LauraT7

Ryan - "An adult in my troop has told me they have suffered and it is not their job to make them listen, it is mine. I asked him why he was there then." Hooray for that leader! In a truly boy-lead troop - it IS your job as the SPL to 'lead' the boys. the adults are there to drive you where you need to go, be mentors and advisors to you, provide the credit cards and checkbook signatures when needed - and give your parents peace of mind. From your other posts, though, I know you have the difficult task of dealing with mostly younger boys, many of them ADHD and the rest plain ex

Most of us are probably heading off to camp in the next few weeks, so maybe this is a little late - But does anyone have any tips or suggestions, bright ideas to make camp more fun or go more smoothly for a troop? For example: Our troop has a file box with a file for each boy that contains the print out from Troopmaster showing his advancement record so far, a list & the blue cards for the badges he requested to work on at camp, and any other pertinent info - such as he wants to work on BSA lifegaurd, or if he has special skills to share with the younger boys (some are r

Elvis was sighted at the Statue of Liberty? WOW! did his purple suit have lots of sequins? did you get an autograph????? Are you sure he's not muslim? maybe he's a SPY! ;-)

I think that no matter what limits someone puts on something, the ones who are likely to bend the rules will find a way around even those limits. And if a counsel tries to add additional limits - it could cause as many problems as the limits are intended to address. Our troop used to just wait and let adults volunteer for Merit Badge counseling when they felt moved to do so. But our boys had such a hard time getting hold of merit badge counselors outside of the troop (our district "list" was nonexistant - so outdated that most were no longer active) that we started looking for meri

you can get one in the BSA catalogue if you take any poster to most educational supply stores - the ones teachers use - you can often get them to laminate the poster - then it becomes a wipe off board. Not quite as slick as a whiteboard - but that's good - at least you can make changes without having to re-do the whole poster.

Since Boy Scouts can't play paintball anyway - What does this have to do with Scouting? Am i on the wrong board? I'm confused.....

I had a hard time identifying who was who, also - which is why I ALWAYS wear a nametag - Of course, I'm such an outspoken loudmouth anyway, people seem to never forget me... has it's good points and it's bad points.... And I'm trying to encourage others to wear nametags, too. Not getting very far. At least i make sticky ones up and paste them on people when we have parent nights and recruitment - I think it helps. Communication was a problem - my son missed the first few campouts because it wasn't explained to us that he could attend the camping part of a trip even if he didn't

Wow - alot of things to think about and address - First though - your comment " We have scouts come to camp on meds and they don't list them on the forms." A class II form is good for 3 years. As I am the activity coordinator and keep 'the book' updated (and because we don't want this personal info in the hands of the boys) this IS an adult job. I know on my son's form it does NOT reflect his current medication - as ADD meds can change. (or be diagnosed & added!) He's also changed his allergy meds. Because I am aware of this - rather than get a new form (& a Dr visit) ev

Please do not take offense at the following - BUT - Cheryl - I don't know you or what experience / knowledge you have of ADD / ADHD - but i suspect you, like many - only know what you have read in magazines -Or you wouldn't suggest "The other is to give him his medication later in the day so that it lasts later into the night and hopefully until he is asleep" ADD meds are STIMULANTS - he will NOT sleep with them in his system. (there is only one brand-new medication out that is NOT a stimulant - and it doen't work for many and is VERY expensive) There are so many people who

Hey Dave - how's Harry Potter coming along? we got ours on Sat. too and started reading it - sometimes Jon would get ahead, sometimes I would - some we read aloud ( they are GREAT books for reading aloud - they have great cadence and rythmn)But Sunday night I got too hooked, and stayed up until 3 am to finish it. it was AWESOME! now I'm dying for more..... I just hope she doesn't take another 3 yrs for the next one! laura

Hi all - It was one of my scouts that has the 'black belt' yet has asthma and heart problems severe enough to prevent him from participating in other sports. I don't know what kind of "black belt" this youngster has. I HAVE known him since kindergarten and he is a terrific kid. a GOOD kid. a good SCOUT. I suspect his belt is the Jr kind - as I don't know sqaut about Martial Arts but do know his folks some - and know that this would fit in with their educational philosophy for him. His mom says he has been in karate since before kindergarten- so it would make sense to me, that at

Hi all - some good ideas - i agree that there should be more career exploration areas - and not just in the trades, and professions such as law and medicine - what about real estate? financial / banking/ stock? I DON'T know anything about martial arts - but isn't Judo a martial art? whats the difference? As for BSA not liking punching and kicking - that it's bad - but it's OK to swing a sword at someone? (Fencing is allowed on the 'sports' list) - and I really don't see any difference between punching/kicking/wrestling/ flipping/ pinning/ or poking someone with a sword.....

