Cadette/Senior Girl Scout Requirements “Girl Scouts Fun With Money Patch”


Cadette/Senior Girl Scout Requirements “Girl Scouts Fun With Money Patch”

Girl Scout “Fun with Money” Patch for Cadette and Senior Scouts (PDF)

*Complete 7 of the following 12 activities, including numbers 1 and 5.

  1. *What do you think our money should look like? Design a new $1 coin. The design must look clear when it is the size of a coin, so do not make it cluttered. You must include the following inscriptions:
  1. Obverse (Front, or “Heads” Side)
    The year
    LIBERTY
    IN GOD WE TRUST
  1. Reverse (Back, or “Tails” Side)
    UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
    ONE DOLLAR
  1. Choose one of the following ideas to debate. Write down the pros and cons and discuss them with your family and/or troop:
  1. We should do away with pennies.
  1. We should have a $1 coin, but not a $1 bill.
  1. How are bills protected from counterfeiting? Find out why $20 bills generally are produced by counterfeiters. How can counterfeit bills be detected?
  1. Choose two countries you would like to visit.
  1. What type of money is used in each country?
  1. Photocopy and/or draw a picture of the coins or paper money you would use on your visit.
  1. How is it similar to U.S. currency? How is it different?
  1. Write a brief history of each country.
  1. *Tour the American Numismatic Association (ANA) Money Museum to explore the world of money and what “numismatics” means. Also, use the ANA Library to learn about different areas of numismatics that might interest you.


If you are unable to visit the ANA Money Museum or Library in person, visit the ANA website at www.money.org and write a report to share with your troop and/or family.

  1. Have you ever thought about collecting money as a hobby? Attend a coin club meeting and do one of the following:
  1. Give a two-minute talk on “numismatics.” Describe what it means to you and mention some of your personal interests.
  1. Write a one-page essay about what you learned at the coin club meeting and present it to your family and/or troop.
  1. Who is pictured on the current $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100 bills? Write a brief biography of each person and share what you’ve learned with your family and/or troop.
  1. What do the symbols and numbers on a dollar bill mean?
  1. Collect all the state quarters from any one year. How many different state quarters were issued each year? Display your set of coins and share some interesting facts about each state with your family and/or troop.
  1. What is the future outlook for money? Will coins and bills become obsolete? What role does the computer play? Express your thoughts by drawing or painting, by leading a discussion, or by a presentation to your family and/or troop.
  1. Share something you learned about numismatics by creating an exhibit for display at a public library, local bank, ANA Money Museum, or a Girl Scout event. This could include a state quarter collection and history, the Lewis and Clark/Westward Expansion nickels and history, U.S. paper money, or world coins and paper money. Make it fun and educational.
  1. Learn more by doing one or more of the following activities:
  1. Go to a coin show.
  2. Attend a coin club meeting.
  3. Talk with a coin collector.
  4. Visit a coin dealer.
  5. Visit a U.S. Mint facility.

Supporting Material for Leaders includes addresses, phone numbers and websites.

Cadette/Senior Girl Scouts

  1. *Let Scouts be creative with this activity. Encourage their imagination! Have them draw or sketch one (or more) ideas on large circles cut from poster board, paper or foam board. Then have them share their ideas on how to create their coins.
  1. Put some thought into these debates. Here are a few ideas to get started:
  1. We should do away with pennies.
  • Pro:
    Pennies have little value.
    You could round off prices.
    Easier for bookkeeping.
  • Con:
    Pennies are needed to compute sales tax.
    Rounding off prices will make consumers pay more.
  1. We should have a $1 coin but not a $1 bill.
  • Pro:
    Coins last longer than bills.
    Other countries have replaced their bills of equal value.
    Coins are easier for banks and businesses to count.
  • Con:
    $1 coins have not been popular.
    Bills are easier to carry around.
    Bills are cheaper to produce.
    It takes too many coins to use vending machines, video games, laundromats and pay phones.
  1. Visit http://www.newmoney.gov/newmoney/default.aspx. The new Series 2004 $20 bill has added security features:  New Money $20 Training Poster (PDF)
  1. You can find many pictures of currency from other countries on the Internet. The American Numismatic Association Library also has a wealth of information and resources.
  1. *Resources include the Internet, encyclopedias, the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing (www.moneyfactory.com), and the ANA Museum and Library.

American Numismatic Association (ANA) Money Museum and Library
818 North Cascade Avenue
Colorado Springs, CO 80903
Phone: (719)632-2646 or toll-free (800)367-9723
Website: www.money.org
Email: ana@money.org or education@money.org

  1. Contact the ANA for information about coin clubs in your area, and meeting times and directions. Girl Scouts must be accompanied by a responsible adult. Follow SAFETY WISE requirements.
  1. Resources include the Internet, encyclopedias, and the ANA Museum and Library, and the U.S.Bureau of Engraving and Printing website, www.moneyfactory.com
  1. Diagram of dollar bill (PDF)
  1. Starting in 1999, the U.S. Mint issued five quarters each year to honor each of the 50 states in the order they ratified the Constitution or joined the Union. You can find many of these state quarters in your pocket change. Make the project a treasure hunt.
  1. Find more resources at the ANA Money Museum and Library, and the Internet.The U.S. Mint’s website has a special section on state quarters. 

Go to  www.usmint.gov/mint_programs/50sq_program/.

  1. Again, let the girls be creative! Encourage imagination! There are endless possibilities for the future of money. Talk about credit and debit cards, automatic transfers, checks and other forms of exchange.
  1. Have Scouts contact their local bank, library, Girl Scout Council or the ANA Museum about a place and time for display. Girls can work individually or as a troop to assemble a display of numismatic items (coins, paper money, tokens, checks, world coins or paper money, etc.) and the history behind them. What a great way to show what you have learned!
  1. Contact the ANA for information about upcoming coin shows.
  1. You might invite a coin collector to come to your troop meeting and talk about his/her hobby.
  1. You can find numerous coin dealers in the yellow pages of the phone book or contact the ANA.
  1. Mint tours must be arranged in advance. See the U.S. Mint website: www.usmint.gov.
    Denver Mint, 320 W. Colfax Ave. (at Delaware),
    phone 303-405-4759
    Philadelphia Mint, 151 N. Independence Mall East,
    phone 215-408-0112
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