Girl Scout Cookies: Old favorite, learning opportunity, or clever scam?

For me, Girl Scout Cookies are an old favorite, and though most people don't know it, they are also intended to be a learning opportunity for the Girl Scouts. No, they're not a clever scam, although some people would have you believe that they are. It's a shame that the misinformation promoted by those people might cause some to not buy Girl Scout Cookies.

The boxes of cookies are meant to be sold by the Girl Scouts themselves, and not by their parents or troop leaders, and they are not to be sold on the internet. The cookie drive is not just a fundraiser for the non-profit organization. It's also meant to be a chance for the girls to try their hand at creating goals, making a plan to sell, handling money, using math skills, and a number of other educational goals.

Some criticize the organization, however, because of the perception that the Girl Scout troops receive very little money from the sales of the cookies. That's just not true. Geographic areas work together to set the prices of their boxes of cookies (usually between $3.50 and $4.00) and to decide how to divide the money.