Swimming is first in our troop - our boys like the water. the ones that have trouble with swimming get first aid or one of the Cit first and take 2 yers for swimming (or more) the Cit and 'paperwork' badges, are all offered at Merit Badge colleges done once or twice a year in our council - and easy way to get them if you apply yourself and do the prerequisites ahead. Perts fitness and pers management are the last - I suspect because of the individuality of them - they are not usually offered in a camp or 'class' setting and MUST really be done without outside structure or a group settin

We have a boy who qualifies for handicap adaptation in our troop, and I was researching what he could do instead of the Biking/Hiking/Swimming badge requirements for EAgle ( another thread on the General board) this boy happens to have a black belt in Karate - but is not able to do strenuous activities because of heart and lung problems. when looking for alternatives, it surprised me to find that there is no "Martial Arts" badge; there's even 'Athletics' (track and field) & 'Sports' (team sports, mostly) and 'Sports' specifically excludes Karate (but includes 'Judo?' & "Wrestli

C.O.P.E. courses are great - but most require boys to be 14 - I think most of your boys are 11 and 12? you can use some of the technics used in such courses, or you can look for something similar elsewhere - for example, a Christian camp we like to use for our younger boys has a similar low ropes course that does not have such an age requirement. In the short run - at meetings and such - you can always do team building relays and such - skill tests - knot tying, or the one where you tie a knot with a HUGE (read FAT) rope and the boys cannot let go of their section - and one has to di

Sorry i missed you, Dave - I was online, too - just not here that long.... maybe we'll catch you next time? Laura

Besides, isn't BSA coverage supplimentary coverage? in other words - BSA covers only to the extent that your personal insurance does NOT cover an injury or illness? On a similar issue - we require that every adult and boy invited to go along with the troop fill out and application and a health form appropriate for the trip. They also must fulfill any requirements - such as a swim test on a float trip. This makes sure that they are prepared for the event and that we have knowledge and permission to treat them should something happen. Cub scouting might be a little different - as s

Besides, isn't BSA coverage supplimentary coverage? in other words - BSA covers only to the extent that your personal insurance does NOT cover an injury or illness? On a similar issue - we require that every adult and boy invited to go along with the troop fill out and application and a health form appropriate for the trip. They also must fulfill any requirements - such as a swim test on a float trip. This makes sure that they are prepared for the event and that we have knowledge and permission to treat them should something happen. Cub scouting might be a little different - as s

I have read the part about 'alternate requirements' being available for First Class - but it is not specific. I can understand why - adjusting the requirements would HAVE to be different for each boy -depending on what exactly handicapped the boy in the first place. As far as the Swimming/ Hiking/ Biking merit badge is concerned for Eagle - I think you can substitute another equally difficult badge with council approval. It's a shame there isn't a Martial Arts Badge - surprising, actually - I would think it was right in keeping with Scouting.... If there were - we could substitute tha

What time of year do all your troops do their annual planning? our troop does it in summer - and actually - I think that's a mistake. the school calendar is out for holidays and teacher inservice days - but the band, choir and sports schedules aren't out until closer to school starting. between vacations, summer camp and activities - alot of members are not available for such a meeting - and it's the LAST thing a boy wants to do on a summer saturday! the boys come up with ideas off the cuff - mostly repeats of previous years and don't come prepared. so they "plan" stu

ps - I know they can take Swimming OR Hiking OR Biking - but they require more stamina than swimming - and he can't heft a pack or do even 5 miles on a bike - he doesn't have the coordination or the strength.

We have a boy in our troop who is a severe asthmatic and has had heart problems as well - lets call him Joe. As an infant, Joe had a few open heart surgeries - I think he is ok now - except that He is small for his age and not athletic. He doesn't have a great deal of stamina from under developed lungs and chest muscles. Joe has worked on many badges requiring scholastic knowledge but he has trouble with manual dexterity - basketry was really tough for him. However - he's persistant and intellegent - having worked thru the Chemistry, American Heritage and Aviation badges and others. He has st

oohh! 2cubdad - that SM has a wicked sense of humor - I LIKE it! LOL! Dancin fox - your method would work, too - only thing is - who is getting punished? the SM that has to get up early to get the boys up early? or the boys? Hmmm - thinking it over - I'm against anything that punishes the adults in having US meet out consequences to the over-active boys. We're just starting to be boy lead and really getting it to work - but I'm certainly going to pass these two ideas on to our SPL. and I will back the 'consequences' he decides to use .... from the comfort of my sleeping ba

Dave - you haven't been camping with us! our Adult patrol motto is "what's for dessert?!" We are always trying to prove to the boys that you can have GREAT meals on campouts! Besides - when the boys start complaining about how long a bike ride / hike is and how hot / tired they are - I can always point out "are you going to be out done by a 40 yr old fat lady?" Stops the complaints in their tracks. ( oh my aching knees!) LOL!

As the parent of an ADHD son - I can tell you that ALOT of the things people teach about dealing with ADHD Don't work. Why? because every ADHD child is different, and even with NON- ADD kids - they ALL have a slightly different approach to learning styles. Plus working with ADD kids take a LOT of consistancy and persistance. it isn't a 'trick' you can do tonite and have it work NOW to mnake a kid settle down and behave - once you find something that reaches a particular kid; you have to do it consistantly night after night and MOST of the time it might work - it's just as likely he'll figu