Knot Head

One bad apple and all that. Encourage her to move to a new pack where she can set the calendar.

Bad idea for cubs for sure.

Lash a catapult with scouts and they will learn and have fun.

My $.02... no songs and cheers.

Our RT will waste a good 10-15 minutes on songs and cheers.

Avoid announcements that drag on. Send out an email with dates and announcements.

RT should be a time to exchange ideas with adults about the topic mentioned above such as where to camp, retention, campouts that went well and why; bad campouts and why. Fundraising, advertising, how do you encourage boy led. etc.

>>>As a Scoutmaster I was continually frustrated that the same parents who steadfastly refused to wear a uniform - they were registered scouters - a redundant term mind you) complained that the boys were lax in uniforming. Go figure.

I don't sit on EBORs but I'd be in uniform if I did unless I came straight from work in a suit & tie. That's just the way I roll.

I tell the adults in our troop why should we expect the boys to be in uniform if we are not?

This ia a great "teachable moment" for your son.

Our troop awards a point for being in uniform with your book at a meeting. Points can be redeemed for stuff (trinkets) we buy with popcorn money like carabiners, small flashlights, compass & stuff like that. We buy the stuff at Wal Mart or guys bring work stuff like golf towels & the other junk they give away at work. The scribe tracks it and the SPL / ASPL do the inspections. Doesn't take long.

I've been skiing for years with no helmet and wish there were a way around this but for our annual trip we'll rent helmets this year.

We had 24 nights last year and will do 27 this year. That does not include Philmont & National Jamboree. That's about our typical total, in the mid 20's.

Not sure if we've ever had a 100+ guy but I cannot recall any eagle with less than 70 nights. There probably has been one, just don't remember ever seeing that.

Truth be told I did not know a national award for 100 was even available.

Hey - at least you got a good present!

FYI - $59.77 for the MSR WhisperLite Internationale Stove if anyone is looking to get one.

I have no affiliation with Caballa's. Just a gear nut that trolls the bargain cave every week or so.

If the link won;t work google Cabela's and go to the camping section of the bargain cave.

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/item-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat21404-cat602436-cat602517&id=0019816510682a&navCount=0&podId=0019816&parentId=cat602517&masterpathid=&navAction=push&catalogCode=OG&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat601233&hasJS=true

We've had it done a number of ways. During a regular COH, 4 eagles at once (all good friends) solo COH, indoor, outdoor, fancy, low key.

Each eagle decides and then does what suits them.

My favorite was where the eagle gave a great speech weaving funny troop stories with meaningful life lessons.

I own one of the "BIG RAIN FLY (3x4m)"

http://www.mosquitohammock.com/

which I think I paid $40 for but now goes for $50.

I bring use it with my hammock when I camp with the family & also bring it on troop backpacks. We have always lashed it to trees as opposed to using poles.

Big Blue Wal Mart Tarps are fine too. A little cheaper & heavier & take up more space in a backpack.(This message has been edited by knot head)

You can car camp with backpacking gear, but not vice versa unless you have a couple of troop mules.

Now your car camp might be a little more rustic and your menu a little less limited than if you had a trailer along with all that stuff, but it can also make it more of an adventure. Anyway boy led let them make the call if possible. Some guys like car camping and if they do then go that direction.

We have a trailer with all the stuff and gizmos but over the last three years we pull it on fewer campouts each year. 1. No one likes to pull it. 2. The scouts don't like to unload, set up, pull down and reload stuff. The PLC decides (within reason as with all their decisions) if we pull the trailer.

Basically these guys would rather leave the propane tanks, tables, Dutch ovens, camp stoves and giant white pavilion thing behind in favor of BP stoves, mess kits, no lanterns, and a Wal-Mart tarp for a dining fly. We pull the trailer to summer camp, winter camp and the annual family outing and thats about it.

One of the campouts we had last year was one where each patrol made their own camp stove (see link) and also made cook pots out of coffee cans or soup cans. [Watch the safety aspect if you have a two tier stove + pot on top]. We limited the guys to a single coffee stove + pot in the interest of avoiding the emergency room. They really got a kick out of using something they had made. Make sure to remember LNT when you set your stove up and take appropriate safety measures.

(This message has been edited by knot head)

A scout Hut would be cool.

I'd like for the adults in the troop to read the GSS and other materials and quit spouting myths as though they are fact.

We have them run two courses. We offer this twice a year on a Saturday with older scouts setting up the course. Often the older guys are working on the orienteering MB.

One a compass course with distance and bearings.

Two a map course where they have to take measurements of distance and plot a bearing.

We do number one to satisfy ourseves they know how to use a compass and count their steps. We do #2 so they get an intro to the orienteering merit badge.

>>I've even seen units that used performance shirts for their T-shirts.

Personal Management... well... you're gonna have to take that one from our troop treasurer.

Knot Head:

WHY?

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He's a CPA and just a great teacher. The SM has said & I agree that he wants the guys to have the opportunity to have him for a teacher instead of going to a merit badge college. So he won't sign a blue card for PM at a MB college if it's offered.

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EDIT

Why not encourage them to meet someone new, someone they've not encountered before.

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Good question. In our case our treasurer is a guy whose sons have aged out. He does the books as a service and also teaches PM as a service. So the guys don't really get to know him until they take the class from him. They know who he is but since he doesn't camp with us so they don't really know him like the other adults until they do PM. It's usually their last eagle badge. No good reason... it just seems like it is always the last required MB guys start. Maybe they read the requirements and just kick the can down the road. :-)

(This message has been edited by knot head)

Knot Head wrote: "Star & Life know what they need and have to make a plan to go get it." I agree - but shouldn't T-2-1 Scouts also be coached on knowing what they need and making a plan to get where they want to go?

