ParkMan

Hi Darlene, My sense is that your son's troop is pretty typical. I get the sense that very few troops fully provide a youth led program. I know that ours does not. In our troop, we have a long time Scoutmaster. Though he's been a Scoutmaster for a long time, I get the sense that he really doesn't understand what youth are capable of and/or how to motivate them to really lead. I think deep down he thinks we're boy led, but just doesn't realize that there is a lot more to it than what he does. One thing that really disappoints me reading your note is that it sounds like no-on

That's one of those things that was hard to avoid when I was a den leader. So many of the requirements lend themselves to sitting and doing. Took practice to get there

It's tough sometimes - particularly with the younger cubs. I had a few meetings where I just bailed on my plans and said - let's go do something outside or even just play a game.

The current online courses are: SCO_3001 - Overview and policies SCO_3003 - Sexual Abuse SCO_3004 - Bullying SCO_3007 - Certification Test It strikes me that there are some gaps here in the numbers - as if they intend to add more content. Also - they have both a mandatory and helpful category. Again, seems like they have infrastructure for more.

I did - I don't recall that being covered. Looking at the course numbers, I presume that more content is coming.

Welcome! Thank you for taking on one of the absolutely best jobs in Scouting!

I've seen a lot of WDL who operate a program where the AOL year is the end of the Cub Scout experience. Boy Scouts is a new, but related program for the boys to do next. I think this is why we see the biggest loss in membership when boys go from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts. In my mind, it's a continuum. Just as boys go from Wolf to Bear and Bear to Webelos, so too do they take the step from AOL to Boy Scout. It's not that the WDL needs to spend all their time getting the boys ready, but they do need to make it a smooth process.

Nice! We need more folks with this kind of vision. You're welcome to come be an ASM in my troop anytime!

My gut says: - 15 minutes for announcements. summer camp, philmont trip, whatever. - 10 minutes for FOS or other special presentation - 15 minutes for a scout talk or two. - balance on awards. Do most of you do refreshements too?

This is a great idea. It is also 100% within the description of your job (Secretary). To me this is one of those things that if you do it well it can have a tans-formative effect on a troop. A newsletter forces: - up front planning. You can't just wait until two weeks before to say - "hey, we've got a camping trip" - consistent messaging. You, as secretary, figure out length, format, etc. Parents get used to that and love it. - families rely on it. My daughter's middle school has a newsletter. When I can't remember something about a upcoming event I go back and check the lat

I saw that too with my son's troop. Making pancakes & hotdogs isn't all the hard for a scout to do. You can easily do it as a Webelos, if not a bear. But, when he got to Boy Scouts, the leaders took a step back and had him doing stuff he did two years earlier. I'd have been bored too. One of the things I saw in Cub Scouts was that den leaders tended to be parents. So they had a pretty good idea of what their son could do. Fast forward to Boy Scouts and the ASMs tended to be longer term volunteers who just liked Boy Scouting. They didn't know the kids that well, so they assumed

We talk a lot in Scouting about leadership. To me, a big part of leadership is standing up and leading. Every scout could do that, but many choose not to. We've got a kid in our troop that shows up 90% of the time, leads all kinds of events, and puts himself out there. We've got other kids that come 20% of the time, never camp, never participate, never show leadership, and in short - just don't try. We've got a lot more kids in the middle. As adults, I think we want to encourage boys to be more like the first example. Do things, try things, take chances, be a leader. Having a

@Eagledad @Eagle94-A1 I completely understand. I don't think bad of you at all for saying No - I don't have the time. I'm in the middle of my own burnout phase. Been Committee Chair for a troop of 75 boys with a Scoutmaster who has turned difficult and ungrateful into an art form. I do get it. I've said in other threads that I think the real problem behind much of this is the neglect of our district committees. Too few people left doing too many jobs. We lack a structure that develops new leaders and builds up our "community scouting" team. Camporee's suffer, Day Camp suff

Then change it. Heck, just get your OA group to simply adopt your goal: "By joining the OA, you have chosen to join an elite group. We represent the best of the best scouts. While a member you will become experts with wood tools and will become confident alone in the woods. You're expected to represent the best of the Scout Law. Here you will be given a chance to become even stronger leaders that you are today. If you're up for that, this will be an arena to expand your dreams. If not, that's OK, but this isn't the group for you" I'd start with that. If everyone quits the

