This summer, girl scout Emily Hughes designed and hosted a Teddy Bear Sleepover at Jefferson Branch Library. The project included a teddy bear-sized t-shirt decorating program, a volunteer opportunity for teens, and a video showing all the mischief the stuffed animals got up to during their sleepover at the library. The video can be seen on the library’s YouTube channel here!
We asked Emily some questions about the Girl Scout Gold Award, the program logistics, and what she hoped to accomplish by hosting a Teddy Bear Sleepover. Read on to find out more about the project!
What is the Girl Scout Gold Award?
The Girl Scout Gold Award is the highest award a girl scout can earn. It is the equivalent of earning the Eagle Scout Award in Boy Scouts. A girl scout improves a community issue she cares about through her Gold Award project. Completing a Gold Award project is a rigorous achievement. There are seven steps to the project which have to take a minimum of eighty hours to complete. You have to work with a team you’ve created, you have to connect with the community you want your project to help. A Gold Award project has to leave long lasting effects to the issue you’ve chosen.
Describe the issue your project will address and who is your target audience.
I wanted to create an event that I have previous experience with, and I knew I wanted to work with the library since I enjoy the one in my city. Since I already belonged to the teen advisory board at Jefferson, it was an easy decision because I already had a connection. I volunteered for a similar event at my local library, so I knew I was capable of hosting my own at Jefferson.
Outline the strengths, talents, and skills that you plan to put into action. What skills do you hope to develop?
Strengths that I bring to a team are good communication skills and problem solving skills. I’m also a great listener which is why people feel comfortable coming to me for help and advice. I have experience working with small children, which was an important skill needed for this project. I was a teacher’s aid in fifth grade and more recently volunteered at my city’s preschool through an opportunity at my high school. I hope to develop better public speaking skills and time management skills with my project because these are important skills I will need for college.
Describe the steps involved in putting your plan into action, including resources, facilities, equipment, and approvals needed. (It might be helpful to make a table or chart here listing what you will need to make your program happen.)
- Work with library staff to book an event at the library and make use of their meeting room.
- Book the event in the Library’s program schedule.
- Advertise the event with flyers designed by me and Ashley.
- Search for books in the library catalog that the stuffies will “pick out” for children to check out when they pick up their stuffie. Place books on hold.
- Plan a t-shirt decorating event with library staff, including purchasing t-shirts and fabric markers. On the day of the event, have the registration list ready to check.
- On Friday evening, have teen volunteers take pictures and pair stuffed animals with a book. Order pizza to encourage more teens to come.
- Compile all photos into the stop motion slideshow.
- Have children return on Saturday afternoon to pick up their stuffed animals either in the meeting room or children’s room. Offer snacks and show the slideshow on a projector or tv.
List out the overall project’s expenses and how you plan to meet these costs.
Food for teens and children will be bought with troop expenses, donations, or library programming funds. Library owns a projector/screen, so there will be no expense for this. Room use is also free.
What methods or tools will you use to evaluate the impact of your project?
I will know that my project had an impact by how many children and teens participate, and their overall response to the program. I can observe positive reactions, if the kids check out the books their stuffies “picked out” for them, and even check in with library staff to see if they have noticed families and teens coming back to the library!
Describe how you plan to tell others about your project, the project’s impact, and what you have learned (Web site, blog, presentations, posters, videos, articles, and so on).
I plan to write a blog post for the teen blog on the library website. The blog will include a summary of the program, some pictures, a link to the video, and the ways we saw impact during and after the program. (Here are some of those photos below!)
Why have you chosen Ashley, a Youth Services Librarian with Pasadena Public Library, to be your Gold Award Project Advisor? How will this person help you have a successful project?
Ashley is the Youth Services Librarian for school age children at Jefferson Branch Library. Since elementary school age kids are one of my target audiences, I think it would be valuable to have her as my project advisor. She regularly hosts events at the library and knows what I need to do to have a successful program.
How do you want to make a difference? As an advocate for justice? A promoter of environmental awareness? As a trainer, mentor, or coach? As an artist, actor, or musician? As a developer of petitions or campaigns? As an entrepreneur?
I regularly used my school’s library and my city’s public library and I think that they helped introduce me to books I wouldn’t have thought to read. Since libraries have had such a big impact on me when I was younger, I really care about wanting to see the next generation utilizing the library and all the free services it can provide to help them be their best selves and enhance their lives.
Now put it all together. Based on your thoughts above, explain the issue you’ve chosen as the foundation of your Girl Scout Gold Award project?
Through my Gold Award, I want to show people how much your library can do for you. They host fun, free events that can help you grow different skills. Literacy rates and test scores have declined since the pandemic, and libraries are a great way to access books and help kids be more interested in sharpening their reading skills. Also, a lot of kids and teens missed social interaction during the pandemic, and my program encourages kids and teens to attend a fun event hosted by the library. The program tackles the issues I want to address because teens and children both get to interact with other kids their age. Since kids are also asked to check out and read the books their stuffed animals were paired with, it encourages them to read more.
How will your project be sustained beyond your involvement?
I made a detailed instruction booklet with step by step instructions in a three ring binder on how to put on this event again in the future. Teen volunteers from the Teen Advisory Board can help with the event again, and librarians can promote it!
Pictured from left to right: Ashley, Youth Services Librarian; Ruth Lorenzana, Library Assistant; Emily Hughes, Girl Scout Gold Award Project Lead; Tiffany Duenas, Library Technician