Life Skills

Activity Details

Time needed: 30–45 minutes

Materials needed:

• Computer, tablet, or phone with internet access (to look up pictures of the White House)
• Pencils, markers, paint, or modeling clay (you can choose to draw, paint, or make a clay model)
• Paper for painting or drawing, if needed

Setup: 

Do you know what the word “government” means? It’s a big word for something important! When a group of people live together—in a town, city, state, or country—they follow rules. These rules, and the people who make the rules, are called the government. 

Activity:

In this activity, you will start to learn about the president and create a model or drawing of the house that the president and his family live in!

The government of the United States is divided into three parts. They are called the three branches of government—like parts of a tree! One branch is the office of the president. Anyone over the age of 18 can vote for president of the United States every four years. 

There are three big rules about who is allowed to be president of the United States. The president must: 

1. Be born a citizen of the United States 

2. Be at least 35 years old 

3. Have lived in the United States for at least 14 years 

The president can be a man or a woman. It doesn’t matter where in the United States they live, what they look like, or anything else. Have you ever thought that you’d like to be president one day? Or do you know someone who you think might make a great president?

Every president moves into the White House. It is a special house in the capital of the United States, Washington, D.C. They live and work there until a new president is elected. 

Have an adult help you find pictures of the White House. Talk about things that make it unique, including color, shape, and the beautiful columns.

Then, with your family or Girl Scout friends, draw or paint your own picture of it or build it out of modeling clay.

Reflection

Think about what you just did:

1. What else do you want to know about being president? Ask your family to help you learn more about the president’s job.

2. Would you want to be president?

3. How can you share what you’ve learned with other girls?

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 at home during a period of social distancing.

Adapted from Step 3 of the Democracy for Daisies badge. Purchase the badge booklet to complete all requirements and earn the badge. 

Made possible by a generous grant from the Citi Foundation.