英语听力精选进阶版 6236（在线收听）

Girls' Organisation Prepares to Celebrate 100 years 童子军成立100年庆祝活动

They can put up a tent, give first aid and cook on a campfire – these are the Girl Guides, a very British institution that formed a sisterhood across the world before the age of social networking.

There are ten million Girl Guides and Girl Scouts in over 140 countries, according to the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS), and they are preparing to celebrate their 100th anniversary in October. In London, thousands of members will take part in a song and dance event in Trafalgar Square.

The Guides' motto is "be prepared" and it offers teenagers a series of outdoor activities based on physical fitness, survival skills and support for the community.

The first girls to enter the Scouts movement had to fight to get in. The Boy Scouts Association was organised in the early years of the 20th century, when Robert Baden-Powell, a famous army general, tried out his ideas for training boys at a camp.

At the Scouts' first rally, at Crystal Palace Park in 1909, several small groups of girls turned up. They represented hundreds of other girls and insisted that they wanted to be Scouts too.

In an age when skirts were ankle-length and young ladies never ran, the idea of girls being involved in camping, hiking and similar activities received a mixed response. Angry critics denounced girl scouting as a "foolish and pernicious movement", according to the WAGGGS website.

However, Baden-Powell had a scheme for girls in mind and in 1910 he formed the Girl Guides, asking his sister Agnes to look after the new organisation.

A book launched this month said that the guides even had a role in the war effort during World War II. According to How Girl Guides Won the War, girls were earning badges as proficient electricians, mechanics and first-aiders. In many ways the Girl Guiding movement has been a driving force in the fight for women's equality.

Being a Girl Guide can be an unforgettable experience for many girls. As former Girl Guide, Lynne from Newbury explains, "At 54 years of age I am still using the skills I learned as a guide over 40 years ago, from survival techniques to knotting."

Glossary 词汇表

first aid 急救 

sisterhood 姐妹友谊 

social networking 社交 

motto 格言、座右铭 

survival skills 生存能力 

movement 活动 

turned up 出现 

insisted 坚持 

hiking 徒步旅行运动 

mixed response 反应不一 

denounced 公然抨击 

foolish 愚昧的 

pernicious 有害的 

had… in mind 有一个想法 

war effort 战争时期作出的努力 

badges （可以缝在衣服上的）奖章 

proficient 熟练的 

driving force 驱动力 

women's equality 妇女平等 

knotting 打结