Fulfills Step 1 of GSUSA Outside the Mirror badge requirements.
Info Needed: Scouts examine how beauty standards are shaped by culture and time. They should be familiar with he concept of beauty icons and how people in different eras were admired for their appearance, style, or cultural influence.
Items Needed:
- Printed Beauty Icon Bios (30–40 total for variety, grouped loosely by era)
- See Beauty Icon Bio page for a list of Bios. It is recommended to find a picture to include on the printed bio.
- Tape or floor markers to place icons on the ground.
- Large space on the ground to place timeline walk.
- (Optional) Era cards or signs labeled “Ancient & Classical,” “Renaissance to 19th Century,” “20th Century Icons”.
- (Optional) String or ribbon to visually connect the timeline.
- (Optional) Reflection slips or clipboards for final discussion prompts.
Instructions (Estimated Total Time: 25–30 min):
- Introduce the activity and organize scouts into small teams (3–5 min).
- Briefly explain that scouts will create a walkable timeline using historical beauty icons.
- Divide scouts into 3 or more small groups, assigning each group a mixed stack of bios.
- Sort and place icons on the timeline floor (10–12 min).
- Each group reads and roughly sorts their bios into chronological order.
- Ancient/Classical
- Renaissance to 19th Century
- 20th Century Icons
- Groups tape or lay bios onto the floor, forming a continuous timeline across the space.
- Encourage spacing that lets scouts walk along and read as they go.
- Each group reads and roughly sorts their bios into chronological order.
- Explore the timeline and observe style shifts (5–7 min).
- Scouts walk through the timeline, reading icons and noticing style changes.
- Ask them to look for shifts in fashion, grooming, makeup, and gender presentation.
- Reflect on what they’ve learned (5–6 min).
- In pairs or small circles, discuss questions such as:
- What surprised you about beauty from different eras?
- Which icon would still be admired today, and why?
- How do fashion and identity connect across time?
- (Optional) Use reflection slips for each scout to write or draw one observation.
- In pairs or small circles, discuss questions such as:
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