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For Girl Scout Daisies

The following is a list of program activities and their descriptions for the 2022-2023 Girl Scout year. Download the Program Planner and search our Program Activities List and Program | Events Calendar web pages for dates and registration details.

Create your own Program Activities List

Print out your own listing of all available program activities with their program descriptions. Locate the PRINTER ICON BUTTON (small green printer illustration) at the top right-hand corner of the web page under the main photo. Use that button to automatically create and print out pages that include all of the programs PLUS their descriptions for this Girl Scout level. For a complete guide to all of our council's program activities, print out the pages for each level. Then, mark your favorites, search gsEvents for the dates and times that program activity is being offered, and register. 

Animal Explorers: Day

Bring a special adult or your troop and your love of animals to Jockey Hollow Camp to meet some animal friends up-close and learn about mammals, reptiles, birds, and more from professional animal handlers. We’ll play animal-themed games and make crafts. This program activity helps girls earn the Birdbath Award from the 5 Stories, 4 Flowers, 3 Cheers for Animals Girl Scout Daisy Journey. Adults must be current registered Girl Scout members with a completed background checks prior to registering for this program.

Animal Explorer: Overnight

Bring a special adult or your troop and your love of animals to meet some animal friends up-close and learn about mammals, reptiles, birds, and more from professional animal handlers. We’ll play animal-themed games and make crafts. This program is available with an overnight option at Jockey Hollow Camp. Come join us for a pizza party, more animal-themed activities, a campfire, songs, and S’mores before settling into a cabin for a sleepover. This is a great opportunity for first-time campers!

This program activity helps girls earn the Birdbath Award from the 5 Stories, 4 Flowers, 3 Cheers for Animals Girl Scout Daisy Journey. Fee includes patch, dinner, snacks, breakfast, and all activities. STEM patch can be purchased at the council shops. Adults must be current registered Girl Scout members with a completed background checks prior to registering for this program.

Apple Cider Making

Join us to make fresh apple cider using an old-fashioned screw press as you explore the use of simple machines and learn about the history of cider making from colonial times to the present. This program is located at Tenafly Nature Center in Tenafly, NJ. Fee includes a fun patch. 

Campfire and Night Hike

Experience the changes that occur in the forest as day turns to night during this short, guided evening hike on the trails of the Tenafly Nature Center. We’ll play games as we listen for animals and test our sensory skills along the way. Afterwards, you’ll enjoy songs, stories, and fun-filled activities while we roast marshmallows around a campfire.

FallFest

Girl Scouts of Northern New Jersey invites you to attend FallFest Weekend, Saturday, Oct. 22 & Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022, at Lake Rickabear Camp in Kinnelon. Learn more about our 2022-2023 program offerings and meet the staff of Girl Scouts of Northern New Jersey at FallFest. Come and sample fun and exciting Girl Scout activities, including archery, rock climbing, ziplining, yoga, and more. Food trucks will be on-site for purchasing snacks. Plan out your Girl Scout year. At FallFest, you can sign up early for this year's program activities—before they sell out! Plus, take advantage of special FallFest promotions and earn prizes. Choose a start time on your preferred date when you register. FallFest will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on both days.

Family Fun Days & Family Camping at Lake Rickabear

Bring your family to Lake Rickabear Camp for our Family Fun Days and Family Camping and have an outdoor adventure with us during Memorial Day and Labor Day Weekends! Spend the day or reserve overnight accommodations. Each campsite offers an outdoor cooking grill with picnic table and flush toilets and hot showers are available nearby. Lake Rickabear Camp offers a 40-acre, spring-fed lake with a 700-foot sandy beach, fishing, miniature golf, outdoor bowling, volleyball, tennis, basketball, and more! For more information, email camping@gsnnj.org or visit: www.gsnnj.org/FamilyFun

Family Swim & Picnic at Lake Rickabear

LAKE RICKABEAR CAMP IS TEMPORARILY CLOSED FOR SEASONAL MAINTENANCE AND IMPROVEMENTS. THERE WILL BE NO FAMILY SWIM OR FAMILY CAMPING DURING LABOR DAY WEEKEND 2022. 

Bring your family for a fun day at Lake Rickabear, a 40-acre, spring-fed lake with a 700-foot sandy beach Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends. Camp offers fishing, miniature golf, outdoor bowling, volleyball, tennis, basketball, and more. Charcoal grills and picnic tables are available. Identification bands are issued when you check-in. NO ADVANCE RESERVATION REQUIRED. Family Swim and Picnic is open to Girl Scouts and non-Girl Scout friends and family. For more information, email camping@gsnnj.org or visit: www.gsnnj.org/FamilyFun.

