LongHaul

Id like to comment from the view point of an Orienteering MBC. One of the hardest things a teacher has to do is get students to unlearn something the student was taught. If you are going to teach the skill please familiarize yourself with the BSA approach. Use a compass with a base plate and a direction of travel arrow (not to be confused with the orienteering arrow). Using a plain round compass, even for experienced scouters, requires a high degree of practice to get the accuracy necessary to be effective. LongHaul

>>Which program better accomplishes the aims of scouting?

Ive chimed in as a SM now let me speak as a new guy in the unit. Ive been registered since the late 50s and have seen a lot of different units and how they operate. Recently Ive joined a very old troop in another council. Ive talked about this and the fact that this new troop still uses the Leadership Core concept and the LC wear green shirts. That is not the only hold over. Its Me says they joined this troop 5 weeks ago. How would you as an Eagle scout from the troop you are now SM for feel if this New Guy pops up and starts telling you all the things you are doing wrong? When we see s

In that thread about the Dad insisting that his sons sleep in a tent with him Lisabob posted some things I think we should look at. She asked what the reaction would be if it had been a mom and not a dad. She said; >>And I'm equally sure that it would be harder for any boy who did that(Sleep in a tent with his mother on a camp out) to be taken seriously as a leader by his peers. >>As a mom and one of rather few women involved with my son's troop, I've been very careful about being perceived as, well, "mothering" my son too much at scout events. >>I seldom camp with t

I'm with Ed here, I don't see the Patrol Method requiring all the boys of a patrol to sleep together. As a SM I side with orennoah, parents are not allowed on troop outings however additional Adult supervision is always welcome. If a leader can't accept that they are leaders for the weekend and not parents then they are not much help in supervising what our troop is trying to develop in the boys. The exception is if an adult is there as a parent for diciplinary reasons or medical issues or whatever. On thing we must remember when consulting publications is to read what is written and not

dScouter15, Exactly my point. Unless every person fills out a application and formally registers as a Venturing Crew member the Crew is what is commonly called a "paper unit". It's something made up by the Council and it is not in keeping with proper proceedures. If the SE and Camp Director are making the rules it's not a Venturing Crew. How can you be covered by insurance if you never join the insured group? Someone fills out a Charter and sends it to Texas without applications to support the charter registrations, "Paper unit". LongHaul

The only way you can be a member of a venturing Crew is to join a Venturing Crew. That requires that an application be filled out and a registration fee paid. You are not automatically part of a Crew just because you are on staff somewhere. If all staff members do indeed register as members of a Crew it then falls to the Officers of that Crew to decide what the Uniform shall be. The fact that milwscout580 relates that there are different Crews for different program areas makes me think that actuall registration is not being done. LongHaul

I really can't see what the problem is. What actual difference does it make where a boy sleeps when we limit the discussion to a POR? I can't perform my duties as PL if I'm 7 tents away? I can't perform my duties as "temporary" SPL if I sleep in a tent with my father? What is the real issue here? LongHaul

I must say that running IOLS for SM/ASM and WDL together, IMO as a SM and former WDL and as a trainer that has run both trainings, is a really BAD idea. Mainly because the trainers want to do things like foil dinners for the SM/ASM group instead of exploring all the alternative cooking methods and styles that the SM/ASM should be bringing back to their units. The IOLS for SM/ASM should be going over all the requirements for Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class and First Class from the view point of teaching these things to 11 year olds. I can teach you to make a fire so that you can make one rea

The hardest for me to live up to would have to be A Scout is Cheerful. I am told the frown lines between my eyes no longer disappear when I laugh. I spend so much time trying to fix the thorns around me that I have stopped appreciating the smell of the roses. The hardest one to explain today is A Scout is Loyal. Trying to explain Loyalty to an organization that excludes gays and those of different religious principles can be a difficult task when balancing it with the other laws. Explaining Loyalty to a country and not a particular administration so that being Loyal to your country can

First off I don't understand the question. Your an admitted Scouter, of course your crazy! It goes with the uniform. Now that we got that cleared up sit down with the beverage of your choice, do this alone and when you have time to really reflect. Why are you a Scouter? If it's to be with your child then move along with your child. If it's because you like working with children then decide where YOU will get the most satisfaction. Will your presence in the troop make that big a difference to your son? Will your being CM take that much away from your son and family? Can you do one job

Just curious, what is the time frame for your training? I've seen Outdoor Webelos Leader Training, which is now Introduction to Outdoor Leaders Training for Webelos Leaders, done as a weekend Friday evening to Sunday Afternoon. I've seen it done as a one day event 8am till 8pm(or later depending on how dark you want it to be for the campfire) and recently I've seen it offered as a 9 to 3 with a break for lunch. As a trainer I'm curious as to how others are delivering this training. LongHaul

