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EagerLeader

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Posts posted by EagerLeader

  1. Thanks everyone! Glad to know I'm not the only one who wonders about stuff like this....

     

    Our pack doesn't have a policy in place about repeat belt loops, maybe we need to make one for next September. I'll bring it up at the next Leader's meeting, see how the rest of the committee feels about it.

     

    EL

  2. Newbie, I did just that at the start of this year to try and head this off... everyone needs to turn in the checklist and I need to see the "show your den" items. She's told me once or twice "oh, he did the work, I didn't want to bother you with filling out another form." I think asking the cub a few questions would help me feel better about the work he has supposedly done.

     

    Lisa'bob, we don't have any other problems. Her older son has been friends with mine for years, and we get along very well. I'm hoping I'm just being oversensitive about this... my kids tell me I have "control issues"! :-)

     

    EL

  3. How can I keep the Advancement Chair from purchasing belt loops for her son without telling the Den Leader (me) first? He was recently awarded 5 belt loops at one Pack Meeting, and they had "show your den" requirements that were never met. This was not the first time this has happened.

     

    I don't want to rock the boat here, but has anyone else had to deal with this in the past?

     

    EL

  4. OK, so I'm just a bit early with this question, since my cubs aren't done with Bears yet, but I have to ask...

     

    In looking through the Webelos handbook (yes, I already have one!) there are several activity pin requirements to earn specific belt loops. If the Cub has already earned them previously, I know they need to repeat the work in order for it to count for Webelos.

     

    So here's my question... how many of you will award a belt loop a second time? And if you don't give the Cub a second loop, how do you recognize his work at a Pack Meeting? I only ask because there are 3 Bears in my den who have already earned over 20 belt loops, and will be repeating them. I don't see the point in awarding them a second time.

     

    EL(This message has been edited by EagerLeader)

  5. I have always had my den meetings on Sunday afternoons, for that very reason! But in my case, it's to accomodate my own kids who play hockey. Sunday presents its own problems... birthday parties, family get-togethers, etc. so there have been more than a few meetings with only 3-4 Bears instead of 12.

     

    I totally agree with ScoutNut... be flexible with them! My older boy chose sports over Scouts and never completed his AoL, because his game/practice schedule conflicted with the den's. Take a poll of the parents, see if Sunday works for most of them. If the kids see you going out of your way to work around them, they'll be more likely to stick around.

     

    EL

  6. Bobanon, just to warn you... you've opened a can of worms here!

    I feel as you do, in that I would like to see the BSA drop the religious requirements. But, as a private institution, they can require almost anything as they see fit.

    That being said, I struggle with the same internal turmoil. I cannot profess an open belief in a higher power, but neither will I discount the possibility without proof. It has made assisting my sons complete their "God" Achievements as Cubs rather difficult.

    There will be some in this forum who will tell you to get out if you can't follow the rules, but the rules regarding agnostics are very vague.

     

    EL

  7. No, it's not that we're weird... it's that most of us can't say "NO" when we are asked to volunteer for anything, so the only real free time we have is in the middle of the night! :-)

     

    I was online last night at 0100 EST, waiting for a load of laundry to finish.

     

    EL

  8. No Eamonn, I hope I didn't offend you! I don't think you come across as being an "old stick-in-the-mud". I would say you come across as being "old school" Scouts, and being an old-school traditionalist isn't a bad thing! I have formed a mental profile of some posters in this forum, you being one of them, and I had you pegged as an "old way or no way" Scouter. I was off-base there wasn't I?

     

    Sometimes people can surprise you :-)

     

    EL

  9. But we also need alternative Scouting associations for those whose "discomfort" is not based on these five core "methods," but with the BSA brand of Scouting.

    Kudu, you hit the nail on the head... and it comes back to the very-popular religious component to Scouting that pushes people away. It's not the uniform, or the community service projects, it's that "higher power" thing.

    EL

  10. As a former Girl Scout myself, and current Cub Scout leader, I'm not sure how I would feel about a co-ed program for the younger kids. Boys and girls learn differently, they play differently, and they interact with each other differently. I think the entire scouting experience would have to be changed to accomodate a girls' interests as well, and that would diminish Lord Baden-Powell's vision. Speaking from only my limited experience, the third-grade boys I see each week don't want to hang out with girls. They don't play with them at recess during school, and they stay away from "girl" activities after school.

