World Thinking Day 2025 Activity Guide

World Thinking Day

2025 Activity Guide

Our Story: Reecting the symbolism

and values of our Movement

Activities for Girl Scout Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors.

Cadette, Senior, and Ambassador World Thinking Day 2025 Activity Guide | 2

Here are the four steps to earn your

World Thinking Day award.

1. Explore World Thinking Day.

2. Experience World Thinking Day

with purpose.

3. Investigate this year’s World Thinking

Day theme.

4. Share what you learned and commit to a

better future.

Ready to think big and explore meaningful issues in

your community and beyond? Let’s get started!

The World Association of Girl Guides

and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS) is the largest

voluntary movement dedicated

to empowering girls and young

women in the world.

In Girl Scouts, you are part of a special group that

stretches across the world. On February 22 of each

year, Girl Scouts and Girl Guides from over 150 countries

celebrate World Thinking Day. That’s one big celebration!

World Thinking Day is a way to celebrate with Girl Scouts

and Girl Guides everywhere by doing the same activities

around a shared theme.

“Global sisterhood widens your point of view, makes you

more empathetic to the world around you, and builds

understanding when you realize how much of a bigger world

there is and your role in it.”

— Quote from a Girl Scout

reproduced, and distributed exclusively by GSUSA staff, councils, Girl Scout volunteers, service units, and/or troops solely in connection with Girl Scouting.

Cadette, Senior, and Ambassador World Thinking Day 2025 Activity Guide | 3

STEP 1: Explore

World Thinking Day.

STEP 2: Experience World

Thinking Day with purpose.

Choice 1: Get inspired by WAGGGS Global

Advocacy Champions.

Just like Girl Scouts in the United States complete Take Action projects and

awards, Girl Guides are doing things like raising awareness about diseases

and ghting for access to education for all young people.

For this activity, learn about the latest WAGGGS Global Advocacy

Champions by going online to read some of their stories. Did any spark

something in you? If so, what made it signicant for you? Do any stories

inspire you to think about a project you could do in your own community?

How can we learn from and celebrate our global community of Girl Scouts

and Girl Guides? Have a discussion with your troop and family members

and share answers to these questions.

Choice 2: Share the World Thinking Day story and theme

with younger Girl Scouts.

Read through the story called World Thinking Day History in Four

Parts and add part four about this year’s World Thinking Day theme, then

come up with a way to share the full story with a group of younger Girl

Scouts. You might want to create a skit, video, or booklet about the story.

Choice 3: Create your own World Thinking Day symbol.

The World Trefoil pin is the unifying symbol of WAGGGS, and every part

of its design has meaning. On it are three leaves representing the three

parts of the Girl Scout Promise, with a ame that stands for loving all the

people in the world. Come up with a symbol for the theme of this year’s

World Thinking Day.

World Thinking Day is more than just thinking. It is knowing that you have

the power to make a difference alongside Girl Scouts and Girl Guides around

the world. Create an experience for World Thinking Day that helps you learn

more about the world and your place in it.

The World Trefoil symbol’s

background is blue to

represent the color of the

sky. The outer ring’s gold

band represents sunshine.

The inside gold leaves stand

for the three parts of the Girl

Scout Promise. There are two

gold stars: one is for the Girl

Scout Promise and the other

is for the Girl Scout Law. The

center gold compass needle

is the safeguard between

the Promise and Law. The

gold base underneath the

compass is the ame of

international friendship.

Cadette, Senior, and Ambassador World Thinking Day 2025 Activity Guide | 4

Choice 1: Interview each other.

The Girl Scout Movement is made up of many cultures. Culture is the customs

of a particular group of people—generally we think about culture as tied to a

shared country of origin, nationality, ethnicity, or race. Team up to interview

another Girl Scout and share about your cultures. What are your cultural

traditions? In your culture, what are the common foods, clothing styles, and

music? Ask each other about communication styles, values, and relationship

patterns across different generations. Talk about your family cultures. Family

culture means the values, rules, and traditions that shape a family’s life

and routine. For instance, maybe you gather together with your extended

family every weekend, but someone else might go to a reunion once a year.

Discuss the differences and similarities. Once you have talked about your

own cultures, you can also talk about cultures within the United States. What

differences might exist between the east and west coasts? The Midwest and

the South?

Choice 2: Investigate what’s global in your community.

Plan a eld trip with your troop or with a family member to explore what’s

global in your community. You might discover a parade, fair, exhibit, or

festival celebrating culture. Who is participating in this cultural event? Where

did the culture originate? Ask someone to help you check calendars in your

community center to nd an event with a global connection. Or explore your

neighborhood to nd signs of culture in your community. It might be the food

at a restaurant or the practices used at various places of worship, or books for

your age group in the library that explore various cultures. Draw or make a

list of everything you nd and create a journal about what you learned about

various cultures.

