MattR

I really like the idea. That is the missing piece that NYLT assumes is already there. Not promising much time but go ahead and send me your draft. @Eagledad brings up a good point of no connection back to the SM. I had a scout at NYLT and when I asked what I should work with him to continue what he had learned they had never thought of any followup. Does NYLT even have tickets? I'd think that would be a great way to encourage a scout to take ownership and lead. This is one place where EDGE makes sense. We've taught you all this stuff and now we want you to really use it. I saw too many sc

@tripexistence, one more idea for you. Cub scouts is a fun program. Just because you can't find anyone to join now doesn't mean they won't later, after they see how much fun this new scout of yours has. I have a friend that was in a troop in Singapore. They had to go international just to go camping.

So, the last snow was in 2013? The lake isn't even frozen. I am jealous of the dock, though. Our lake in the summer is probably not much warmer than that one in the winter. And it's a lot smaller. I teach scouts to make quinzees and the scouts use them because they are much warmer than tents. We have one winter campout where the quinzees are also warmer than the cabin, just because the cabin leaks like a sieve. Well, that and nobody is allowed to sleep in the cabin.

Welcome, @nate5.

Okay, @LeCastor, that is a brilliant idea. That should be put in a list of great and really different ways to engage scouts.

I love it. So retro. And so very applicable. One thing that really surprised me was examples of doing it wrong. Everyone says they let the scouts lead but it's the examples that make it concrete (telling the patrols where to camp, making the menus, etc). I'm curious as to who made the video. Was it a troop or the BSA?

I think there are two issues. One is getting a kid to show up. The other is what happens to the kid once he shows up. We make a big deal of the SPL talking to the visiting scout, introducing him to the troop, and asking him what patrol he'd like to visit with. Then the patrols go crazy inviting him to join them. Making a kid feel welcome once he shows up is just as important as getting him to show up.

I don't know his name and I probably only met him once but I'll never forget him. I had just moved to town and joined a scout troop (Devon 50 right outside of Valley Forge). I didn't know anyone, I was struggling with everything, new school, new neighbors, and then there was the Scout Law. I just couldn't get it and I was frustrated. I was at this gentleman's house with a bunch of other new scouts. He was much older than any of the other adults in the troop. He was the epitome of kind. He helped me through memorizing the scout oath and law. If there's anything in scouting I'd like to be it wou

@Eagledad, in the picture you posted I see 8 people with 5 different types of hats. It looks to me like everyone is wearing what they want anyway. Or am I missing something?

Time to start a tradition. The girls troop will have the same numbers - only in reverse. Or jumbled in the case of a palindrome. Or completely different for any troop that has multiples of the same number. Or or ....

I was in the Transatlantic Council as a youth, so I saw lots of "foreign" scouts. We've have international scouts at our local camp. It is always great to see the discussions. Now that you can get peanut butter world wide that's not so much fun but there are plenty of other things to talk about. Of course, you just have to go skiing around here to meet all the ski bums that normally live on the other side of the equator. I regularly talk going overseas to scouts. "Hey, you like adventure? I got a great idea for you." Not many try. So, how important has it been? Unfortunately it's mor

Why would this be considered double dipping? The scout helping out only gets credit for one requirement.

Insulting moderators has a way of backfiring, so to speak. Change your tone and we'll let you back to the campfire.

Welcome to the forum. BTW, this thread is over 8 years old.

Welcome to the forum, @scoutboy. Efficiency is not your friend when it comes to advancement. That might sound really strange but one of the main goals of scouts is to have the scouts solve their own problems. If the adults make things more efficient then there are fewer problems for the scouts to solve and they learn less about what we're really trying to teach them. Scouting has what are called aims and methods. The aims are what the we, the adults, want them to get out of the program. Advancement is not an aim. Advancement is a method. That is, a way by which the scouts achieve the aims

I'd prefer Scouting BSA over Scouts BSA. It implies we're doing something rather than just being there. In the meantime, I went with a patrol last night that helped out at a local homeless charity. It was great watching them. At one point I just asked the PL if he could get his patrol organized and a minute later they had it all figured out. I'm really impressed with this PL. He's 13. They had fun. I put a bug in their ear about helping this charity once a quarter and making this their thing. It was a good night to be a scouter.

Welcome to the forum. I live in Colorado. Weather is part of it. Nice mountains are also a big draw. It does attract the super crazies. At one point we had a guy that had swum the English Channel in our troop along with a group that had hiked the Grand Canyon from rim to rim and back in 19 hours. My son rode his bike from the front range (5000') up to the Longs Peak trailhead (9000' and 50 miles), hiked to the top with me (7 miles, 14,200') and then went all the way back. 20 hours of aerobic activity. That's considered a nice challenge but nothing special. Century ride in the mountains wi

I would have taken the scout to my home, assuming my wife was there, and put him to work helping me unload stuff. An opportunity to get to know him better. And when the parents show up I'd gently confront them on the fact that I had talked to them and they did say they were going to show up, and trustworthy means something. Then I'd drop it. Do all that in front of the scout and you'd embarrass all of them to the point that it would never happen again.

Ironic that the socially conservative regions are leading in girls coming in while they're also leading with boys going out? This is either just a bit of levity or a real paradox. Please pick the one that makes your day better. No facts were harmed in this presentation. Only stunt facts were used and they are well cared for under the auspices of PETF (people for the ethical treatment of facts).

Welcome to the forum, @wallacesusan. It took 4 months to schedule a smc? That's a problem. Well, that's the problem. Should he back date it? I guess. Should you demand that? No, because the real issue is that the SM didn't see a need to fix a problem. Has your son talked to him about the time delay? Is there a reason given for the delay? Anyway, getting on the bad side of the SM is not suggested.

Welcome to the forum, @DJsMommy. The charter org EIN number is the correct number to give them because legally your pack is part of the charter org. The pack has no articles of association. That's why the pack charters with the charter org. You may need to give the bank a copy of the charter that the pack had the charter org sign at the last recharter. Most likely that was last December. You'll get a new one when you recharter this December (not everyone recharters in December but most do). If nobody on your committee can find the old one then either wait till you get the next one or call

Welcome to the forum, @roberthynesii

I think this is the real issue, only because I've been there before. They just went with the normal program and older scouts don't really do much strongly suggests to me that starting a crew won't solve the problem. The scouts of a crew should be able to lead the crew by themselves but it appears that these scouts can't. Otherwise they wouldn't have gone with the normal program and they would be helping out at meetings. So, one solution is to develop leadership in this age group. This might require the adults to learn some new things as well.

@CodyMiller351, welcome to the forum. Woodbadge at 19? I'd say no. There are better ways to spend your time. At least for now. One of my concerns with eagle scouts that come on as ASM's is that they don't always understand the difference between being an adult and being a scout. The adult's job is very different from being a scout. There's no doubt you have all the outdoor skills nailed down but there's a lot more going on than that. Another thing you likely have is a ton of enthusiasm and that's great. My suggestion would be to study up on how a great troop runs (something wood badg

I think it's the start of a great project. However, I don't know the details. When we see a project that seems light on leadership (when someone says routine labor) we start asking for details. We also encourage the scout to go back to the recipient of the project and ask for more. Not just more work but how to make it better. In the case of the lego kits, let's say two kids are playing with their kit right next to each other. The kits will get all mixed up. What's a solution to that problem? Also, he has the instructions, but does he have electronic versions for when they get destroyed? Are t