AvidSM

My Mom taught me how to sew. I just wondering how many of the scouts mom's know how. You can't expect the boy to sew his own patches on right if he was never taught. If Mom's were allowed to be scouts we'd have great meals on campouts!

Since the uniform is one of the methods of scouting, every scouter, in a way, is a member of the UP. If you are able to point out improper uniforming in a polite and constructive way, I say there is nothing wrong with it. I agree that you should not say anything to a scout outside of your unit. That's the job of their leaders, not yours. What I won't defend are the people that insist on the full and proper uniform for Scoutmaster's conferences or BOR's. It is a big challenge for some boys to show up in full uniform. Some Mom's don't sew or don't have the time. And they grow out of

I will admit that you should have the experience and knowledge to know when a rule applies and when it doesn't. Blindly appling a rule improperly for the sake of following the rules is "rulesmongering". But for those who don't have the knowlegde if a rule applies or not, and apply it anyway to err on the side of caution, I say they are doing nothing wrong. And, as for dumb people ingoring the wrong rules, I think that is the greatest risk to scouting. Only because nobody sees themselves as being dumb.

The crossing sign says, "Do not walk". You look both ways, see no cars coming, and cross the street anyway. You saw no risk, but broke the "do not walk" rule. Now you are at the same street, but in uniform with a group of scouts. The sign says, "Do not walk". You look both ways and see no traffic. Does your group cross? The situation changes because it's not just you anymore. You are responsible for everyone in the group (plus, you set a bad example by not following the crossing sign). You might make it across in time, but what about your slowest scout? There are too many u

To set the right example, you must do it %100. Anything less than that and you have failed. And, never use the F word - one of the most overused in a cursers vocabulary. I always say, "cursing shows your ingnorance".

I agree with both of fotoscout's posts! For some just joined boy scouts not used to camping, sharing a tent with their parent would help them get used to it. But after the first few times, I would strongly discourage it, for reasons of peer bonding and learning independency, as well stated in previous posts. I have one second year scout who still tents with his Dad. I also have a pair of scouts who tent with their patrol, but constantly go back and forth to their dad with every little question or need. I do what I can to discourage it, but some Dad's don't seem to get it.

I thinks Scoutingagain's last post rings true. Advancement: - is something a boy has to want to do - might need to be prodded along a little - (work) must be done by the scout I have seen some parents being very competitive with their child's achievements: getting tutors when their grades fall, doing their science fair project for them, enrolling them in sports summer camps and traveling leages. Having their son advance as a scout is just another one of those thing for them to push. I really don't know what to say to these people. To me, scouting is not a competiti

My story is the same as Eamonn's - all the people on my troop's committee are my friends. I have spent many nights camping with most of them. When there is a position that needs to be filled, we talk amongst ourselves and come up with someone we like. Usually this is an active parent who hasn't been asked to do anything yet. The one other position I would add to John-in-KC's list is Activity Chair. This is someone who makes the phone calls/reservations and proccesses the tour permits. Having someone dedication to doing this is a big help for me as Scoutmaster. Normally I get the re

I like Anne's option also! Campcrafter - I joined scouting for my son also. But now he's aged out and I'm still in it. So, you can be in it for more than just your son. And, it appears that you are keeping a objective point of view. So try to have fun, and as Anne suggested, it's just a game!

Campcrafter, Here are some suggestions I have for your situation: First, you can find another Troop that is more "boy led". This may not give your son the sturcture he needs because boy led meeting can be equally chaotic. It will also take you and your son away from your church and his friends. Perhaps you can convince some of the other parents to switch troops with you? Second, you can try to talk to the current leadership and get them to change their ways. Based on you posting, you are giving this option a try. I wish you the best of luck in this, but I would not expect

Welcome!

Great minds must think alike! I got pizza for the boys afterwards too! I agree with most of the posts so far in that you have to bring in some of the old course and mix it in with the new. I was just as suprised by the lightness of the matrial in the new training packet. It took a lot of work to take that rough outline and turn it into a course. Why did National issue such a sketchy outline? I would have more confidence in teaching the course if I had more to go with. And about the vision thing. It's simply a picture in your mind as to the way things should be in your Tro

You would think that if there was one good method for doing things the word would get around in forums like this one. You would think that National would pick up on this one good method for running a troop and share it with everyone - assuming National has the most experienced and gifted leaders. You would think that would avoid having leaders trying out new ways of doing things, at the expense of the boys - notice I didn't say "experiment". The positions of Troop Guide and ASM for new-scouts is mentioned several times in the Scoutmaster's Handbook. Even though leaders are g