Choice 3: Get to know someone from another culture.

There are many cultural differences among people who grew up in the

United States, and there may be even more between people who grew

up in a country outside of the United States. Let’s learn! Connect with

someone in your community—maybe in your own troop or family—who

grew up outside of the United States. Ask if they’ll speak to your troop

about the culture they were raised in and what it was like coming to a new

country. Think of ideas together and invite one or more of these people to

a meeting where you can ask questions. Make sure to come up with ideas

for questions beforehand. Ask your guest if they can bring something from

their culture to show the group, such as a food or a piece of clothing. Is

there a special dance or song they can teach you from their home country?

Or maybe they can teach you how to say hello or show respect to adults in

their culture.

Cadette, Senior, and Ambassador World Thinking Day 2025 Activity Guide | 5

STEP 3: Investigate this year’s

World Thinking Day theme.

The World Thinking Day 2025 theme is Our Story: Reecting the symbolism and values of our Movement.

In Step 1, you explored World Thinking Day. You might have chosen to learn more about WAGGGS Global Advocacy

Champions or the history of World Thinking Day. If you did, you know that Girl Scouts and Girl Guides everywhere

have a long, rich history of taking action on global issues. They use their voices and speak out! In doing so, they

build the condence to know they can make a real difference. How do we know this for sure? Because we checked!

Research shows that compared to non–Girl Scouts, Girl Scouts are more likely to have condence in themselves and

Body Language

Around the World

Body language can mean

different things, depending

on where you are in the

world. To show respect

when greeting someone, in

Japan you would bow, while

in the United States you

would shake their hand.

Tapping the side of your

nose in England means

something should be kept

a secret. In China,

when you point to your

nose with your index

nger, you are referring

to yourself. Around

the world, to show

appreciation to another

driver, it’s a common

courtesy to raise or

wave your hand.

their abilities.*

Be a part of this proud tradition of advocacy and action. Choose one of the

following activities to nd out how you can build the condence to speak up

for yourself, others, or a cause you care about.

Choice 1: Use your voice and your body language in a fun debate.

It’s important to have the condence to speak up for yourself. Sometimes

doing this can feel a little scary—you might feel unsure of what to say, or

how people will react. But it’s okay—really—to tell others what you want,

what you don’t want, and what you need. After all, they can’t know if you

don’t tell them. Being clear about what you want and need is an essential

communication skill. And guess what? The more you speak up, the easier

it gets. When you’re brave enough to say what you’re thinking, it makes you

feel good about yourself. When you feel good about yourself, you get more

condent about speaking up.

Practice speaking your mind by holding a debate with another Girl Scout.

Choose a debate partner, then pick a topic that interests you both. The topic

can be anything, from something simple (What animal makes the best pet?

Is it better to be hot or cold?) to something more serious (Is social media

mostly good or mostly bad? Should voting be mandatory?). Set a time limit

for discussion. Then it’s ready, set, go! Talk with assurance as you explain

your viewpoint. Listen carefully before responding to the other person’s

view. Think about how you can use body language to show condence. Most

importantly, have fun. You may be nervous at rst, but that’s why you’re

practicing. Speaking up for what you believe makes you a leader!

PROMISE

FAITH

*According to The Girl Scout Impact Study, A Report from

the Girl Scout Research Institute, 2017.

Cadette, Senior, and Ambassador World Thinking Day 2025 Activity Guide | 6

Choice 2: Role-play speaking up for someone else.

More than 20 percent of students ages 12 through 18 report being bullied

at school.** This means it’s possible that one out of every ve kids at

your school is being bullied. Sometimes bullies physically harm their

targets. Other times they just say or write unkind, hurtful things.

Either way, the person being bullied feels awful and often doesn’t

know what to do. They may be afraid to speak out and stop the abuse

because they are worried the bullying may get even worse.

Have you taken action to support someone who is being bullied?

With a Girl Scout partner, discuss and role-play bullying scenarios you

have witnessed or heard about at your school or other places. Maybe

someone is getting teased, or pushed in the cafeteria, or hurt in another

mental or physical way. What are some things you can do or say? What

would be your best action? Find your voice and have the courage and

condence to speak up.

Choice 3: Write a letter to your congressperson about a cause

you care about.

When you speak up for a cause you believe in, you’re taking action.

There are many ways to “speak up”—not all of them involve talking!

You can use your pen, too.

Use your voice by writing a letter to a local congressperson to ask for

their help. First, think about different causes and decide which one you’d

like to address. Do you feel strongly about a cause that affects everyone

in the world, such as the environment and climate change? Or do you

want the congressperson to provide assistance on a local issue, such as

the cleanup of an empty lot or the opening of a community center? Is

social injustice something you would like to see the local government

take steps to improve? In the letter, be as specic as possible about what

you want to change and what makes these changes necessary. Provide

details and facts. Suggest ways the congressperson can get involved,

whether by allocating funds, providing specic government initiatives,

or even vocalizing their own support for the cause.

