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Phones are tools. My experience watching other troops that enforce "no phones" is that scouts hide or lie. Worse, scouts learn that being a leader is about "enforcement", not about setting an example and being-in-front.

One of the best ways to help scouts (and adults) begin to transition to backpacking is to extend the hike in to a frontcountry campsite from the parking lot. The key is to plan and pack a backpack with gear for all trips as though it was a backpacking trip. Park, load up backpacks with gear, lock cars/trailers, and hike 50 yards to the campsite. Cars/trailer are locked until the return. No multiple trips. Next campout, hike 100 yards. It can be the same campsite, just park farther away. Keep adding distance between the cars and campsite. The scouts will have experience planning

@PeterHopkins welcome to scouter.com

What is an activity? In our troop, it is anything other than the scheduled troop / patrol meetings. It has to be in some form of scouting context. It can even be the patrol hanging out in a scout's basement on a Friday night. Is service an activity? Yes. I'd ask it this way --> What is your objective with the requirement? IMHO, it's to promote the positive. We want scouts involved. We absolutely want the scouts involved with service projects. So why wouldn't you let the scout count it as an activity. The opposite would be scouts avoiding service projects because of the ne

This takes me back to boy scout sheath knives and hatchet on belts. We had similar issues back then. Although different and uses differ, my weathered experience tends to lean toward allowing them. The best thing I suggest is educate, enforce, and praise limited use of phones and electronics. I've seen units set aside 15 minutes of call times when parents and scouts were available. We have parents as "separated" and needing the contact as the scout. Phones are not going away, better to fnd a way to work positive into our programs.

And it can be done. I have a colleague whose sole objective is to develop a health literacy program for students in predominately minority schools. It's not just a list of current "best practices", but where to find get sound information and critical reviews. I suggested Son #2 consider a service project with her where he went over basic first aid from the BSHB, and challenge the class to compare it to other sources. He found the concept a little daunting. But it would have been a good fit had he taken it on. It all boils down to how much you, the unit leader, can stand. Boys using device

Yeah, I know what you mean. The more you add to the menu, the more you increase your costs and the more you increase your complexity. Keep It Simple S....

We usually run one backpacking trip a year. But, in the past four year my troop has sent crews to Philmont and MOHAB. As a result of that we have a group of older boys who enjoy backpacking and have logged a lot of trail time doing shakedown hikes for both trips. It is understood that any backpacking trip that the boys schedule for the troop would be designed to allow the younger scouts to attend. The older scouts who are backpacker seem to enjoy teaching the younger scouts how to backpack. If I was in your shoes i would tell the older scouts that if they want to do backpacking without

The wearing of the Explorer Award knot for the Young American Award is mentioned in the 1995 but not the 1996 Insignia Guide. The 1996 Insignia Guide also no longer mentioned that the knot can be worn to represent the Explorer Scout Ranger (1950-1951) and Air Scout Ace (1950-1954) awards after these awards first appeared on the list in 1995. So, the fact that the Young American Award was dropped should not mean that it cannot be represented by the knot. Since the Ranger and Ace knots have not been available from the BSA for many years, should Scouters who earned those highest ranks/awards in t

If a person is not willing to follow the GTSS, then that person should not be a scout leader and should not supervise scouts. Period. As part of becoming a leader, we explicitly sign that we will follow these rules. It's a promise and an expectation. Floats ... What is "unsupported" ? When water is involved, absolutely follow G2SS, Safe Swim Defense and Safety Afloat. Anything less puts scouts in danger and puts your troop and yourself at risk. That means qualified supervision. Backpacking ... GTSS Section 3 Camping starts with an age chart that says for "Wilderness and Back

I hate backpacking on trails where horses are allowed. They chew up the trails so they are really dusty. You get stuck behind them on the trail and you're eating more dust. You get to your destination and finally find the perfect campsite only to find horse manure all over the nice flat area where you want to set up your tents. Worst of all, though, is the amount of gear that people put on those horses that they would never think to bring on their own into the wilderness. At one lake we had a horse group camping nearby with boom boxes and ice chests full of beer. Really took away from the back

My son was getting bored/annoyed with cubs, I knew what was coming in scouts, so we took 2 years off and came back in time for webelos. Worked out fine.

In theory, all of their advancement would be synced with the council if they are using Scoutbook or whatever it is (Can you tell I don't do advancement?) If the Scout has been awarded a rank, then the council would have record of what requirements they completed up to that point and when. It would just be a pain for whatever requirements they had completed on their current rank, but hopefully the Scout or Troop would still have blue card stubs saved, or the counselors. It'd be a pain, but very possible to bounce back from any of those situations. Still, I like being able to look at my ol

Our troop went through several iterations of views on electronics, from absolutely none, to OK to use them in a car on the ride there, to our current policy that phones are a tool, and like all tools need to be used correctly. As with most things, it was the adults who had the hardest time adjusting to the evolution of this practice. There is no one right way to experience the outdoors, and there is certainly no one way to prevent or treat homesickness. I've had kids for whom having contact was a good thing, and some for whom the contact didn't help.