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I was probably a bit inarticulate (not surprising!)

The instructors use Troopmaster to assess who needs what so they can plan and refresh their (the instructors) skills if need be. It is pretty common for one young scout to tell the instructors can we do lashings next week, I need that and another to say No I need first aid, lets do that while a third says no lets do finding directions without a compass next week. The instructors decide (for the most part, sometimes adults give a little advice with the Socratic method) what skills they will teach on campouts or at skill time. Its a good opportunity for the guy to learn how to lead a group where people have competing agendas but the same goal. So I guess the adults are the bus mechanic, the instructors drive the bus with destination input from the younger scouts (the passengers). Young scouts learn to make their case and then accept the instructors decision. The adults dont need to prod the instructor, the young scouts do a pretty good job at that. What the adults will do is replace an instructor who after many chances just won't attend events or refuses to prepare a lesson plan. No free POR.

Reading what I just wrote I had to smile. In reality it doesnt work nearly as seamlessly and smoothly as what I just typed but we try! And we manage to advance.

Star & up are mostly merit badges so it is a little bit of a different situation. T21 a scout is teaching the young scouts. Star & up it is adults who are teaching scouts because primarily what they need are merit badges.

Tangent alert:

I agree with the comments about merit badge mill colleges. On the one hand they are fund raisers for some local troops and our troop will allow scouts to attend (sign the blue cards). Our troop will supply instructors for some badges to help these troops because it helps to fund their program. We have an engineer who does a great class at MB college and an ER nurse who is an excellent first aid counselor. They like to teach and are happy to do so. The stories the nurse tells of knife wounds and gunshot wounds keep the scouts full attention. These MB college troops need the funds, so we dont say no to a scout that is excited about getting a merit badge and wants to attend. Some of the teachers require work be done before class and are excellent teachers. On the other hand some of the teachers are less than excellent and sign off on stuff a little too easy IMHO. So in our troop the advancement chair or one of the MB counselors always reviews the material with the scout when the blue card comes back. Typically there are a couple of open items on the blue card the scout needs to finish up anyway. For camping well discuss what they covered in class as a way to make sure they have it down. I dont worry too much because our camping program is going to allow them to "learn by doing" a long time before they go to class with respect to tents, backpakcs, water filters, types of stoves, first aid and stuff like that. If a guy earns nuclear science or something unusual at an MB college we may not debrief him as well but we try. If it is citizenship in community well talk about what they learned in class and verify service hours. So we do a little QC on summer camp and merit badge cards. We review topics like first aid, environmental science, citizenship, camping, being a good citizen and family member all the time, not just when they are working on a merit badge. I expect most of you do too. And some MBs we just don't okay at MB college. Personal Management... well... you're gonna have to take that one from our troop treasurer.

In our troop with 55 on the roster the instructor(s) print out a report from Troopmaster once evey few weeks or so and pass them out to the T21's who fill in the dates from their books and give to the Troopmaster record keeper (CC member). The instructors use this information to decide what skills to work on at campouts & meetings.

Star & Life know what they need and have to make a plan to go get it.

The data entry is done by Moms that love to help the troop but don't want to camp. Currently we have Moms 3 that do data entry with one as the Troopmaster chief. They seem to enjoy it, I know they take alot of pride in helping to keep us organized and I appreciate all their efforts.(This message has been edited by knot head)

>>Moving a troop from completely adult-led method to boy-led patrol method can be difficult right?

We avoid ths issue by making scouts bring their own tents. We are very clear up front before anyone joins that:

1. Scouts don't sleep with Dad. They sleep with patrol.

2. BYOT - Bring your own tent.

Some scouts use backpacking tents all the time, others use dome tents or BP depending on the activity. We encourage tents no igger than 4 man tents and have some loaners that kind folks have donated is a guy just can't afford a tent.

Last trip a guy had a musty smell because he didn't air his tenet out after a rainly campout. No better teacher than experience for that one.

I love having a bugler again that misses a couple of notes. Adds a little something extra to the campout.

We don't always elect/appoint all positions. Didn't have a bugler for a long time until a new scout came along who plays the trumpet. He got ahold of a bugle somewhere and now we have a bugler. He's pretty good too.

We have a good library of old MB books so we have a librarian that needs to be there & do a good job. Historian does the COH slideshow, press release for each campout & also manages the photo database so he has a pretty big job. The local weekly suburban paper will run a one paragraph story about a campout if you write the story & furnish a digital photo so the historian has a pretty good job.

We only elect 2 instructors & they stay busy. Required to attend each canpout unless they got a really good excuse. Miss 3 of the 6 during their term, they get no credit for POR.

One special spot the SM appoints under the "other" category is troop song/yell leader. This is the guy who gets everyone pumped up, makes new songs, leads old ones and basically creates a good mood. The current Qm also holds this spot and the kid is a hoot.(This message has been edited by knot head)

Happy to all.

I'm off to chill in the backyard. Started smoker a couple hours ago for the turkey. Firepit, turkey, coffee & soon family & friends hanging out.

Then it's the feast and a big nap.

>>> I thought the pocket was for cigarettes? Gee, in our troop iPods are just as forbidden as cigarettes......