You can tackle this activity with your troop, if you prefer. Choose a cause

you’re passionate about as a group and do some research to learn more

about it. Write a letter or email and sign it from the whole troop.

When it comes to speaking up, many voices are louder—and often

better—than one!

Want to learn more about building

condence and speaking up for

yourself and others?

Check out the Mental Wellness

patch program.

Finding My Voice

(Girl Scout Cadettes)

With this patch program,

you'll get a chance to learn about:

• Mental health stigma and

how your voice matters

• Helping friends who may

be in trouble

• Being mindful about social media

• Self-care and how to practice it

When you’ve earned this patch,

you’ll know how to speak up to

help yourself and others who may

need some extra support around

mental wellness.

Showing Up

for Me and You

(Girl Scout Seniors

/Ambassadors)

With this patch program,

you'll get a chance to learn about:

• Mental health stigma and why

language matters

• How to build strategies to

navigate challenges

• How to seek help when needed

• How to support others

When you’ve earned this patch, you’ll

know how to help yourself and others

to tackle mental wellness challenges.

**According to the National Center for Education

Statistics, School Year 2016–2017.

Cadette, Senior, and Ambassador World Thinking Day 2025 Activity Guide | 7

STEP 4: Share what you learned

and commit to a better future.

Share what you learned about World Thinking Day.

Did you connect with someone to learn about their

country or culture? Tell your friends about it and

share what you discovered. Did you explore something

interesting about the World Thinking Day theme?

You could share that instead.

Choice 1: Participate in a World Thinking

Day event. You and your troop can plan a Take

Action project based on the issues you learned about.

Or plan an event for friends and family that focuses

on the issue. Have food or music from cultures you

may have learned about. Invite a guest speaker to

talk to your group. Reach out to your troop network

to nd organizations with experience in global issues,

especially one that connects to the theme you learned

about. Find out from your guest speaker how you can

make a difference. What can you do in your home,

community, and the world?

Choice 2: Create a message.

Work with your group to come up with a message

about this year’s theme. Think about creating yers or

posters with the message you want to share at school,

at events, or through social media. Decide if you want

to take a photograph or record a video to share your

message. Be sure to include the information you learned

and one concrete action that people can do to help. If

you decide to share on social media, be sure to talk with

your parents rst and get their permission. Review the

Girl Scout Internet Safety Pledge for more information.

Choice 3: Use design thinking to come up

with solutions and share them.

Design thinking is a human-centered approach to

solving problems. It’s important to make sure that the

solutions we come up with are meeting a need

a community says it has, not what we think it needs.

So, talk to or learn about community members and the

issues they face. Or brainstorm ideas with your troop to

specically help this year’s World Thinking Day theme.

Then make sure to share it with others.

To do this:

● Empathize: First learn about your audience,

which includes the people, places, and

communities impacted by the problem.

● Dene: What are their needs?

● Brainstorm: Come up with as many

creative solutions as possible! All ideas are

encouraged! Check back in with community

members for their input.

● Prototype: Draw or build a representation of

your idea. This only needs to be a rough draft

to help show your idea.

● Test: Share your idea with others and nd

ways to improve it.

When you are done with all four steps, make sure you

celebrate! Working with your global Girl Scout and Girl

Guide community to explore this year’s theme and earn

your World Thinking Day award means you’ve helped

make the world a better place.

The World Thinking Day

Story in Four Parts

Part 1: A Special Day

In 1926, Girl Scouts and Girl Guides from around the world met in the United States and created a special day

where we can all think of one another and express thanks for our community of Girl Scouts and Girl Guides

from around the world. They called it Thinking Day. They chose February 22 because it was the birthday of

both Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of the Boy Scouts and co-founder of Girl Guides (along with his sister

Agnes Baden-Powell), and his wife Olave Baden-Powell, who was the Chief Girl Guide.

Part 2: A Birthday Gift

In 1932, at the 7th World Conference in Buczek, Poland, it was pointed out that since a birthday often involves

presents, it would be a good idea to offer gifts on Thinking Day to support Girl Scouts and Girl Guides around

the world. Olave Baden-Powell wrote a letter asking Girl Scouts and Girl Guides to “Send a penny with their

thoughts” on Thinking Day.

Part 3: World Thinking Day

In 1999, at the 30th World Conference in Dublin, Ireland, Thinking Day changed to World Thinking Day as a

better name to show our connection with Girl Scouts and Girl Guides around the globe.

Part 4: Coming Together

Each year, World Thinking Day focuses on a theme where the whole community of Girl Scouts and Girl Guides

around the globe works together to nd ways to help. This year’s theme is Our Story: Reecting the symbolism

and values of our Movement.

For All Girl Scouts (K–12) | 2025 World Thinking Day Award