Get Connected!
We’re just two girls trying to empower young women through STEM-related activities. If you are on a Girl Scout troop and are interested in our Girl Scout Patch days this fall, please fill out our interest form.
If you’re looking to volunteer and get involved contact Jessica (jcassidy2@wisc.edu) or Tessa (tapham2@wisc.edu).
Meet the 2023-24 Girl Scout Co-Chairs!
Mindi Lam
Hi there! My name is Mindi and I’m a junior studying Mechanical Engineering. I’m so excited to be a School Outreach Officer for SWE this year and plan fun events for you and the community. Feel free to reach out to me with anything you need and I can’t wait to meet you at future events! 🙂
Emma Mayhew
I’m Emma Mayhew and I am the (co) School Outreach officer for SWE this year. We will have many events and opportunities this year to work with kids of all ages in the Madison area. Feel free to reach out to me at emmayhew@wisc.edu if you’d like to learn more or get involved!
Fall 2020 Girl Scout Patch Days
Theme: Microbiomes and the Human Body
Activities:
- Origami Lungs – This activity simulated how the lungs inflate. Each girl was given a few pieces of origami paper, and they performed numerous foldings until they could blow up the paper structure. They then were tasked to draw in the structures that account for oxygen transfer in the lungs; the alveoli and bronchi.
- Antibiotic Amazement – Our antibiotic activity simulated how microbes are targeted and destroyed in the human body. Each girl stepped into the “lab” and recieved a petri dish, food coloring, and oil to simulate the bacterial culture. They then used their antibiotic (soapy water) to burst the bacterial cells. The girls formed hypotheses on how many drops of soap would be required to burst the cell. They collected data and then reflected on their hypotheses. This taught the girls not only how antibiotics worked, but also about the scientific method and how it applies to experiments.
- Digestion Scavenger Hunt – The third activity was a system scavenger hunt. This activity had the girls find each organ of the digestive system and put it in order of the way the food traveled through their body. After each organ was found, the processes that occur to their food in each of the organs were explained.
- Bone Building – The scouts built a spine out of pipe cleaners and straw pieces. The straw pieces represented the vertebrae and the cartilage in between the vertebrae. With their spines built, each group modeled different spine defects that could occur and presented the scenarios that could have lead to that defect.
- Build-A-Brace – The girls were split up into teams and given a client card and a budget. Each client had a different injury that required a customized brace. The girls designed a brace, received approval from their “client”, and went to the market to buy supplies to build their brace. The activity had standards that changed during the design process as some materials were deemed no longer safe or other materials were added to the market. This helped teach the girls about design changes that would occur during a real project where situations might not always be ideal.
