Girl Scouts in Paris Badges!
Gloria and I have been researching and planning for this amazing Girl Scout trip for quite some time now! We have poured over and browsed many travel books and websites, and Gloria has been doing her own research on different places we will visit while we are there. I cannot tell you enough about the amount of excitement that is going in to planning this trip with her! I am most excited about just being with my daughter and exploring Paris together. What an amazing bonding opportunity I will have with her.
Since she and I have been diligently and fervently fundraising for this Girl Scouts adventure, I thought I would share exactly how this is a Girl Scouts adventure! She will be working hard to earn three international badges while there.
The first is called "Paris Worlds to Explore." The requirements were retrieved from
Here are the requirements for this badge (It's a lot, so keep reading because there are still two other badges!) :)
1. Prepare a Paris Scrapbook of souvenirs, tickets and drawings to be presented for the patch.
2. Start by researching, then writing, a paragraph or completing a drawing to describe a period in French history.
3. Visit at least eight (8) landmarks including at least one (1) museum from the list below. Add tickets, information, sketches and photos to your Paris Scrapbook.
a. Notre Dame Cathedral (
www.monum.fr) n. the Louvre museum (
www.louvre.fr) and Tuileries gardens * visit
http://www.parisfrance.org/EN/default.htm b. Sainte-Chapelle * o. Sèvres Porcelain Museum c. Place des Vosges (the Marais) * p. Rodin Museum (
www.musee-rodin.fr) d. the Arc de Triomphe (
www.monum.fr) q. Musée de Cluny e. Ile St-Louis r. Musée d’Orsay (
www.musee-orsay.fr) f. Place de la Concorde (Grand et Petit Palais) s. Catacombes (take along your GS flashlight!) g. the Eiffel Tower(
www.monum.fr) t. Centre Pompidou* h. Les Invalides (
www.invalides.org) u. Luxembourg Gardens* and the Statue of Liberty* model I. the Bois de Boulogne v. Panthéon* j. Sacré Cœur (Montmartre)* w.Gallieria Museum (Musée de la Mode)* k. the Conciergerie* x. Palais de la Découverte (Science Museum)* l. Hôtel de Ville (City Hall)* y. Popular Arts and Traditions Musem* m. Versailles (take the train, allow 1/2 day at least) z. Musée des Arts et Métiers (Industrial Arts Museum)*
(Gloria and I will be visiting a, n, b, p, d, q, r, f, s, g, t, u, j, and m)
d. Visit the Jardin d’Acclimatation (park with rides and playground)
f. Visit a Paris department store.
g. Sit at an outdoor café on the Champs-Elysées OR visit a restaurant in your area that specializes in French cuisine OR find a French food recipe and prepare it to enjoy with family or friends.
We definitely plan to stroll in many gardens and ride a boat cruise on the River Seine!
5. Try some FRENCH FOOD, at least two from the list below:
a. baguette d. cheese b. pastries e. escargots c. crêpes at a sidewalk stand or crêperie
We cannot WAIT to try ALL of these foods!! Well, Gloria may not try the escargots, but perhaps...!
6. Write about your impressions of Paris in a paragraph. Describe your favorite things that you did or saw during your visit.
We will both be doing this hopefully daily in our blog posts!
Women in Paris Badge
This is a great badge for girls to learn about women who have lived, served, and created in Paris. I m particularly interested in learning more about the artist Mary Cassatt (I know she was American, but she lived and worked in Paris and was a contemporary of Degas!) Gloria will have to explore neighborhoods, sculptures, and historical buildings to learn more about these women and earn the badge. Here is the link:
Historical Versailles Badge
Badge Requirements:
1. Prepare a Versailles scrapbook including paragraphs, ticket stubs, photos…
2. Research and write a paragraph about the Palace and its history PLUS one of the following: a. The Kings that lived there and Marie-Antoinette b. The system of the Fountains c. Complete Architecture
3. Visit the Palace (inside). (Download Rick Steve’s free audio tour on mp3 or rent an audio tour) Find the following: 1. Chapel: Where did the King sit? Notice which way his subjects faced! 2. Count the number of statues in the Hall of Mirrors 3. What do you see out the windows of the Hall of Mirrors? 4. What room shows different countries on it’s ceiling? 5. What is represented on the ceiling of the War room? 6. What is represented on the ceiling of the Peace room? 7. Do you see a secret door in the King and Queen’s room? What do you think it was for? 8. Why did the King have two beds?
4. Visit the Palace property (outside). Choose 3 of the following to visit and answer questions: 1. Gardens a. How many marble columns are there in the Bosquet de la Colonnade? b. How big are the Versailles gardens? 2. Fountains a. What does the Apollo Basin represent? b. When did it run? c. What animals can you see in the Latona Fountain? 3. Orangerie a. How many exotic trees can the Orangerie hold? b. How many steps are there from the Palace down to the Orangerie? 4. Grand Canal a. How long is the Grand Canal? b. In what shape is it laid out? 5. Grand Trianon a. Why was the Grand Trianon built? b. What colors do you see on the façade of the Grand Trianon? 6. Petit Trianon a. Why did Louis XV build Petit Trianon? b. What style is incorporated in the Petit Trianon’s columns, windows and railings? c. Who lived at the Petit Trianon after Louis XV? 7. Hamlet a. What is the French word for hamlet? b. Why was it build and for whom?
5. Choose to do one of these activities: a. Take a boat ride on the Grand Canal b. Have a picnic c. Go to a café for a hot chocolate and baguette d. Take a trolley ride or rent a golf cart or bicycle e. See the fountains and music “spectacle”
6. Write a paragraph about your best experience on this trip
We plan to rent bikes and ride down the length of the canal and to Marie Antoinette's Petite Trianon! There is a little café called "Angelina" that we also plan to visit! Of course!