Girl Scouts Love State Parks Weekend

Every year, Girl Scouts explore the natural wonders found across our country during the Girl Scouts Love State Parks weekend. This year from Sept. 10-11, New Jersey State Parks, Forests & Historic Sites celebrates Girl Scouts Love State Parks Weekend with thirty guided programs and countless opportunities for self-guided hikes and activities across the entire state. 

The registration link will re-direct you to the NJ State Parks website with a full listing of state-wide programs and information for Girl Scouts, their troops, and their families as well as links to DIY activities, hiking, and picnicking information. Note that the guided interpretive programs and events have capacity limits and require pre-registration (all pre-registration is happening directly through the Park Services, which you will be redirected to when you click on the registration link).

Want patches? Special 2022 Girl Scout Love State patches can be purchased from our council retail store and are available as a fun patch to commemorate any event at a state park throughout year, as well as events during this weekend.

Want to explore parks across the USA and/or download your free Girl Scouts Love State Parks passport? Check out GSUSA's national Girl Scouts Love State Parks website! The passport can be used to explore any state park and participate in our national #PickUpAmerica campaign. 

Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with us and enjoy unique cultural traditions and cuisines at the Cultural Connections Festival in Dover, Sept. 17, 2022, 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Bring the whole family! Learn some traditional dances. 

Intro to Camping: Glamping

If you are ready to try camping overnight, but not yet sure about camping outdoors, come join us for a night of crafts and activites while we camp inside at our Riverdale Service Center. Make new friends and bond with your troop during this adventurous indoor camping experience. We'll enjoy a pizza dinner and make fun crafts, including edible campfires and S'mores men. And, we'll wrap up the evening with a movie and popcorn. A light breakfast will be served the next morning. Fee inlcudes crafts, food, and fun patch.

Jockey Hollow Day Camp Open House

You’re invited to tour the beautiful camp facilities at Jockey Hollow Camp in Mendham. Come meet our staff, ask questions, and make S’mores. With a large "L"-shaped swimming pool, Low-Ropes Challenge Course, and Zip Line, beautiful equestrian center, archery range, playing field, and adventurous hiking trails, the fun is endless at our camp. Walk through our luxurious cabins and activity shelters, see our large troop house and spacious pavilion, and more. Stop by anytime between 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. and bring a friend or two. New or returning campers and their families are invited to attend.

Registration is suggested in case of program cancelation, but not required. Driving directions will be emailed when you register online.

Lake Rickabear Day Camp Open House

Take a tour of our Lake Rickabear Camp in Kinnelon. Meet our camp staff and enjoy refreshments as you discover what makes our summer camp program so desirable. Our beautiful 40-acre, spring-fed lake is perfect for pedal boating, row boating, paddle boarding, and swimming, and has a long stretch of sandy beach. You’ll also see our archery range, low-ropes challenge course, mini golf course, zip line, rock wall, equestrian area, gaga ball pit, and hiking trails. Girl Scouts and non-Girl Scouts are welcome to register for our camps. Bring along a friend or two! Reservations are requested in case of cancelation due to inclement weather. Driving directions will be emailed post-registration.

Low Ropes Challenge Course Jockey Hollow & Lake Rickabear Camps

Build self-confidence, team cooperation, and problem-solving skills, both individually and as a troup, when a trained facilitator guides you through low rope elements and group initiative activities. Your team will work through frustrations and gain confidence as they create a solution for each activity. Each challenge activity will be geared to the participants’ age levels during this 2-hour program. Girls in Grade 4 or older can enjoy a zip line experience.

Choose between our two camps for your preferred location: at Jockey Hollow Camp in Mendham or Lake Rickabear Camp in Kinnelon.Low Ropes Challenge Course sessions are available from mid-April through mid-November. Sessions must be reserved at least 30 days prior to desired date. For more information or questions, email camping@gsnnj.org.

Making Memories

Bring along a special adult and step back in time with a visit to Macculloch Hall Historical Museum in Morristown. You’ll walk through the flower garden and make a painting of what you see. Then, listen to stories of the mothers and daughters who lived there long ago as you tour the museum’s 19th century rooms. Fee includes a fun patch. 

Maple Sugaring

Enjoy a late winter day at Lake Rickabear Camp and discover how maple syrup is made. You’ll be able to experience the maple sugaring process with all your senses. Bring your troop or family. This program activity will help girls earn the Girl Scout Cadettes Trees Badge (Steps 1, 2 & 4). Fee includes program supplies and a fun patch for each Girl Scout. Link patch can be purchased at the council shops. Girl Scouts and non-Girl Scout family members are welcome to register and participate. Children under age 3 are free. Program will occur in sunshine, rain, or snow. Come dressed for the weather.

