Brownie Badges

Girl Scout Brownies earn triangle shaped badges, typically edged in brown to match the uniform.

Current Badges, 2011-Present
In 2011, the Girl Scouts of the USA updated all of the Girl Scout badge programs and retired or remade all of the old ones. It is still possible to earn Brownie awards that have been retired, if you have a copy of the original requirements and can find the badges themselves.

Below is a list of the current Brownie badges:

Legacy

 * Bugs
 * Brownie First Aid
 * Snacks
 * Painting
 * Brownie Girl Scout Way
 * Fair Play
 * Celebrating Community

Financial Literacy Badges

 * Money Manager
 * Philanthropist

Cookie Business Badges

 * Meet My Customers
 * Give Back

It's Your World-Change It!

 * Computer Expert
 * My Best Self
 * Dancer
 * Home Scientist
 * My Family Story

It’s Your Planet—Love It!

 * Potter
 * Household Elf
 * My Great Day
 * Senses
 * Hiker

It’s Your Story—Tell It!

 * Letterboxer
 * Inventor
 * Pets
 * Making Games
 * Making Friends

Brownie Try-its, 1999-2011
In 1999, the Try-Its began to be produced with a brown border, rather than the colored borders of the Worlds to Explore era, and were embroidered on ivory fabric. There were fifty-seven Try-Its in the new Try-Its for Brownie Girl Scouts published in 2001. When girls completed any four activities in a Try-It, they could receive the award to wear on their sashes or vests.

Try-Its for Brownie Girl Scouts introduced twelve new Brownie Girl Scout Try-Its and renamed other Try-Its.

A new Try-It called "Wave the Flag" was introduced in 2002.

Below is a list of the retired Brownie Try-Its:


 * Animals
 * Around the World
 * Art to Wear
 * Building Art
 * Careers
 * Caring and Sharing
 * Citizen Near and Far
 * Colors and Shapes
 * Cookies Count
 * Creative Composing
 * Dancercize
 * Earth and Sky
 * Earth is Our Home
 * Eat Right, Stay Healthy (formerly Good Food)
 * Eco-Explorer (formerly Outdoor Fun)
 * Girl Scout Ways
 * Her Story
 * Hobbies
 * Listening to the Past
 * Make It, Eat It (formerly Food Fun)
 * Manners
 * Math Fun
 * Me and My Shadow
 * Movers
 * Making Music (formerly Music)
 * My Body
 * Numbers and Shapes
 * Outdoor Adventurer - retired
 * People of the World
 * Plants
 * Playing Around the World (formerly Play)
 * Point, Click, and Go
 * Puppets, Dolls, and Plays
 * Ready, Set, Go (formerly Outdoor Happenings)
 * Safety
 * Science in Action
 * Science Wonders
 * Senses
 * Sounds of Music
 * Space Explorer
 * Sports and Games
 * Watching Wildlife
 * Water Everywhere
 * Working It Out
 * Our Own Council's
 * All in the Family
 * Brownie Girl Scouts Around the World
 * Brownie Girl Scouts Through the Years
 * Computer Smarts
 * Friends are Fun
 * Healthy Habits
 * Let's Pretend
 * Penny Power
 * People Are Talking
 * Stitch It Together
 * Travel Right
 * Write Away
 * Wave the Flag

Brownie Worlds to Explore Try-Its, 1986-1998
In 1986, a new Brownie Girl Scout handbook was published. Brownie Girl Scout Try-Its became a unique feature of Brownie Girl Scouting. They were noncompetitive recognitions that Brownie Girl Scouts could receive to symbolize participation, not performance, in selected activities.

Each Try-It contained six activities and Brownies had to complete four of the six activities in order to receive a Try-It Patch.

Originally there were fifteen Try-Its in all--three for each of the five worlds. The patches were triangular in shape and embroidered in bright colors on ivory twill, measuring approximately 2" x 1 3/4". Each Try-It utilized one of the five colors of the Worlds to Explore program on its border.

In 1988, the Our Own Council's Try-It, a blank Try-It for council use, was approved. Additional Try-Its were developed in response to direct requests from numerous councils. In 1989, More Brownie Girl Scout Try-Its was published, which featured twenty new Try-Its, four in each world of interest. The new Brownie Girl Scout Handbook published in 1993 introduced six new Try-Its. The former Plants and Animals Try-It was divided into two separate Try-Its, each with a new design. Some Try-Its had name changes. In 1997, a supplementary twenty-eight page booklet, Brownie Girl Scout Try-Its, introduced another five Try-Its.

Below is a list of the retired Worlds to Explore Brownie Girl Scout Try-Its:
 * World of Well-Being
 * Dancercize
 * Food Fun
 * Sports and Games
 * Caring and Sharing (launched 1989)
 * Good Food (launched 1989)
 * Manners (launched 1989)
 * Safety (launched 1989)
 * Hobbies (launched 1993)
 * World of People
 * Girl Scout Ways
 * People of the World
 * Play
 * Careers (released 1989)
 * Her Story (released 1989)
 * It's a Small World ( released 1989, renamed Around the World in 1994)
 * Listening to the Past (released 1989)
 * Citizens Near and Far ( released 1993)
 * World of Today & Tomorrow
 * Movers
 * Numbers and Shapes
 * Science Magic (renamed Science Wonders in 1994)
 * Math Fun (released 1989)
 * My Body (released 1989)
 * Science in Action (released 1989)
 * Space Explorer (released 1989)
 * Senses ( released 1993)
 * World of Art
 * Colors and Shapes
 * Music
 * Puppets, Dolls, and Plays
 * Art to Wear (released 1989)
 * Artful Architecture
 * Creative Composing (released 1989)
 * Me and My Shadow (released 1989)
 * Sounds of Music ( released 1993)
 * World of Outdoors
 * Outdoor Fun
 * Outdoor Happenings
 * Plants and Animals (retired 1992)
 * Our Own Council's ( released 1988)
 * Earth and Sky ( released 1989)
 * Earth is Our Home (released 1989)
 * Outdoor Adventurer - retired ( released 1989)
 * Water Everywhere (released 1989)
 * Animals ( released 1993)
 * Plants ( released 1993)
 * 1997 Additions (As these Try-Its were introduced after the decision had been made to discontinue the Worlds to Explore designations, the color of their borders did not relate to the former colors of the Worlds.)
 * Cookies Count
 * Point, Click, Go
 * Ready, Set, Go
 * Watching Wildlife
 * Working it Out

Brownie Girl Scout Pre-Try-Its
"Before the launch of the current Try-its program of triangular shaped badges, GSUSA researched and studied a variety of council programs of earned badges for Brownies. Little information remains on these pre-Try-its, but they are often found on Brownie sashes and vests."

Brownie Bs, 1977-1986
"A set of three Brownie B patches was introduced in 1977. These official patches, a form of noncompetitive recognition, were worked on by the entire Brownie Girl Scout troop, and each patch represented a year's participation in Brownie Girl Scout activities."

"The patches were wedge-shaped, measuring approximately 1 1/4" at their longest point. Each of the three patches had an embroidered tan else in the center. A yellow Brownie B patch was used for the first year; red, the second year;  and blue for the third year. The Brownie B patches were discontinued in 1986 with the introduction of the Brownie Girl Scout Try-Its."

Other Resources

 * Girl Scouts River Valleys Council has some great ideas too.
 * This website has info sheets for each of the new badges.
 * https://www.girlscouts.org/en/our-program/grade-levels/what-brownies-do.html