Ceremony Description: A closing ceremony where scouts practice the Girl Scout Promise and end with a Friendship Squeeze.
Items Needed:
- Girl Scout Promise written on large paper or whiteboard
- Space large enough for a Friendship Circle
Before the Ceremony:
- Write or display the Girl Scout Promise
- Know how to form the Friendship Circle
- (Optional) Prepare a quiet space for reflection
Formation:
- Scouts gather around the displayed Promise
- Scouts stand close enough to see the words clearly
Ceremony Instructions (Estimated Total Time: 10 min):
- Gather scouts around the displayed Promise. (1 min)
- Leader shows youth how to make the Girl Scout Sign.
- Leader: You make the Girl Scout Sign by holding down the thumb and little finger of your right hand and extending your three middle fingers.
- Ask scouts what the three fingers represent. (1 min)
- Ask if anyone know what the three fingers represent. Ensure they know it symbolize the three parts of the Girl Scout Promise.
- Read the Girl Scout Promise together. (2 min)
- Choose to either read the promise together, or the leader reads one line at a time and the youth repeat it back.
- Form a Friendship Circle. (5 min)
- Leader instructs scouts to join hands.
- Leader: Cross your right arm over your left arm and hold hands with the scout on either side. Once everyone is silent, one scout starts the Friendship Squeeze by squeezing the hand of the scout to their left. Each of you will pass on the squeeze until it travels all the way around the circle.
- (Optional) Use the one foot into the circle method to help track where the squeeze is as it goes around the circle.
- Thank scouts for their participation. (1 min)
- Leader: Thanks for a great gathering. At our next meeting…
- End the circle. (1 min)
- Leader states the troop’s new traditional end of the meeting phrase.
- Leader: “Friendship Circle complete.” or “Good-bye Girl Scouts.”
- (Optional) Spin out. (3 min)
- The scouts unwind the circle carefully. (Reminder: Speed is not a friend when unwinding from a Friendship Circle.)
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Click Here -> To see information References:
Disclaimer: The information published on The Badge Archive is built from the references listed below. These sources demonstrate that our content is grounded in facts and research, not opinion or speculation. Readers may consult them directly when looking for additional material.
- Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. “Meeting : 5 Flowers, 4 Stories, 3 Cheers for Animals! Pt. 1” My.girlscouts.org, Girl Scouts of the U.S.A., https://my.girlscouts.org/content/girlscouts-vtk/en/vtk.html. Accessed 23 Jan. 2026.
- Takahama, Valerie, et al. How to Guide Girl Scout Daisies through 5 Flowers, 4 Stories, 3 Cheers for Animals. Girl Scouts of the U.S.A., 2010, p. 34.
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