MattR

Humility always bites me in the butt when least expected. A long time ago I read a book about some famous Buddhist and he talked about beginner's mind, where one is both unsure and willing to jump in and try. This was in contrast to those that had been around for a long time and knew all the answers. It just seems to apply to this thread.

Is the quality of a camporee any different than the quality of a troop? Doesn't it depend on how it's run? I'm the district camping chair and the key seems to be to keep mixing it up. It also has to be relatively inexpensive and work with 200+ scouts. This is a lot harder than figuring it out once and then getting into a rut. All of the bad stories that have been mentioned seem to stem from people looking for a quick easy plan, and that means doing what has already been done before. Advancement is super easy to plan. But doesn't every single troop have the same problem? It takes ima

Ya know, it sounds like an event. I wanted to have a hot chocolate station. This would be a fun thing to add to it and we could video it and put the best clips on the council website.

I'd say let them camp wherever they want. Don't try and solve problems that don't exist or try and follow rules that aren't clear. The best approach to solving all sorts of camporee problems is to make the camporee fun. Scouts will put up with all sorts of things if they're having fun. Our next camporee's theme is Zombie Snowpocalypse. We will probably give extra points for anyone that can pronounce it, 10 times quickly, while eating a cracker, and maybe hanging upside down.

Could be that you don't have to fill out taxes but the rest of it's correct. Who is your CO? Assuming it's a church and that church has a kids group, would you expect them to have their own EIN number? That's the exact situation your troop is in. Unless you don't have a CO, use the CO's EIN number.

We have to raise $200/scout. Good news is popcorn goes against that and they won't ask us to make a donation.

You should be using your Chartered Organization's EIN number, as your troop is likely not it's own entity. It is also not part of the BSA. It is part of the CO and that's why you use their number. If you create your own EIN number then you'll have to fill out taxes every year as well. And get your own insurance....

My reality is that the scout in my troop that brought weed to summer camp eventually had his membership revoked. On the other hand, self centered and obnoxious scouts can eventually get their rank as well and the SM technically has little say in the matter. I understand that's the way it is but I'm not happy with it. We go on and on about the scout oath and law but they don't hold much weight when push comes to shove. I also understand it's sometimes a hard decision but that's what character is all about.

What's interesting is I asked what troops do that works and I didn't get a lot of response to that. I'm certainly not denigrating anyone. It just looks like everyone is in the same boat. Everyone uses an ad-hoc approach. We have a couple of meetings where we talk about how the troop runs and we have a section on this type of material but I'm not sure how effective it is. It's probably due to the person talking about it.

Then it's okay. I found a reference to a venturing fencing competition dated 2008. I also found a Master at Arms MB that used fencing for one of the requirements. That MB was one of the original 14. However, it was cancelled a year later.

Hi everyone, this is a reminder that this thread was about goofy cubmasters and has morphed into a whether religion has a place in scouts. Let's get back to legislating over goofy (kind of ironic, don't you think?). If you'd like I can split this thread but we've beaten the subject of religion in scouts to death plenty of times and nobody has changed their minds. I personally like goofy cubmasters. At that age it's what scouts react to. It is about the scouts, after all. People who think that eight year olds want to sit in a serious discussion about ethics the whole time are not looking a

@Scoutmaster Teddy, maybe it will help if I share some stories. I was in a very similar situation. Do a search on "Eagle and weed." It was not fun. The question of whether the scout learned was the only thing I was looking for. The answer was no, just as you've seen. Another story: at one point I had both sons of the council president in my troop and both of them just didn't get it. I told the oldest if he didn't change his attitude I wouldn't sign his application. That created a fuss. The good news is he did change his attitude and the scout's dad thanked me. Standing up for what you bel

@qwazse, I've seen this presentation, it doesn't cover what's important. It doesn't talk about the change from adult to boy led. The challenges of doing as your PL asks you to do. Failure as a tool. Having to solve some people problems on your own. Eating burnt food because the cook is learning to cook. Adults not jumping in and saving the day. How the parent can best help their scout with frustrations. This is how the calendar is created and how your scout can influence it. Conflict happens, this is how your scout resolves it. This is the boundary between the scouts and the adults. The t

