Orchard House in Concord Offers Programs for Girl Scouts

DIRECT LINK: http://www.louisamayalcott.org/education.html#scouts

Orchard House, home of author Louisa May Alcott and her family, in Concord offers special programs for all levels of Girl Scout Troops!
By visiting the Orchard House for a special program, girls may complete various requirements for Brownie Try-Its, Junior Badges or Cadette/Senior Interest Patches.
Note: There is a minimum requirement of 10 girls or payment for 10 girls per program.
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A variety of programs at Orchard House introduces learners of all ages to the Alcott family and their world! Participate in the activities enjoyed by the Alcotts over 150 years ago in one of our many School Group offerings. Examine the Alcotts’ contributions to various 19th Century Reform Movements. Experience a 19th Century School Room. Discover why the Alcotts kept daily journals and begin your own "Journey Through Journals."
Below is a summary of the programs offered:
Daisy Program: Hand-in-Hand at Orchard House
This program introduces Daisies to a museum and to the home of the author of Little Women, Louisa May Alcott. Daisies learn about the Alcott family using interactive materials and hands-on activities as they tour Orchard House. Victorian dress-up, felt boards, a story, games and artwork are included in this introductory program.
1 hour program
offered year-round
$9 per girl
Group size limited to 15, inclusive of required chaperones
1 free chaperone per every 4 girls required
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Brownie Girl Scout Programs
* Listening to the Past (Completes all Try-It Requirements)
Meet a member of the Alcott family (portrayed by trained staff) who will talk about life in the mid-1800s and Louisa May Alcott’s childhood. Brownies then tour Orchard House, seeing it as it looked when the Alcotts lived here and hearing how Louisa came up with ideas for her stories. Girls will also play a game, learn a song, draw a picture, and act out a passage from one of the family’s favorite stories.
90-minute program offered year-round
$11 per girl
Group size limited to 15 girls
2 free adult chaperones per 15 girls required

* Puppets, Dolls & Plays (Completes all Try-It Requirements)
Did you know that making puppets and dolls is an art that was a very popular pastime in the Victorian age? Learn about the toys and games of Louisa, Anna, Elizabeth, and May and about the dolls they made. Girls will make their own yarn dolls and take them on a tour of Orchard House! They will also make a puppet and use it to dramatize a story from our "Puppet Theatre."
90-minute program program offered year-round
$11 per girl
Group size limited to 15 girls
2 free adult chaperones per 15 girls required

* Write Away
The Alcotts were a very creative family! Girls will have an opportunity to write in the very room where Louisa wrote her most famous book, Little Women, try their hand at a troop “post office,” play rigamarole, and make “castles in the air,” just like the Alcott girls did when they were growing up.
90-minute program offered year-round
$11 per girl
Group size limited to 15 girls
2 free adult chaperones required
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Junior Girl Scout Programs
* My Heritage (Completes requirements #1 through #9)
Journey back in time to 1870 and discover the rich heritage of the Alcotts as you explore your own! A member of the Alcott family (portrayed by trained staff) will show you through the House, where you will make your own journals (materials provided) and have an opportunity to write in them as you hear entries taken from the real journals of the Alcotts. Listen to favorite family anecdotes, hear about special events of the times, and learn some family sayings while beginning your own "wisdom list." You will also play a 19th Century game or sing a song the Alcotts enjoyed, and see many treasured family heirlooms.
90-minute program offered year-round
$11 per girl
Group size limited to 15 girls
2 free adult chaperones per 15 girls required

* Being My Best (Completes requirements #1 through #7)
Louisa May Alcott has been a wonderful role model ever since Little Women first captured the imaginations of people all over the world. She was concerned then — as we are today — with the issue of girls striving to be themselves in an increasingly complicated world. Visit Orchard House and learn how Louisa and her sisters struggled to overcome their difficulties, met challenges, and capitalized on their talents to become strong, independent women. Through role play, journal writing, creating a "brag bag," and other fun activities, explore your own best assets to increase self-esteem and become the best person you can be!
90-minute program offered year-round
$11 per girl
Group size limited to 15 girls
2 free adult chaperones per 15 girls required

* Write All About It
Louisa May Alcott was a great observer of the world, and she learned to use those observations in her writing. Come write in the very room where she penned many of her famous stories, including her most famous book, Little Women. Sharpen your skills by using events in your everyday life for your stories, and learn what goes into making a good writer!
90-minute program offered year-round
$11 per girl
Group size limited to 15 girls
2 free adult chaperones required
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Theater
Did you know that young Louisa and her sisters performed "theatricals" for their friends and neighbors? Tour Orchard House, where the Alcott girls presented original plays in the Dining Room and Parlor, and then bring a script to life on the stage of The School of Philosophy located on the Orchard House grounds using simple props and costumes. Learn how to interpret a character and participate in group acting exercises and improvisations, ending with the performance of scripted scenes from Louisa's writings!
2 hour program
Offered only May through September
$12 per girl
Group size limited to 15, inclusive of 2 free adult chaperones (required)
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Cadette and Older Scout Programs
ages 12 - 17
Once Upon A Story (Completes requirements for Career Exploration #1 through #5 and Technology #1 through 5)
Explore different writing genres in the home of Louisa May Alcott, one of our foremost American writers. Girls will hear about careers related to writing while trying their hand at poetry, plays, historical fiction, and other forms. They will also learn how Louisa used writing to make the past come alive, and the elements that go into creating a story of their own through writing exercises done in the very same house where Little Women was conceived and written!
2 hour program offered year-round
$12 per girl
Group size limited to 15, inclusive of 2 free adult chaperones (required)

* The Play’s the Thing! (Completes requirements for Skill Builders #2 through #4 and Technology #1)
Come to Orchard House, where the Alcott girls transformed their Dining Room and Parlor into a theatre for visiting friends and neighbors. See where they did their lightning-quick costume changes and then help bring a scene from Little Women to life on the stage of The School of Philosophy located on the Orchard House grounds! Girls will also participate in acting exercises and improvisations, and learn some technical aspects of theatre production.
2 hour program
Offered only May through September
$12 per girl
Group size limited to 15, inclusive of 2 free adult chaperones (required)

Cadette & Senior Troops: Earn Community Service Bars
Seeking a new and different way to earn the Community Service Bar? Consider a project at Orchard House, a non-profit organization which depends on volunteer help for many aspects of its operation. We’ll work with you to create a flexible program to best fit both our needs! We can also provide at least four hours of training in exchange for a minimum of twenty-five hours of volunteer service.