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5 Fun Activities to Earn The Junior Outdoor Art Explorer Badge

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Time to read 4 min

If your looking for ideas to make your meeting more fun while discovering the great outdoors and getting creative, you have come to the right place. Using some of these activities below to get outdoors and creating some amazing art masterpieces with your girls while earning the Junior Outdoor Explorer Badge


Below are a few ideas to get you started.

Junior Outdoor Art Explorer Badge Activity Booklet

Use the Junior Outdoor Explorer Badge Activity Booklet which will give you a chance to bring your art and the outdoors together to create something that is helpful to the environment.


You will make some of your greatest art with the inspiration of nature, and design all kinds of different art pieces. You will make a number of creative outdoor themed pieces expressing your self from photography and painting to music and the best part you will have lots of fun doing it. With a step by step activities, you can’t ask for a easier way to run your meeting. Learn more and get yours today!

Nature Art Inspiration

Where do you start with deciding what type of nature creations your troop will make. Well I took some time and created a Pinterest board called Nature Crafts just for you to save you time browsing the web. Just start with this board which is full of all things Nature. Pile of craft ideas you can try with your Girl Scout Troop at a meeting using supplies from nature as main resource.

Make Your Own Walking Stick

girl hiking

To make a walking stick you will need a stick, paint, I would recommend tempera paint and paint brushes.


Then after the girls find a stick they want to use make sure to remove any moss or small branches that maybe sticking out on it. Then grab your paint and paint brushes and have your girls design their walking stick how they want it to look. Then of course let it dry. Then it is time to go out and enjoy a hike with their new walking stick. You can get some inspiration on my Nature Craft Pinterest board.

Photograph Something Multiple Times

This could be done using a camera or a phone. The point of this exercise would be to help show your girls how lighting will affect how something turns out in the picture. The girls could use this as a chance to photograph maybe their favorite tree or waterfall at 5 or 6 different times of the day. Make sure to record time picture was taken. After done print pictures or look through them on device and decide what time of day is the best lighting to take pictures.


Here is a great example of a church being photographed at different times of the day to show you how timing matters. Church experiment

Terrarium Kit In Box

When thinking about nature as being a art piece, many animals are artist in their own way birds build nests, ants build ant hills, etc. There are many ways as humans we can use nature to create art as well. This activity will teach you to use your surroundings to make something new in a thing called a Terrarium. Of course you can have girls go out in nature and gather supplies or you can purchase a kit with everything you need to create art from nature. Here is a good kit to get started with.

Outdoor Skills Bracelet

This idea is coming from one of my favorite Girl Scout resources, Scouting Web. I know this badge is more about the art of outdoors, but you can’t be safe doing art unless you understand some basic outdoor skills. I thought this could be a great addition to this badge. You could create a nice beaded bracelet giving each girl the 8 color beads to put on bracelet while also explaining to them what each color represents. Later on quiz them see if they remember what each color means. They can wear the bracelet with pride and a remind of how to be safe outdoors. Here is the craft instructions.

Learn a new skill each month

If you want your girls to get outdoors, learn new survival skills, and enjoy the other joys that come along with being outdoors the Think Outdoors monthly subscription program will be perfect for your troop. It is a year long program with something new each month to get your girls outdoors exploring nature. I have the year subscription and am excited to share my experience with you each month while I do the program Learn more about the boxes If you don’t want to spend the time planning, our Activity Booklet has step-by-step instructions with activities that don’t require any planning other than gathering supplies and printing booklets.

What do we do after your girls complete the activities?

Well of course give them the Junior Outdoor Art Explorer badge to display proudly on their vest, they earned it! Additionally If you are like many leaders we want to award our girls when they complete something even beyond just the patch. One great way to show achievement is with a certificate. Don’t worry you don’t have to make them, I found a resource that has done all the work for you and all you have to do is print them and customize the certificates with each girl’s name, badge or award earned, date, and troop leader.


Editable certificates perfect for awarding girls after earning a badge.


Related Activities For Multi-level Troops

If you have a multi-level troop you may want to use one of the variations to this program that is geared toward the age of your girls.

Enjoy every minute being a leader and continue to inspire your girls!



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