@Tom243, welcome to the forum. Since your troop has already done cold weather camping, how about a bike camping experience? Those are more fun than cold for cold's sake. Lots of snow is also fun. The whole point of 9b is to get the scout to try different things that are all fun. So I'd say unless your part of Kentucky is boringly flat (like most of Arizona) and dangerous for biking (Arizona during snow bird season) and is arid (like Arizona), I'd say use this as a good opportunity to get your scouts to try something else. And if they have already done these things, great! Send them to a snowie

@Eagle94-A1's and @CodyMiller351's threads and a recent conversation with a really great cub master begs the question: What are good ways to teach new parents, both prospective and those that have already joined, what scouts is about? It's not just let the boys lead but that we're not a paramilitary group (and all the other bad ideas out there). I realize there's the intro to scouting training but clearly that doesn't work. Aims and Methods could be a good start but The Right Way to Fail might also help. What do people do that works really well?

Did we get the complete reason? Honestly, good job.

That changes my understanding. First of all, a big round of applause for taking this on. Second, getting Grandpaw to help with this guy is a good idea. And any other adults. Third, officially you're an adult but the scouts are going to see you as one of them. That's a big plus. Use this to your advantage. You love backpacking and these scouts are looking up to you. So go backpacking. It doesn't all have to be long hikes. And some campouts that require all food to be cooked in dutch ovens will make for a fun break. As long as you look out for them and throw some fun things in the mix go ahead a

I don't know who the SM is but he needs to get on top of this now. There are all sorts of red flags going off in my mind. Inappropriate games (we have a fairly strict policy about phone usage). "I'll never let my son fail." Ignoring everyone else. Whining about stuff. This is not a list of problems, this is one problem. This is an adult that doesn't get it and never has. He is not a team player. This is a mess and the only way it will be resolved is to start by saying this is the way we do things and if you don't like it then you can not go on campouts with us anymore. I realize this sounds ha

I agree, @fred8033, that too formal is a problem, but too informal is also a problem. There is a sweet spot. When I see an entire patrol working on the same task, for every task, then it really all gets dumped on the PL because all he's doing is herding cats. It reminds me of swarm ball when 6 year olds play soccer. Everyone goes for the ball and nobody thinks about getting open to receive a pass. Consequently everyone is tripping over each other. As you say it depends on the task. The PL's job is formal because it really is a long term job. The grubmaster's job is one campout plus a few

Yes, but, why is it that the scouts have such a hard time communicating? It may be easy to actually send the words but someone has to figure out what the words are, the best time to send them, respond to questions, etc. What are the salient points in the PLC meeting that need to be sent out? To be honest I see very few scouts that can do this. I don't see many adults that can do this. We have a secretary at our committee meetings. Scribe is just a title, communication is the task.

I could see a forum for just starting any unit.

Forgot one idea: Be Prepared. In other words, have a plan, an idea, enough to keep things going even if things change.

@Eagle94-A1, this is what I'm trying to solve. It's not just the SM/SPL, it could be scouts from another patrol walking in and disturbing an activity. The scouts don't understand that interruptions need to be dealt with. They just go with it, lose all sense of time and don't realize what's happening. They really do own their destiny.

And what does the PL lean on when the SPL/SM/some random adult comes up to a couple of his guys and tells them to come with him, he needs them to do something for him? Nowhere does it say the patrol should be making the decisions. I suspect this wasn't an issue 50 years ago. Lead: with enthusiasm Do: Adventure/Advancement/Skills/Fun Live: the Oath and Law Use: servant leadership Own: your patrol's destiny

Pushing this thread back to the top. @LeCastor, what are the half dozen ideas you want the PL to walk away with? Ideas that could be referenced when the PL is stuck with a problem. From there the activities in your training should be clear. Or how about between 6 and 8, just to go with the patrol theme. One idea is too vague and won't help the scout (so "boy led" doesn't really help much). Twenty ideas is off the deep end and twelve is too cumbersome. But 6 - 8 is enough that a scout can keep all those ideas in his head at the same time as he learns it.