The Badge Archive

• Fulfills 2 steps of GSUSA Daisy Money Explorer (Year 1) – Paper Money, Practice Using Money – Still requires learning about Coin Money.
• Fulfills all 3 steps of GSUSA Daisy My Money Choices (Year 2) – Needs/Wants, Goal Setting, Costs
• Fulfills all 5 steps of Brownie Budget Builder (Year 1) – Costs, Needs/Wants, Budget Adventure, Comparison Shop, Budget for $15
• Fulfills 2 steps of Brownie My Own Budget (Year 2) – Spending, Needs/Wants – Still requires learning about Spend/Save/Share Budgets and practicing Saving and Sharing.
• Fulfills 2 steps of Junior Budget Maker (Year 1) – Needs/Wants, Choose Between Needs/Wants – Still requires learning about Financial Services, Spend/Save/Share Budgets and practicing making a Spend/Save/Share Budget
• Fulfills ZERO steps of Junior My Money Plan (Year 2) – Still requires learning about Earning Money, Jobs, Income Tax, Saving/Investing, Protect Financial Information

Items Needed:

• Shopping Cards (by GSUSA) – 2 full sets
• Extra copies of clothing cards (enough for groups of 3)
• Pretend money: Print and cut out enough $1 and $5 fake money from the Pretend Shopping (at DS Brownie Girl Scouts) file for every scout to have (2) $5 and (5) $1.
• Paper and pencils
• Timer
• Open space to move and set up stations

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Instructions (Estimated Time: 80 Minutes):

Scavenger Hunt – 15 minutes

1. Hide item cards around the room.
2. Split scouts into 3 groups and assign each group a category.
3. Scouts search for their category’s cards, then total the cost of one of each item they find.
4. Each group shares their total and what they “bought.”

Sort It! – 10 minutes

1. Mix up the groups again. Form 2 grocery groups, 1 clothing group, and 1 school supplies group.
2. Each group sorts their cards into two piles: Needs and Wants.
3. Give them 5 minutes to sort, then share back what they decided and why.

Clothing Comparison – 15 minutes

1. Use the extra clothing cards. Put scouts into groups of 2–3.
2. They choose one top, one bottom, (or a dress in place of a top and bottom) and one pair of shoes for their group with a budget of $25.
3. Each group shares what they chose and why (based on price, usefulness, or style).
4. After sharing, briefly explain trade-offs (e.g., jeans cost more but last longer than tights).

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Adventure Planning – 10 minutes

1. Gather everyone together.
2. Using item cards that could relate to fun outings (picnic food, supplies, etc.), come up with an adventure the whole troop could do with a budget of only $15 per scout.
3. Write down what they’d need and total how much it would cost for everyone to participate.
4. Discuss: Could they afford it with shared money? Would they need to cut anything out?

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Shopping Spree – 25–30 minutes

Set Up:

• Lay all item cards around the room like a store.
• Give each scout $15 in play money (2 x $5 and 5 x $1).

Rules:

• 5 minutes to shop
• First come, first serve – no duplicates unless you made extras
  • If an item is “gone,” it’s out of stock
  • No arguing – disputed items go to the “back room” and no one gets them
• Scouts can pair up to combine money for a big purchase

Check Out:

• After time’s up, scouts bring their items to the cashier (leader).
• They add up their total and pay.
• Celebrate successful checkouts. If a scout miscalculated, offer positive support and help them try again if time allows.

Extra Time?

Reset the store and go on another trip. Give the different amounts in small groups. Challenge them to buy something for lunch. Challenge them to get something they would want as a reward. Do as many shopping sprees as you have time for.

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