Leaderboard

We teach our scouts that leadership is not only about making good decisions, but taking responsibility, reflecting, and accepting the consequences from our bad ones. The scout in the first case, appears to be applying those leadership lessons, while the scout in the second case does not. Was it is his marijuana? And if so, he had it either to smoke or sell? If I gave a SM conference to the first scout, the discussion would be long and focused on what he has learned in scouting about being a man and a father. If I gave a SM conference to the second scout, the discussion be about

I always wash my things thoroughly after outdoor activities (I am not a fan of mud or grime), so my first sash has remained pretty clean and bright through the years. A clean sash may be a sign of a lazy Arrowman, OR it may simply be a sign of a fastidious one.

In my lodge growing up, "A clean sash is a sign of a lazy Arrowman." Kinda got in trouble for saying that when I told an individual who beligerently questioned my muddied, wet appearance at an Ordeal while he was in a spotless uniform and looked like brand new sash. He was the council president.

I've been reading up on this "Family Scouting" stuff. https://i9peu1ikn3a16vg4e45rqi17-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Family-Scouting_Infographic_v10-1.pdf I think it's pretty clear that the primary driving force here is decades of declining membership. But the infographic states that the rationale is that families are so busy that they would prefer a "one stop solution" for Scouting. As the father of a son and daughter, and my wife is the troop leader for her Girl Scout troop and my son is in Cub Scouts, I agree, it would be great to have just one activity to juggle

I'd like to know that answer too. I bet it's the common failure mode with safety procedures where the individuals executing the procedure don't think it applies to them because of their extra skill or capability or position.

Recruiting season is wrapping up this year. We have over 90 Scouts registered, I expect several will drop and we will end up in the mid 80s. (We have some casual scouts and we have made the change to strictly enforce advancement requirements. Our Pack had a long history of handing our ranks and our current leadership has decided to change that... so we expect some to drop.) We currently have 18 girls in our Pack and it varies greatly by age. Our largest pack size in the last 10+ years was 74... so we are definitely up even excluding Lions which is by far our smallest den. We are now p

District Executive. A junior-level paid professional.

No, blanket announcements of "I need a volunteer to . . ." don't work very well. Conversely, putting people on the spot is not my favorite technique either. One has to be a little devious but if you know the adults you should have a good idea of who may or may not be a good candidate for the position you are seeking to fill (or task to be accomplished). It takes some skill but get with that person one-on-one, talk sincerely about the need and how you think that person would be a great asset and nine times out of ten you close the deal - no public shaming required.

My father always asked, "does she like garlic"?

Based on many of the posts I have read by @qwazse, I did not take that to be a serious comment, but as tongue in cheek.

Not only do I have problems with the 6 year old being there, but the mother does not really care a fig about the Patrol Method. Regarding the 6 year old, he is left unsupervised, interferes with the patrol when stuff needs to get done, and when corrected by the PL or APL, yells "NO!" and continues doing stuff until a Scouter corrects him and tells him he needs to get back with his parents. As mentioned the mom does not get the patrol method, despite being talked to about it multiple times. This is the mom who sees no problem with her son leaving the patrol campsite and hanging out with h

That's the age I went on my first week long scout summer camp, with my parents, dad the scout leader, mum running the stores, and looking after me. My memories of it are patchy at best. I know I knocked around with another couple of leader's kids, and the farmer's field we were in had a damp bit that may have been a pond in winter, and a hollow tree in it. I would guess the scouts were all in patrols, as they usually were, and did all their cooking and stuff themselves, as well as coming together for activities and games and so on. I guess it's possible, probably even, that I wandered over to

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/10529134/Girls-really-do-mature-quicker-than-boys-scientists-find.html, with the published study, https://academic.oup.com/cercor/article/25/6/1477/299218?searchresult=1

Don't be so sure. Some of these Scouts come up with some interesting ideas.

^This is the only relevant portion of the requirements for Eagle. Does the scout have an answer to this question? Where has he violated the oath and law that others have not? If you are interpreting this from a Christian perspective, I refer you to James 2:10 "For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. (NIV)" Is your board of review going to hold every scout to keeping the law perfectly? Are Eagles supposed to be sinless? As for the scoutmaster in your second example, I think he was in the wrong and wish the scout would

I agree with sewing as the best strategy. Obviously, that means a fella can't swap out a temporary patch but once a year while taking online YPT (that might be the only spare time someone has) ... so choose your absolute favorite. Mine's been on for nearly 40 years (actually hopped from shirt to shirt once ).

