A few weeks ago, every Brownie in our Unit left with a new toy. Some were wearing theirs around their waists, some on their heads. One was pulling hers behind her with a piece of wool like she was walking a dog. Another was sitting in hers, paddling like she was in a canoe. Parents looked confused. Then smiled. Then laughed.

“Why are you sitting in a box?” one mom asked.

“It’s not a box!” her daughter replied.

“Why are you wearing that box?” a dad chuckled.

“It’s not a box!” another Brownie insisted.

The murmur began spreading through the crowd of parents,
“Then what is it, if it is not a box?”

If your Unit is anything like ours, after a night of selling cookies you are left with zip lock bags full of change, crumpled maps and a pile of empty cookie cases. What can you do with all those boxes?

The girls in our Unit will tell you the first thing you need to know: those are NOT boxes (or cases either).

What are they then? They are Not -A-Boxes! And what is a Not-A-Box?

A Not-A-Box is a canoe. It is a brand new puppy. It is a robot, a steam train, a tree, a cave. A Not-A -Box is anything your girls can imagine. Every Not-A-Box starts out as your typical cardboard box, but once your girls and their imaginations get a hold of those boxes, they can turn into anything!

Our Not-A-Box meeting was inspired by that big pile of cookie cases and a children’s book by the same name, “Not A Box” by Antoinette Portis. “Not A Box,” is the story of a young rabbit who uses the power of imagination to turn a cardboard box into the best toy yet. It is a story that celebrates creativity  and, well, thinking outside of the box.

Here’s what you need for your own Not-A-Box meeting:

• enough cardboard boxes (I mean Not-A-Boxes) for each girl to have one
• “Not A Box”  by Antoinette Portis
• markers,and craft supplies to decorate the Not-A-Boxes
• imagination

At our meeting, by the time we had finished reading Antoinette Portis’ “Not A Box,” our girls had figured out what the pile of cookie cases was for. They each scrambled to get their own Not-A-Box and were delighted to spend the rest of the meeting creating, playing and most importantly, imagining.

Our girls are full of energy and potential. Watching them turn old cookie cases into mountains, air planes, treasure chests and elephants reminded me of that. Find some cardboard boxes. Talk to your girls about the importance of creativity, of innovation. Then watch their imaginations run wild.

Guest blogger Melissa Moor

By guest blogger Melissa. Melissa is a Queen’s University student and a Guider with the  5^th Ottawa Brownies, 17^th Kingston Guides, 17^th Kingston Pathfinders. Melissa has also written previous posts for Girl Guides of Canada’s blog: One Plus One Equals Brownie Math,  The World Girls Want for the(ir) Future, Young Women’s World Forum 2011: Wrap-up from Switzerland, and was one of our reviewers for two books from our adult book club: Persuasion, and Everything We Ever Wanted.

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