Silver Award Girl Scouts, Erin, Lily, and Libby
For their Silver Award project, Erin, Lily, and Libby, addressed the issue of increased anxiety levels in young children, specifically those in kindergarten. After extensive research, the girls discovered several reasons behind the increase amongst young children: separation anxiety susceptibility, nerves about academic transitions, and increased general uneasiness in kids going to school during the pandemic.
After speaking with school counselors and local healthcare providers, the three Girl Scouts came up with the idea of providing kids with a “transitional object,” or an object that reminds them of home and loved ones. The tangible keepsakes would create a sense of comfort and alleviate some of the children’s anxieties. With the help of the school superintendent, kindergarten teachers, and the local recreation department, the girls devised a program for kindergarteners to make fun, unique, and useful objects called Comfort Keychains.
The program allows students to keep their keychains near them during school hours to promote a sense of calm and readiness to learn. To ensure sustainability of their project, the girls made an agreement with the parent-teacher association to provide long-term funding.
“To really get something done, you have to be proud of what you’re doing and not be afraid of being judged for your opinions and goals. When trying to convince someone to help us, we were proud of our project and took responsibility by being transparent and listening to what others had to say […] Our project did a lot for the youngest members of our community. It will hopefully better their educations and careers as students,” said the girls.