    That's not to say that there may be girls out there who have had a bad experience with Girl Scouting and would welcome the challenge of Boy Scouts, but that's a failing of the leadership, not the GSUSA program. In fact, one of my Bear scouts has a twin sister who has asked repeatedly if she can be a Cub Scout, because we do more fun stuff than the Brownies do. That's her leader's fault.

    My brother was a Cub Scout, as well as a Boy Scout for a few years. Not once did I want to be a Boy Scout! I went outdoor camping, attended the Snowflake Jamboree in February, went to summer camp, learned to sail, all that great stuff that the boys do. I just did it with Girl Scouts.

    Frankly, Eamonn, I am surprised you would welcome it. From reading some of your other posts I was sure you'd weigh in on the side of "CHANGE? We can't have that!" ;-)

     

    EL

  11. Lisa,

    Having been a youth soccer coach as well as a den leader, I have had AS kids in both settings. In my experience, AS/ADD kids don't stick with sports because their disorder doesn't tolerate chaos, loud noise, etc. Scouting and other youth groups are non-competitive, build self-esteem, and have the unique advantage of allowing parental interaction which you can't have on a soccer field.

    I have an AS scout in my den who I also coached in soccer. I was glad his parents chose to not pursue competitive teams sports with him, it's way out of his realm to perform under game conditions. Even in the den he can get out of hand when we play a group game, but his parents can step in and help him get back under control. This boy is very intelligent, but his disorder prevents him from doing things most people consider typical "boy" things like baseball and riding a bike without training wheels.

    While I dislike broad generalizations, I think Scouting does attract those kids' parents more so than other activities because of the smaller group size, the focus on individual achievement at your own pace, and the generally quieter nature of the program. I also feel a lot more parents are being more open about so-called "hidden" disabilities and disorders; as noted by ScoutNut, these kids used to be labeld as "weird" or "troublemakers" when they had a genuine developmental problem. Yes, these kids are also in the schools, but within our unit there are 42 registered cubs and 4 known AS boys, a much higher percentage than in my sons' entire third grade.

     

    EL

  12. Oh, I've used those goofy little beads.... boy do they make a mess when you drop them on the floor! You need to cover the design with something and use a hot iron to fuse them, the instructions come with the beads. Definitely need adult supervision if the boys will be doing these!

     

    EL

  13. Welcome to the group!

     

    I am in a similar situation, so I feel your pain. Our Pack's other Bear DL quit, and we recruited 5 new boys so I have one den of 13 (with 2 special needs) boys. I have approached the CM about splitting the group, but all I get is "well, let's see if you can make it work with parents helping you." After 2 den meetings, I am positive this won't work.

     

    FScouter is right, it's the CM and CC's job to do this, but I get the impression that unless I make this happen, it won't. I'm splitting the group myself and informing the CM later. I nearly walked out of my first meeting because I had to break up two arguments and a fistfight nearly erupted. Where were the parents? Sitting and chatting, and they looked up on shock when I announced to the boys that I will not tolerate this behavior and if it happens again there will be no more Scouts for the entire group because I will quit.

     

    Stand your ground and make the split happen yourself if you have to. We both need all the support we can get!

     

    EL

  14. I was a Wolf DL last year in a pack with 2 Wolf dens. When we had our Leaders' Meeting last week the other DL quit, leaving me with 11 returning Bears, and Scout Sign-up Night still to come! The CM hasn't officially told me I'll be handling all these kids, but the ADL for the other den won't take over.

     

    I have a GREAT ADL and Den Chief. There were times last year when both dens met together and the three of us had to handle all those kids. It's a lot harder than the 5 I usually have, but it is doable with a lot of help from the parents. I made it clear that BSA doe NOT stand for BabySitters Club of America, and I expect at least two of them to stay per week. While they may not want to step up and lead a den, they all want to help where they can and they do.

     

    Give the DL all the assistance you can... including a Den Chief! A good Den Chief is worth his weight in gold, from running gathering activities to teaching skills. I couldn't have gotten half the stuff done during a meeting without my DC.

     

    Meanwhile, don't give up on recruiting more leaders, but make sure you have the right person doing the recruiting. Some people are better at it than others... I, for one, am NOT one of those people; that's why I'm a DL and not the CC or CM!

