Advancement terms

[Katydid]

I just took over as our service councils Activities Coordinator and I wanted to know what the difference between bridging and flying up is. I remember my sister many many years ago had a flying up ceremony. They used a big parachute and dolls dressed like all the girls and threw them in to the air. Then they sang a song about flying up. It must have been a good ceremony I remember it 20 years later.

 

I have been asked to plan a bridging ceremony. What is the difference?

[scoutldr]

In GS, it's probably the same thing. In Boy Scouts, a "bridging ceremony" means "crossing the bridge" from Cubs to Boy Scouts. Usually a small wooden bridge is built and the cubs leave their den on one side of the bridge and cross over to meet their new Troop on the other side, where they receive their new neckerchief and shoulder loops. There are many scripts available for this in the literature or on Google. It can be very symbolic and impressive if done right. If you need a bridge, contact some of the neighboring Packs and they can probably lend you one until you get one built.

[AnneinMpls]

This is always an area of confusion

"Flying up" refers only specifically to moving from Brownies to the next level (which is currently called Juniors - used to be called Intermediates a long time ago).

It is called "flying up" because it is when Brownies receive their Brownie Wings.

Brownie Wings are not an earned award. It is an old tradition that everybody objected to being dropped

More recently, bridging awards have been instituted in which girls complete a series of activities that prepare them for the next program level. So a bridging ceremony symbolically celebrates both the movement from one program level to the next, *and* the earned awards if any.

It is important to remember that not every girl will necessarily earn the bridging award but their continuing on to the next level is still celebrated.

It sounds like you are planning this ceremony for your entire Service Unit, which would generally mean several different troops of all different program levels. So there may be Daisies bridging to Brownies, Brownies bridging *and flying up* to Juniors, Juniors bridging to *whatever they're calling it where you are*. Currently because of the S2B debacle, the official program level is now called Girl Scouts 11-17. There used to be two separate program levels, Cadettes (jr high) and Seniors (high school age). The bridging award for Cadettes moving up to Seniors is still available as far as I know, so that might be part of the bridging ceremony you will plan, also.

Hope this helps!!!

Anne in Mpls

 

[ScoutNut]

*whatever they're calling it where you are*

 

ROFLMBO !!

 

Pretty dang silly isn't it!

 

B

[AnneinMpls]

Hey while I'm at it, I should let folks know that the ceremony for girls moving up from Juniors is no longer called bridging - it's called jumping the shark. You can plan your own jumping the shark ceremony: just scatter toy sharks across the area where you would used to have placed the small wooden bridge. Waterskis are optional.

(Since I've resigned as a coucil trainer, I can be as tongue-in-cheek as I wanna be now)

Anne in Mpls