What I've been seeing is a much bigger divide between packs & troops that there should be. The WDL are definitely part of the pack culture and leadership group. I think it's just hard for them to think Boy Scout because they are so surrounded by Cub Scout culture. What I've proposed is that we have troop leaders who were once WDL teach the WDL training course in person. Teach the material from the persepctive they now hold being an ASM. Hasn't happened yet, but someday

This seems pretty easy to solve to me. The camping coordinator or Scoutmaster needs to ask a better question. Something like: Scoutmaster: Boys, we need to plan the camping trips for this year. We can do one or two large trips - like Philmont or a long road trip. We also need to do 10 weekend trips that are within a three hour drive. Please come up with a list for both groups. The camping coordinator's form can simply ask both questions. If, for the big trip, every boy puts down Disney World - then great. if they put down Disney World for the monthly trips - hand it back and s

I think of it a bit differently - your chapter, and perhaps lodge, has lost it's lustre. I'm coming to realize that it's our generation's turn to make these institutions great. Of course the boys run it, but our generation of adults needs to be behind the scenes lining things up so that it can happen. It feels to me a little like volunteerism is down, so it's making that harder these days, but it seems to be the challenge that's out there.

We did something like this when I was a Cub leader. On a few campings trips, each den level was responsible for doing their own food prep. - The Webelos did most of their own cooking with active support of their parents. - The Bears worked with their parents to make food - The Wolves stirred pots, put ingredients in, etc. - The Tigers flipped pancakes. Some dens did a better job of this than others. My son's den leader was a fantastic guy who spent several den meetings teaching my son (a Bear at the time) to cut, cook on a stove, etc. Other den leader's didn't really under

@MattR Good question. No, they didn't set these. I do see where you're going with it and think it's a great idea. If I had my way, we'd operate more like you describe. I could fill a whole thread on our woes. In short though, our Scoutmaster corps doesn't really understand how to grow you in the way you describe. We've got more of a Webelos 3 approach. During the skills development portion of our meetings, the ASMs of New Scouts works with the Troop Guides to have some sort of development program. Usually it's something rank related - but not always. I think of our approach a litt

Yes & No. I'm suggesting a second, alternative course in addition/as an alternative to Wood Badge. In fact, I'm fine with Wood Badge as the leadership course. To me, Wood Badge is the leadership course for Committee Chairs, Cubmasters, Scoutmasters, etc... I think it does a fine job at that. I've been a staffer twice and really like Wood Badge - but I see it for what it is and is not. Wood Badge is clearly not a course on how to be a Scoutmaster. How to mentor the SPL, how to organize patrols, how to organize campouts, how to promote boy led, etc... I could go on and on.

After the adjustment in requirements a year or two back, I thought 18 months to First Class is the new number. Not sure if that's national or just our take. I really don't mind an 18 month journey to First class: Scout - 1 month Tenderfoot - 3 months Second Class - 9 months First Class - 15 months That all seems like a pretty leisurely pace to me.

Yep - like many things in Scouting, I think the OA has lost it's luster because the people in it have stopped giving it luster. One can't be entrusted with the OA in your district, phone it in, and expect it to be a great program. I think many havn't gotten that message.

The BSA's fundamental flaw in training is that they assume basic training is sufficient. It is not. The fundamental problem with all of this is that the program is too complex to be understood in a basic training. Look how much time we spend around here talking about patrol method and boy led. It's ridiculous that every troop does this a different way. For the BSA to really fix this, they need to either: - reduce the complexity of the program - develop a real Scoutmaster training. To go to SM training, you should have been an ASM for a while and understand the basics well

We did Universal once. We spent a day driving there, stayed at a local campground. Got up the next day and did the park. Stayed late, had dinner at the park, and then went back to camp. Next day we packed up and went home. It wasn't cheap, but it wasn't crazy expensive like when my family stays in the park at one of the resorts. It seemed to work pretty well. I've got a couple of teenage kids. They seem more interested in Universal than WDW. I love WDW, so it pains me to say that.

I love the concept of Venturing. Honestly though, I'd be okay with it going away. As a movement, Scouting in America just doesn't seem to know what go do with it. If it goes, I'd like to see a focus on improving the Boy Scout program for the 15-18 year olds. The elements are all there, but far too many troop see their older boys get bored by the same thing year after year.