     

    EL

  15. As a parent and a Bear DL, I can honestly tell you that flexibility may be your only hope of retaining the older kids. My older son is a Web II this fall, but he most likely won't be returning to the Pack. His den typically meets on Sunday afternoons, and our Pack meetings are the third Monday evening of the month. He has hockey practice every Monday evening, as well as most every Sunday. Like ScoutNut said, sports is NOT flexible! He will miss most of the program this year, so he won't return. That will leave only 4 boys in his den, if the rest do return. He's not happy about it, but it was his choice to make.

     

    My Bears (with the exception of my own son) are not into anything else, so I should be able to retain all 6 of them this year. But next year, who knows? Other opportunities will come up. I plan on having my first meeting be a parent's meeting, to discuss what days and times are good for everyone so we can always have the most kids attend our meetings. And my own kid will probably have the most absences, with three other sports to compete for his time.

     

    I wish our pack would target that 3rd-4th grade age group, we always get 15-20 new Tigers but almost never get any Webelos.

     

    EL

  16. Thanks BW, that's what I needed! Even if this scout's chosen field of competition isn't an approved BSA activity, at least I can give him a direction to move in.

     

    Wait... my scouts are Bears this fall... I can have them all write a letter to BSA about a new mythical beltloop they would like to see created for Achievement 17e! Such bright ideas so early in the AM...

     

    EL

  17. Good morning to all!

    I had a scout ask me an interesting question recently "Who decides on which activities get to be beltloops and pins? And why isn't there one for karate?"

    I was at a loss I knew the answer to the first part, but not the second. Honestly, I didn't even know what Ultimate was until I looked it up on the Web, and there's a beltloop and pin for it. Personally, I know lots more kids that participate in martial arts than ultimate!

    Does anyone know how to make a recommendation to the BSA on a new Cub Scout beltloop and pin? I'd really like to let this scout know.

    TIA!

    EL

  18. I am also going to be asking for dues from my Bears this fall, but I'm only asking 50 per week. It's not much, but it'll offset the expenses of this years' projects for the Den (soap for carving practice, wood for toolboxes and bird feeders, craft supplies, etc.). Last year we had a party at our last den meeting, so I'll do that again and use any extra funds from the dues to buy treats and trinkets.

     

    Our Pack does charge a separate membership fee which covers handbooks, neckerchiefs and slides, Pinewood Derby kits and all advancement. We have some boys in the Pack that get a LOT of stuff, especially belt loops and pins, but there are others who hardly attend den meetings and get nothing so for the most part it seems to even out.

     

    EL

  19. " An "act of service" has you stumped? "

     

    ScoutNut, I have to apologise for seeming obtuse... :0)

     

    I was unclear as to whether it was an implied religion-based act of service, or whether it was a "Good Turn" which he had no problem thinking up ideas for! Since I do not belong to an organized religion, I wasn't sure if this was something everyone else would know about and I didn't, like confession.

     

    Apparently I was overthinking this. DUH! Thanks for the clarification.

     

     

  20. We did the first of the requirements for 8e, attending church and discussing it. He doesn't feel he can do any of the other choices except to perform an act of service, because he hasn't formed any concrete "religious beliefs" of his own to follow. We did Scouting for Food as a Pack in November; as a family we purchased and donated $100 of new toys for Toys for Tots at Christmastime; and with his school he collected Change for Children to help the American Red Cross after the tsunami disaster. I guess my question should have been, do any of these things qualify as an "act of service" to fulfill 8e?

     

     

  21. We do not have a religious leader, since we do not attend church. Can he fulfill this requirement under my husband's direction? The little he knows of organized religion has been passed on by my husband.

     

     

  22. Scoutndad, I'm not contradicting myself. I never had these religious discussions with the boys to "wiggle" around them last year, my husband did. I did have A discussion with my Webelos about requirement 8 for his rank because he came to me with it. Not once did I tell him that I do not believe in God, and not once did he ask me my personal beliefs.

     

    I only wish my husband had made me aware of this sooner; as an Eagle Scout he should have known himself...

     

     

     

  23. I set the deadline because May is our last Pack Meeting for the school year. It wasn't arbitrary. Our Pack has a cross-over ceremony for all the boys at that time, to move them along to the next level. I was also under the impression that Coucil updates every Scout's file in June to reflect their progression to the next level in Scouting, which should preempt any further work towards their current rank.

     

     

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