are not at all affiliated.

[Farrar]

Given what you've said, Janeway, I think the group you want *is* the Girl Scouts. That said, troops can vary a lot. And if they're not great in your area, then that's too bad.

 

If 4H doesn't fit the bill, some of these suggestions are good, but you'll probably have to create the group yourself. Things like Earth Scouts are smaller organizations and probably won't have a troop at the ready for you to just join in your area.