Regarding New Scout Patrols, Page 20 of the Scoutmaster's handbook says, "Many troops have a new-Scout patrol for 11-year-old boys who are just joining." -Why should a troops have this? It continues, "The new Scouts function together as a patrol during their first year in the troop, working towards their goal of completing the requirments for the First Class rank." -Then the handbook contridicts itself in saying, "Some troops phase their new Scouts into regular patrols after three to six months" -No reason is given in the handbook as to why a trooop would do

Our Troop committee meetings are held at the same time as the scouts meet, so the SPL/ASPL are busy running things there. Otherwise, I agree with FScouter in that there is no pupose for youth to be attending the committee meeting. I find them long and boring myself - I can't imagine a boy having to sit through one.

Eagledad makes a good point in that these new boys have never seen idependence from an adult. They seem to have no sense of responsibility for themselves. It's a challege to get them to listen to announcments. Their attitude is that it's someone else's job to listen to them, make the decisions for them and then tell them what they are going to be doing. The other good point Eagledad makes is the importance of a good Troop Guide and ASM assigned to new scouts. Without these people trained and in place, a new scout patrol does not work as well. Do some troops choose to go with mixed p

The purpose of having patrols in a Troop is to form tight cliques of 6-8 boys. Boys tend to work best in this type of grouping. Having the boys start together in one patrol and keeping them together gives them the best chance of forming that tight group. This is the foundation of the patrol method. Why would you throw new boys into an existing patrol with older boys who have their own established clique? Or, why would you break up a new patrol, after they have had a chance to form a cohesive group after 6-8 months? By saying mixed patrols "work well" - what does that mean?

Beavah - How many of the new scout in your mixed patrols get elected as patrol leaders? How does your Troop Guide function with the new boys spread across patrols? A patrol formed from new boys gives at least one boy a chance to be a leader. And, it gives a chance for the Troop Guide to give advice to that new leader, which is one of his main duties.

Good going Mark! You've worked your ticket back! -Dave

And when we make changes to the core parts of the BSA program, because we think we know better, or because we have a need to resist the order of things, or because we took the two seconds to think about it, how do we know what we are doing is right? What means of feedback to we have? It's not like the BSA has a standardized test like our schools, which verify the effectiveness of our teachers. One might claim that their way is more effective because the scouts are advancing faster, retention in higher, the program is more fun, etc. But none of things give any real indication as to

In reference to Beavah's three cases of leaders, we all start out as new leaders (case 3), keeping with the guidance and regulations as written or taught. Then, as time passes, we grow and and develop our own "style". My question is, how do we know if we have developed into a good leader (case 2) or a poor leader (case 1), who just thinks they're good? Everyone likes to think themselves as a person who is trying their best; it's a natural human trait to see yourself in a positive light. And, knowing this, why do we take the risk of doing things that much differently? Are we that

The standards of Scouting are much like to standards of the english language. Change a couple o da rules and you still get yo message across. Bt chnge a lt o th rls n its vry hrd t reed th msg. So it is with Scouting. It OK to be different, as long as you are making sensible and adaptive changes (and you are not violating YPP or G2SS rules). Make a too many changes, for whatever reasons, and you are no longer delivering a scouting program.

Scouting is a good classroom to teach ethics and morals. How the boys treat each other in the troop is a good indication how they treat everyone else. Ethics and morals are about making choices. And we must teach them to make the right choices, for themselves and others. The first step an aldult leader must take to promote this is allowing the boys to make their own decisions. This can be a challenge for some adults. But, if the boys are not allowed to practice making choices, then they can't get good at it. The second step is to allow the boys to see the results of their deci

I agree with SeattlePioneer in that ANY uniform will produce unhappy complaints. However, what the heck were they thinking when they let some fashion designer dictate the design?! It's obvious that FORM was greatly sacrificed over FUNCTION. How do we let National know that we're not happy with it and it's time for change? I think they know - they are just not willing to admit their mistake and move on - step one in any twelve step process. OldGreyEagle's post makes a lot of sense. Get the boys input and let them vote on it. This could be a big boon for Boys Life and for all t

I told the boys that a "vision" is a picture in your mind of the way thing should be. Then I presented my "Scoutmaster's vision of success" in three points, in priority: #1 - All Youth Leaders trained and doing their jobs = Boy Run Troop #2 - All Adult Leaders trained and doing their jobs #3 - Meeting our Goals as established during the Annual Program Planning Meeting My SPL reviewed this and said that his vision was for everyone to be doing their jobs like they are supposed to. This aligned with my #1 point. The EDGE method seemed straightforward enough to me to i