Me & My Hero

Bring your favorite hero along for a day of outdoor fun at Lake Rickabear Camp in Kinnelon. Explore the trails, enjoy a hotdog cooked on the grill, play miniature golf, try our outdoor bowling alley, and more! Wear your bathing suit and bring a towel for some water fun in the lake. Fee includes all games and activities, hot dog lunch, and fun patch. Heroes do not have to be Girl Scout members. 

Perfectly Imperfect

Discover how to better focus on what your body can do, than on how it looks. During this program, you’ll explore yoga, meditation, and breathing techniques that will help you ignore the negative body image messaging in advertising, movies, television, and social media. You’ll learn tools that will help you connect with your inner voice, maintain your confidence, and be true to yourself at Body Positive Works in Saddle River, NJ. This program activity helps girls earn the Girl Scout Brownie My Best Self Badge, Girl Scout Junior Staying Fit Badge, and Girl Scout Cadette Science of Happiness Badge. Completed badge can be purchased at the council shop.

Roller Coaster Design

Be a mechanical engineer and design, create, and test your own roller coaster. Experiment with designs to discover what works and what doesn’t as you learn how a mechanical engineer creates some of our biggest and fastest roller coasters. Earn your Girl Scout Daisy Roller Coaster Design Challenge Badge. Fee includes completed badge. 

Sensational Stars

Get a closer look at the stars in the sky when our Starlab traveling planetarium visits Jockey Hollow Camp in Mendham. You’ll work on your space badge as you study the constellations and other elements of the night sky. This program activity helps girls earn the Girl Scout Daisy Space Science Explorer Badge and Girl Scout Brownie Space Science Adventurer Badge (Steps 1, 2, 3 & 4). 

Sew Petite

Create a fun, easy to sew project using a computerized sewing machine. You’ll discover how sewing incorporates technology, art, and math, and learn the language of sewing by creating an embroidered messenger bag. Fee includes all program materials. Adults can register and participate, too. 

Snow and Ice Family Fun

Bring your sleds, snow shoes, and ice skates (or borrow a pair of ours) to Lake Rickabear Camp for a family fun day filled with snow and ice adventure. Weather permitting and after an ice thickness test, you and your family can go sledding down the hill and onto our frozen lake. Then, lace up your ice skates and glide onto our cleared lake ice rink. Or, try hiking around the camp grounds in a pair of snow shoes (GSNNJ will have a limited number of those to loan out, too). Bonfires, S'mores making, and hot chocolate will be provided. Don't miss our dog sledding demo!

Summer Camp Information Night

Join us for a virtual Camp Information Night via Zoom to learn about our summer camp progams at Jockey Hollow and Lake Rickabear Day Camps. Meet the Camp Directors, discover the many activities we offer, and have all your questions answered. You don't have to be a Girl Scout to attend our camps. Invite a non-Girl Scout friend along who may want to attend camp with you. Camp information nights are designed for new campers and parents, but returning campers are always welcome. Registration is required to obtain the Zoom link, which will be emailed to all registered participants 1-2 days before the event.

NOTE: Adults only need to register if they are attending the session alone.

Toy Maker

Be creative and design a new toy. You’ll brainstorm new toy ideas and then share them with the group for feedback. Once your toy is ready to sell to the public, you’ll create a commercial or advertisement that will get people interested in it. This program activity helps girls earn the Girl Scout Daisy Toy Business Designer Badge. Fee includes all supplies needed and completed badge. 

Turkey Trek

Enjoy a late fall trek around Lake Rickabear Camp’s 1.2 mile trail. Take photos with your with family or troop and the beautiful scenery as your backdrop. Learn about nature through a fun scavenger hunt that supports the Eco Girl Scout badges. Each paid participant will receive a Turkey Trek 2022 pin. Pre-registration is required: http://bit.ly/GSNNJfamilyevent.

Virtual Travel Showcase

Join us for this virtual presentation about our trip and travel benefits for our members. The GSNNJ program team has been planning some exciting events from camping to glamping! Our trips include single (1) night overnights such as one at Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk, CT, an overnight in Washington D.C., and a stay in Philadelphia, as well as five-day (5) trips to Savannah, GA, and beyond. Learn more about our first ever, adult-only, trip to Memphis, TN, and hear about our amazing Girl Scout Destination program. Plus, hear the latest news about our 2023 Girl Scout National Council Session and Convention being held in Orlando, FL.