Consider how the learning and development experiences your organisation offers relates to each area of personal development. do you see this in action in your organisation? Are some areas more emphasised than others? How can we use the Girl Guide and Girl Scout Method – especially considering the aspect of “my path, my pace”, to support varied and progressive learning opportunities?
What will you see when learners have opportunities to experience and explore the seven dimensions of whole person development?
Leadership development is a part of whole person development, and considering how to integrate leadership practice into learning and development opportunities can be an effective way to support whole person development. The text in bold below is taken directly from the WAGGGS Leadership Model and Leadership Development Framework to demonstrate this connection.
In Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting when developing spiritually, we are...
Exploring our personal beliefs. We reflect on, and discuss, our thoughts, opinions and experiences to shape our evolving understanding of the world.
Searching for our purpose. We engage in reflection and dialogue with people who are different to us to explore different perspectives on life. We also identify what brings us joy and connection, to understand our place in the world.
Curious about the world. We feel part of something bigger than ourselves and are amazed by nature, human achievement and mystery. This motivates us to be kind and do good around us.
In Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting when developing morally, we are...
Exploring what our values are and how we can be true to them. By being open to changing our mind and questioning our prejudice, we develop our own way of thinking and make sure our values evolve with our understanding of the world.
Working out how our values align with our environment. We use resilience and creativity to deal with situations where the values of the world we live in contradict our own. We reflect on inequalities to develop our own vision of an equal world, challenge stereotypes and champion diversity and inclusion.
Making choices rooted in our values. We practice staying true to ourselves and our values even in complex situations, and we develop a sense of confidence in our decisions.
In Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting when developing intellectually, we are...
Seeking the information we need to understand the world around us. We ask questions, engage with multiple ideas and organise our thoughts before making decisions. We bring together different perspectives to draw connections between ideas and to develop nuance in our thinking.
Cultivating curiosity and creativity. We use our imagination to make things more exciting and to consider different solutions to personal, collective or global issues.
Learning to express our ideas. We use analytical and critical thinking to explain complex ideas with simple words, and to develop simple thoughts into deeper reflections.
Taking an active role in our learning. We regularly reflect, welcome feedback from others to grow and recognise mistakes as learning opportunities. We recognise the conditions we need to learn well, enjoy learning and overcome challenges in our learning.
In Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting when developing emotionally, we are...
Learning from our feelings. Feelings are an essential part of how we experience the world around us and guide us in expressing ourselves. We reflect on our feelings to become more aware of ourselves and others.
Treating ourselves kindly. We look at ourselves critically but without judgement. We know, accept and value ourselves and develop our self-esteem.
Developing our emotional intelligence. We learn to express our feelings and needs and develop empathy to recognise and understand those of others.
Resilient in challenging situations. We manage our emotions without suppressing them and are not afraid to ask for help. We find ways to ground ourselves and be flexible in situations we hadn’t anticipated.
In Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting when developing physically, we are...
Learning what our bodies can do. We use our bodies to move, interact and explore the world around us.
Making choices for our health and well-being. We recognise our bodies have limits, so we respect them, keep good hygiene and create positive self-care habits. We also understand our health is influenced by multiple factors and is not always in our control.
On the journey of body confidence. We appreciate our bodies and feel comfortable in them. We know our bodies change in both expected and unexpected ways and we manage how that impacts our sense of self.
Connecting our bodies and our feelings. We build our resilience, emotional strength and confidence through physical and outdoors activity. We recognise that our physical and mental health influence each other.
In Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting when developing socially, we are...
Building meaningful connections. We form friendships with our peers and intergenerational relationships. The people we connect with help us find our sense of belonging in the world. We care about the well-being of others.
Working with others to create spaces where everyone can fully participate. We champion diversity and connect with people who have different perspectives and skills to us. We try to understand their needs and concerns more deeply so we can create brave spaces for all.
Adapting our behaviour to the social context. We consider how our words and actions will be perceived by others. We are attentive to potential conflicts between people around us and try to resolve them before they escalate.
Learning to be active citizens. We know our rights, we stand up for them and we exercise our duties. We are prepared make a difference in society according to our values. In order to create an equal world, we empower any and every girl to practise leadership.
In Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting when developing in relation to our environment, we are...
Exploring and building knowledge of the world around us – our natural and built surroundings. We discover how the environment influences our happiness and well-being and cultivate a sense of wonder.
Growing our awareness of how our surroundings connect to each other and how objects fit together. Helping us visualise and find our way around different places.
Adapting our behaviour to our physical context. We understand how our environment affects our experiences, perceptions and emotions and develop the ability to react when our surroundings impact our well-being.
Discovering how we impact nature and how nature affects us. We have direct experiences with nature, we learn from it and apply that learning to explore how things could work better in our lives and communities.
Learning to respect the environment around us and use it to increase individual and collective happiness and resilience. Consider the ripple effects of our actions on the environment from a local to a global level.