Beavah, I've been busy and had fallen behind in my forum reading. I noticed that yeasterday you once again made reference to what is and is not policy. I've asked before and am asking again can you please let the rest of us in on where you got your copy of the "Real BSA Policy" and where we might optain copies. You don't preface your policy statements with IMO so I can only read your post as claiming that you have actual knowledge of BSA Policy the rest of us don't. I really would like to know just what BSA Policy is on many issues so if you could enlighten me as to your source I woul

I started to reply to infoscouter and explain the wording of the Tiger Scout application age requiremetns when a friend and fellow forum member called be and told me to actually read the Youth Application forms I had been passing out. National has reworded the requiremetns for Tiger Cubs to address this issue. They have added "have completed Kintergarden" so now the requirements reads "Must be under the age of 8, have completed Kintergarden or be in the First Grade, or be 7 years old." When Tigers was first introduced we were told specifically that recruiting Kintergarden boys was forbidden

I seem to be the odd man out in this discussion. I dont use my backpacking bag unless I'm backpacking. I have a very nice bag from Sam's Club, cost $30 and has zippers on the sides to convert it from a rectangular bag to a mummy bag. I don't use this feature but for a 4 foot kid being able to compact the bottom 18 inches so he doesn't have to heat it works well. It's rated for 35 degrees and with a fleece liner I do Okpik sub zero campouts no problem. I have a down bag for pack packing. Using the same bag for everything reduces it's life span. The bag looks great and WAS capable of provi

OK Here is something I've run into and have never really gotten a definitive answer from our professional staff. How can I do an efective Spring recruitment for Tigers at all? The joining requirements are that the boy must already be 7 years old or be in the First Grade. Now with all the other ranks the requiremetn is "be x years old or have completed x grade" Boys comming out of Kindergarden are not in First Grade yet and most are not 7 years old. I think Spring Recruitment is a BIG plus because it gives the Pack all summer to get the parents on board so that in September the Den is

david.self, That's why I like to name names but am trying to avoid that in an experiment in creating less hostility among forum members. My reference to doing things with the den was a general statement to address trying to accomodate a single boy, which is often the case. Accompanying a scout troop while said troop makes the rounds of it's woodduck houses is a great event and I would gladly sign off req.#4 after a boy attended such an event. As for Gonzo1's suggestion, the boy could accompany the "other" Webelos Den in his pack, the first year guys. Using the woodduck event as

Hey! Some people collect coins some collect stamps. Some people are into shoes and some into jewelry. You collect hats nice hobby, especially for the youth you serve. LongHaul

As Scoutnut says ask your DE to be sure. We used to have "Mom and Me" "Dad and Lad" Cub Scout events but with so many absent or single parent families, older siblings and relatives are stepping up to provide supervision for the Cub Scout. Me and my Shadow could be a "PC" (not to be confused with Pack Committee) way of naming the event. Could be something totally different thought up by some cub leader that is into Fabulous Unbelievable Nonsense. LongHaul

Actually by the time the boy gets to the point that he is working on his AOL he is supposed to be doing these things with his Den. Req. #5 says "Participate in a Webelos overnight campout or day hike." The qualifier "Webelos should apply to the overnight and the day hike. This does not mean "while a Webelos Scout", it means with your Webelos Den and/or other Webelos Scouts. LongHaul

One problem I've run into with parents that want to be on the Pack Committee and the Troop Committee is that they try to have both function alike. The Pack Committee runs the Pack. It produces the calendar and sets the goals and program. The CM works with the DLs to see that the program is delivered and that the DLs support the Pack meeting program. The Troop Committee is there to support the SM and the PLC. The SM sets the "program" and the PLC produces the calendar and is responsible for the day to day operations. The TC is like a producer on a movie, they see that everyone else has wha

First let me say most Merit Badge Days Ive participated in or have witnessed, when considered as a whole, have been poorly run. They have amounted to just what he who wishes not to be named  was referring to when he said >> We don't want 'em just to get a patch, after all, we want 'em to get personally introduced to something interesting by a genuine mentor.

First let me say most Merit Badge Days Ive participated in or have witnessed, when considered as a whole, have been poorly run. They have amounted to just what he who wishes not to be named  was referring to when he said >> We don't want 'em just to get a patch, after all, we want 'em to get personally introduced to something interesting by a genuine mentor.

david.self, You asked if a 2 night overnighter could be counted as two separate events and if the walking involved with the Klondike Derby could be considered a hike. My reply is a question to you "If you received a 'yes' answer to either of the above questions and awarded the AOL would the scout feel he had earned it or gotten it by default?" What does the scout feel about 2 nights being counted separate or the Klondike being a duel event? We don't want a scout disappointed but we also don't want to validate "getting by". Why didnt this scout camp more than once or take a hike in t

I'd suggest reading #4 again using the following definitions and see if you still think it means the same thing. area=Council event, regional=Regional event, national=National event NONE of these are unit events or troop meetings. Also note subsection c. Parental permission. Because written parental permission can not be obtained on an incident by incident basis those under 18 are not allowed to drive other scouts anywhere while attending my Council summer camp even though it is a Council event. LongHaul(This message has been edited by LongHaul)