STEM

Activity Details

Time needed: 30–40 minutes

Materials needed:

• Large brown paper bag
• Safety scissors
• Markers
• Paper
• Pencil

Setup:

Technology includes computers, smartphones, and tablets. It can make life easier. They can also make it fun. You can check the weather. You can play a video game. You can search for and watch cat videos online.

Technology also connects people from all around the world. A person in India can send a photo to someone in Mexico. Someone in Texas can post a video for everyone to see!

When someone walks, their feet make tracks in the mud, sand, or snow. Even if you can’t see it, what you do online can leave a track, too. Each track is information about you. It gets saved in the digital world. This is called your digital footprint.

Just like detectives, others can learn about you from your digital footprint. They might learn what games you like to play. They might learn who your friends are.

Activity:

First, explore the differences between public and private information. 

• Public information is okay to share with people you know and trust. It doesn’t give clues about who or where you are. You can share your favorite color with a friend. You can share a song with your cousin.

• Private information is not okay to share with anyone online. It could help other people figure out who you are. It could also tell them where you are. It includes information like your full name, address, password, email, or phone number.

If you aren’t sure if something is okay to share, ask your parent, teacher, or another adult who you know and trust.

Next, design a vest for the digital world! Girl Scouts earn badges. They get patches for events, too. Each badge has information about being a Girl Scout! All of these go on the vest or sash. It’s like your Brownie footprint. If you have a vest or sash, what does each patch stand for? What did you do to earn each badge? What would be on your vest in the digital world? 

Then, make a vest from a paper bag. Ask an adult to help you. Lay the bag flat. Cut a hole for your neck from the bottom of the bag. Then cut up the middle of the front of the bag. Cut arm holes on both sides. If there’s anything printed on the bag, turn the vest inside out. 

Next, create your badges. What is public and private information about you? Choose five pieces of public information that are okay to share online with people you trust. You might love animals, nature, video games, painting, and cooking. These will be your badges! Sketch your ideas on paper first. Then draw them on the front of your vest. Don’t draw any private information—this information is not okay to share online! 

When you’ve finished, share your vest with a parent, sibling, or friend. Tell them what your badges are and why each is public information. Remember, just like we use the crosswalk or stop at red lights, there are also rules to keep you safe online. They protect you, your information, and your technology.

Here are some ways to stay safe online:

• Check with an adult. Ask before you go online. Ask before going to a website, playing a video game, or using an app. Only use kid-safe apps and websites.

• Don’t share private information. Only share public information with people you know and trust. Don’t share photos of yourself or others with strangers.

• Don’t talk to strangers. Don’t text, message, video chat, or email with people you don’t know. Tell an adult if anyone you don’t know tries to contact you online.

Download the Badge Requirements.

Troop Leaders:  The instructions for all badge steps are available free of charge in your Girl Scout Volunteer Toolkit.

Girl Scouts at Home activities have been adapted from existing Girl Scout programming and optimized for use during virtual troop meetings or for Girl Scouts at Home.

Adapted from Step 2 and Step 5 of the Brownie Digital Leadership badge. Purchase the official Badge Booklet to complete all requirements and earn the badge. 

Made possible by a generous grant from Instagram.