education

Girls’ Science Programs

Scouts can work towards earning their badge Monday through Friday after school 3 to 5 p.m. and now Saturdays too, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. during fall and spring seasons. Badge programs are designed for scout groups of 10 to 25.

registration

Download a registration form

Call (847) 835-8239 to register or for more information.

group size:
10 to 25 children
One actively involved chaperone for every five children is required.

Days/Times:
Monday through Friday 3 – 5 p.m. Saturdays 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Fees:
Girls Ages 5-6 and 6-8
$10 per student
Programs run one hour and a half

Girls Ages 8-11
$15 per student
Programs run two hours

Registration Policies

program information

Attire
Dress for the weather. Wear clothes that are comfortable for outdoor and indoor activities, and hands-on, sometimes messy, fun.

Location/parking
Park in Lot 7 and meet in the Children's Learning Center. Bring your confirmation letter with you to receive free parking. Duplicate for additional drivers.

GIRLS AGES 5-6

Young Naturalist

Who lives in the woods? Go on a nature hike to find out! Explore the trees and animals that call the woods home. Make a naturalist book and play an eco-game!

Flower Power

What's a flower for? Discover many different types of flowers, dissect a flower to see how they produce seeds, plant flowers to bring home, and learn to buzz like the bees!

GIRLS AGES 6-8

Aqua Adventurer

Learn where water can be found in addition to lakes, rivers and faucets. Find out about where your drinking water comes from, and what happens to all that water when it rains. Discover what water animals and plants live in the Chicago Botanic Garden lagoon and the Skokie River.
Program satisfies requirements for Brownies Try-It patch, "Water Everywhere"

Below our Feet and Above our Heads

Look up, look down! Learn what lives below our feet and above our heads. Learn about what soil does everyday to help us. Find out more about clouds and the other things you may see in the sky.
Program satisfies requirements for Brownies Try-It patch, "Earth and Sky"

Budding Botanists

Take a closer look at plants. Look at seeds and molds under microscopes, dissect flowers and seeds, set up germination experiments, and take a closer look at leaves.
Program satisfies requirements for Brownies Try-It patch, "Plants"

Horticulturist for a Day

Horticulturists are special scientists. Find out what they do by propagating planting, making a living sculpture to take home, creating seed art, and learning about plant families and invasive species.
Program satisfies requirements for Brownies Junior Merit badge, "Plants and Animals"

Outdoor Explorer

Learn all about ecology through the habitats of the Chicago Botanic Garden. You will learn what is in a “habitat.” Go on a scavenger hunt for living and non-living things. Help the birds in the habitat by taking home your own bird feeder.
Program satisfies requirements for Brownies Try-It patch, "Eco-Explorer"

GIRLS AGES 8-11

Artist for a Day

"Draw" on your experience at the Chicago Botanic Garden to create beautiful art. You will look at botanical art, make you own nature-inspired art and poetry, press flowers to take home, and take a garden tour.

Earth Scientist

Discover what lives in the prairie by being a scientist. Do a study of plants and insects living in the prairie of the Chicago Botanic Garden. Learn about common trees, plants, insects and creatures of Illinois.
Program satisfies requirements for Girl Scout Junior Merit badge, "Earth Connections"

Horticulturist for a Day

Investigating Science

Investigate your own science by doing your own experiments. Set-up and execute experiments, and speak with a female scientist who works at the Chicago Botanic Garden.
Program satisfies requirements for Girl Scout Junior Merit badge, "Science Discovery"

Wildlife Biologist for a Day

See through the eyes of a Wildlife Biologist! Make a scientific drawing of a plant and examine plants through a microscope. Learn how plants and animals adapt to their environments, research natural herbal remedies, and do scientific classification.