Education
Girl Scout Programs
Scouts participating in My Heritage program
The Smithsonian American Art Museum offers Girl Scout programs that meet requirements for Brownie Try-Its, Junior Girl Scout badges and Cadette interest project awards. Senior Scouts are invited to contact the Education Department directly with their proposals. Girl Scouts who live outside metropolitan Washington, D.C., and unable to visit the museum in person, can participate via real-time videoconference.
In-gallery and videoconference Girl Scout programs are offered October through May, last approximately 45 minutes, and are available free of charge. Reservations are accepted for weekdays until 2 p.m. including Monday Federal holidays.
As you celebrate at Rock the Mall, explore the Smithsonian museums on the National Mall and beyond. Start by downloading the Girl Scouts Discover! self-guide:
For more information about Girl Scouts 100 and Girl Scouts Rock the Mall event please visit the event home page.
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Scouts who complete any museum activity will receive a Smithsonian American Art Museum patch.
To schedule a program or to learn more e-mail brownco@si.edu.
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Brownie Programs
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Try-It, Hobbies
This Museum or videoconference visit, with recommended activity, fulfills one requirement.
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Before Museum or Videoconference Visit
Scouts will:
The program will focus on these questions:
- How did museums evolve from cabinets of curiosities?
- How did the Smithsonian American Art Museum or the Renwick Gallery (depending on which museum is hosting the troop) originate? What are historical highlights of the building?
- How does David Beck's MVSEVM capture the history of the Smithsonian American Art Museum collection and building?
- How is the Museum organized for visitors?
- What can we learn from an artwork's label?
Recommended Post-Visit Activities:
Troop organizes a hobby fair in which Scouts exhibit their collections. Scouts organize and present their collections while considering what they learned about gallery layouts, labels, creating inventories in the museum or videoconference visit.
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Junior Girl Scout Programs
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Jeweler Badge
This Museum or videoconference visit, with completion of recommended activities, fulfills two requirements.
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Before Museum or Videoconference Visit
Scouts will:
American Art Museum at Gallery Place Visits
If the tour is at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the docent will introduce Scouts to the artist-made jewelry and the miniatures collection in open storage in the Luce Foundation Center for American Art, as well as artworks that include depictions of jewelry. Skills and materials, meanings, symbolism, and influences will be discussed. Scouts will sketch jewelry.
Renwick Gallery Visits
If the tour is at the Renwick Gallery, the docent will introduce Scouts to artist-made jewelry on display, as well as artworks that include depictions of jewelry. Scouts will sketch jewelry.
Videoconference Programs
The docent will introduce Scouts to artist-made jewelry on display at both museums, as well as artworks that include depictions of jewelry. Scouts will sketch jewelry.
Recommended Post-Visit Activities:
Scouts create their own jewelry, keeping in mind what they learned on their tour and/or investigate individual birthstones. Search online for "jewelry making video" instructions.
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My Heritage (History)
This Museum or videoconference visit, with completion of recommended activities, fulfills one requirement.
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Before Museum or Videoconference Visit
Scouts will:
- Review a list of related artworks to be included in museum tour
- View and discuss online video about appropriate museum etiquette
- Visit the ¡Del Corazón! website and view one or more artist videos discussing culture or heritage.
- Discuss Scouts' heritages and various research strategies to gather information about their backgrounds
- Agree to actively participate in a 45 minute visit or videoconference
Recommended Post-Visit Activities:
Each Scout searches the Museum's Web site for an artwork that reflects her heritage, shares the image with the Troop and presents a toy, game or song reflective of that artwork. Scouts consider the accomplishments of people whom they learned about on the Museum tour-artist or subject. Each Scout describes a goal that she would like to achieve and writes a plan or timeline to accomplish that goal.
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Architecture
This Museum visit fulfills four requirements. This program is not available via videoconference.
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Before Museum Visit
Scouts will:
- View Slide Show about the Patent Office Building
- View and discuss online video about appropriate museum etiquette,
- Bring a straight edge, graph paper, and sketching paper to museum
- Agree to actively participate in a 45 minute museum visit
- Complete a sketching and scale drawing activity with the troop leader
Recommended Post-Visit Activities:
Scouts create a scale-drawing of a Museum gallery or the Kogod Courtyard. In the Kogod Courtyard, Scouts discuss and design their own garden using the Courtyard as inspiration.
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