Best source of information on nature, weather, cooking, skits, songs = the "device." "No, no, no" lists do not teach appropriate behavior,. Remember why we are doing this, even if some have forgotten. "A boy carries out suggestions more wholeheartedly when he understands their aim." "Correcting bad habits cannot be done by forbidding or punishment." "Trust should be the basis for all our moral training." "We never fail when we try to do our duty, we always fail when we neglect to do it." B-P

Ooooooof. That’s bad. What happens if the software crashes? If a disgruntled volunteer decides to wipe everyone’s accounts? If the Scout has a disagreement with the adults and the troop won’t give him/her their records? Scouts should ALWAYS record advancement in their book. For one, it teaches that they are responsible for their own advancement, not an adult on a computer.

Last year, as a new ASM, I inherited a prior Troop policy that allowed smart phones at camp. It was a real problem all week. Scouts watching movies of questionable content and language; Scouts huddled around the only available plug to charge their phones. It was equally disruptive for those scouts who didn't have or didn't bring their phones. After camp, and as the new SM, we instituted a new policy which banned phones in troop meetings and on campouts (except for drives of greater than 3 hours, after which they get locked away in the car). Our trips over the past year were much improved

By "leaders" you mean adults? If so, point out that adults have no vote in selecting leaders or selecting program per the Handbook and national policy, and get the PLC to call elections ASAP. (Do not refer to adults as "leaders." Words have power, They lead, but indirectly, and they are "Scouters," "adults," and/or "parents.") Scouts to be allowed to move between patrols. Patrols are to be largely self-selected. A troop is a collection of patrols, not a collection of Scouts. Patrols do not have to be "balanced" or meet some adult standard of neatness. Any kid without a couple of

We dont allow the scouts to have phones in camp, they stay in the car. Before we go to camp the SPl talks about the no phone policy and always mentions one of the reason why is because we don't want first years calling home. So even if the older scouts sneak a phone they know not to share it. I am really good at getting first year scouts to rat out scouits with phones, it only works the first year though

Thank you, Petey091, thee speaks my mind. I was shown/taught a version by my IOLS leader. He would take a old flag or two or three, depending on the size of our class, , cut out the Union, tear the strips apart so each attendee might have a significant piece to hold. We never mentioned the grommets, some flags don't have such. The Unions were handed to IOLS Staff or someone "special" (for whatever reason). At the evening campfire, after the skits and songs, he would speak about his Italian father and his coming to America, his service in WW2, and then invite folks to add their piec

For our pack, and my kids when they were in it, We recommend the blue shirt, but if they want a belt, we tell them to get the cub scout belt bucket (not the rank ones). And i have yet to have a scout in the last 8 years buy the socks. Alot of our dens make custom slides instead using the metal ones. As a pack, in the "bridging up" ceremony, our pack provided them with the next seasons necker and slide. Personally, I like the different colors each year, helps separate the different dens on group outings and pack meetings, but unless you have 50+ kids, its probably not nee

Based on what? Bias? Jealousy?

This is second hand but Many years ago our (20+) our Troop took a multi day horseback camping trip. The first night they forgot to hobble the horses. When they woke up, all the horses were gone and no where in sight. They ended up hiking (quickly) back 15 miles or so with the leaders worried how they were going to tell the owner they lost all of their horses. As the they approached closer to the ranch, they found the owner on the trail who yelled... you forgot to hobble the horses, didn’t you. The leaders admitted it and told the owner they lost all of the horses. After le

keep it simple, imo. No fractional ages. 14 y/o and 12 y/o ok 14 y/o and 11 y/o not.

I am a den leader and here are some of my ideas for you if it helps: Take the boys out to the woods/wilderness in winter or early spring (time when ticks and chiggers are not a problem) and give them a tarp and rope and have them set up a shelter (bring an ax so you can cut wood they may need cut). Review different types of shelters with the cubs before this activity begins. Have two groups do this activity against each other, if the den is large enough. Take the boys out to the woods/wilderness in winter or spring (time when ticks and chiggers are not a problem)

Yes, there is a knot for this. This is the same knot as the Explorer GOLD Award. This knot has a red, white, and blue background with a silver square knot with a silver border. Qualifications: - Have reached the age of 15, but will not be 26 years of age by June 1. - Have achieved exceptional excellence in one or more of the fields of art, athletics, business, community service, education, government, humanities, literature, music, religion, or science. - Have been involved in service in their community, state, or country that adds to the quality of life. - Has maint