Are you referring to temporary patches as worn on the right pocket? Well, I just sew them on when I want to wear them on my uniform. When I want to switch out the old patch for a new one, I remove the former with a small seam-ripper, then I sew the new one right on the pocket (by hand so that I can still use the pocket). The whole process takes only 10 - 20 minutes depending on size of the patch. So far, none have ever fallen off my shirt. So, my experienced recommendation is: the ol' needle n' thread.

With respect, you’re jumping to conclusions and condemning people when the information available at this point simply doesn’t bear that out. We have no idea about the circumstances, training, supervision or equipment used.

I have to admit that I was completely surprised when my son (an Eagle) who now lives in a location where Scouting is not very visible...announced that #1 grandson was joining the Cubs. So I dragged out my old uniform and stuff and started thinking about how I could help. This boy is a perfect match for Scouts and I'm hoping he'll stick with it. A lot depends on those first experiences and, of course, some kind of instant gratification, lol. He lusts after the status of being allowed to own and use a pocketknife and eager to master the skill and responsibility that comes with it. Game on!

Agree on Family Scouting Sadly many have lost the focus of Scouting in the rush to "Family" scouting. Scouting was NEVER intended or designed to be a "Family" event or activity. The dens were designed to be "patrols" with the Den Leader as the patrol leader. They are supposed to do things as a group WITHOUT Mom and Dad and family being involved. Go off and do stuff that they experience from THEIR perspective. Over time the family camping, the siblings, etc have lessened that and made it more the circus that Cubs is. Now we can see that creeping into Scouts. We

Aye, in both cases some sort of overcoat would have been advisable.

The BSA mission is to prepare them to make ethical choices over their lifetime by instilling the values of the oath and law. This does not mean they will always make the best choices while a scout, or even after. But have they learned from poor choices and their consequences, and have they accepted the values in the oath and law as guiding principles to prepare them to make better choices in the future. They will still falter, as humans will do. The question is whether a poor choice is an anomaly or part of a pattern. As far as the boy in the OPs question, the question has been ans

Gold = Command Blue = Sciences Red = Engineering & Security. Also "first person killed on an away team mission"

Thankfully patrols still have time to do patrol activities without adults. Per the ONLINE G2SS, which according to the print copy IS the most current version, Has this to say: Adult Supervision (Effective October 1, 2018) Two registered adult leaders 21 years of age .... So the new DEN METHOD for SCOUTS is not in effect yet. And for those freaking out about patrols doing their own stuff without adults, a reminder of the Current policy. I found the 2015 G2SS and this is what is says: • Patrol Activities There are instances, such as patrol activities, when the pres

Bring the whole family! (Parents are responsible for the supervision of their children) I was told by someone from council that under the new family scouting guidelines parents are welcome to go on any scout outing they wish, because parents are welcome observers at all meetings and outings as they have always been. I was also told parents are welcome to bring any other family member, because we are now welcoming whole families into scouting. I did see many young girls just hanging out at summer camp with their parents this year, so our summer camp is already being run as a family ca

Don't know how I missed that. Looks like the DEN METHODS is the future of Scouting.

Family scouting is all about the WHOLE FAMILY going on outings and activities together. So that moms and dads can spend more time together with their boys and girls in a scouting setting. -------------- Julie Anderson has been there. Like most parents, she laments not being able to spend enough quality time with her two children, Ian and Samantha. That’s why Anderson is such a fan of Family Scouting, the BSA’s push to welcome all members of the family into our life-changing movement. Do you crave more time with your children and less time bouncing between drop-offs and

I tell my scouts, to get their priorities straight with girlfriend selection: First, is she rich? Second, can she cook? Assuming that scout has followed that imperative, and the gravid young lady can work hard and prepare decent meals, the second question becomes: how is he preparing to tend to his new family? How will he be trustworthy, kind, and thrifty going forward? That would determine to me how seriously he takes scout spirit. If in spite of this moral lapse, these are decent young people who claim they want to do the right thing, I would Ask why they haven't helped me re