qwazse

Setting a snare is trapping, not hunting. Trapping was vital to some of my buddies college funds. Which reminds me of a t-shit my father-in-law and I wanted to produce to make sure boys could still maintain a profitable hobby: "Spare Roadkill. Wear Fur." But in general, we just have them set up traps and test tripping them with a thin stick. Here again, the ranger might have an opinion. He might not want any trap set for any longer than it takes to demonstrate and test. Or, on the other hand, there might be an infestation that the boys could try to help clear.

Note: that minimum is 5 paid youth. So, pay attention to multiple registrations. This is likely not the case with the troop your trying to help, but if there is a boy who is multiple registered with a venturing crew, you should make sure his primary membership is with the troop. (That is, of course assuming that the crew's membership has ample numbers of paid youth.)

True. This thread would have been so much more active if WCC would have said something like, "I'm retiring a unit if they don't boost their membership to 10 paid youth by the end of the year."

Thus sayeth the current paperwork... A CHARTERED ORGANIZATION The Chartered Organization selects one of its members to register as chartered organization representative who may also serve as chair or as unit committee member if needed. All units must have a unit leader and a minimum of five paid youth. If you "heard" something, please refer to the recent thread on false memories and oral histories. Give us a reference, please. That's how real scout skills are to be taught!

"we'll deal with that when we get there" Hey! Guess where we are! I get this from time to time at the venturing level. (Not every campsite is after miles of rocks and bogs, and some younger sibs are veritable "Venturers in Training.") In those situations, I insist that a parent (who isn't one of my designated adults for the trip) come along to attend to whatever needs the younger brother or sister might have. If you were to do something of the sort, for example, you would need a parent/guardian for your Webelo and another parent for little brother/sister(s). They would have to set their site up at some distance from the Webelos, and program doesn't stop just because the youngsters don't think it's fun anymore. If they are indeed good parents, they'll work with you on this.

... sunny day ... now that's funny.

Same story here. Definitely lackluster sales.

How is it any less work? Although the MB is required in Jan 2014, and the badge is slated for some revisions, the new book won't be out until mid year. The MB may be earned under old requirements until the end of 2014. On the flip side, if they THINK they are saving work by wrapping up early, there is no reason to let a partial linger by disavowing them of that notion.

My comment, Kathy, assumes that you have made a fair assessment of these boys' skills, that you are confident of their teaching ability, and that they may be known around the district for their skills as T2FC instructors. That's when the DE might help you get around that log-jam. This is not a matter of if they get trained. It's a matter of how they get trained. Your unit and the district may be better served if the boys go to a Powderhorn course, or COPE instructor course, or something else. But, keep in mind, they are adults. They should no longer be signing off on T2FC requirements. That's a job for PL and SPL. (Sure ASM's do it, but that's a worst case scenario, and the troop needs to change it's culture when that happens regularly.) As MBC they should only be signing blue cards for the badges they counsel.

He can lead a group prayer. He is not under the obligations of an agent of the state.

Not a problem in any case. Remind your leaders, however, that while they are assisting scouts, they should not be drinking alcohol.

Ask the DE to credit them as trained.

Sounds like fun - as long as none of your decoy items was a chain saw!

It sounds like you have unmotivated boys, plain and simple. It happens. Move on with the original schedule for your den. From time to time, remind them that they are one lanyard away from earning their craftsman. If either of them bring up wanting to do something else with their own resources, listen to their idea, and, if it's good, encourage them to do it at home and bring it to you at your next meeting. Chances are you will have other boys who fall behind in something else. Same procedure. This is good preparation for life as a scout. Your buddies will get skills on some things. You'll get skilled on others.

None in our troop are doing this. Either in protest of policy or fee changes, or to skate by without having to earn cooking. But, we've made it clear that our SM's have never kicked a gay kid to the curb and would never do so. Period. Cut his pay if it bothers you. I've also pointed out that most Christian youth groups I know (and any that I associate with) do not as policy prohibit LGBT youth. So, I don't know where they think they are leaving to. We're a small troop, so if a few boys hustled up and earned it by the end of the year, that would be fine by me. I would suggest that they turn in their uniform to someone else who will wear it with pride, and ask if we really have to order them the patches for a CoH that they will not want any existing members (by virtue of their complicity) to participate in.

It's like I have an evil twin (who types faster than me)!

Who knows? Had they kept their uniforms on, you might have had yourself a venturing crew for the day!

One more suggestion: ask a relative or neighbor. Sometimes a hand-me-down adds to the mystique. For the longest time when I was in high school and college, I carried my Grandpa's knife. Really lousy blade, truth be told. But every time I pulled it out, I had fond memories of him whittling his cane and thereby driving Mom nuts!

Anything that folds neatly and the handle fits tidily in the boy's hand will do. Going to the sporting goods store (or section) is part of the adventure IMHO. In department stores, it's usually just an isle beyond the toy section. Kinda fun watching a boy change his preferred isle as he grows.

Actually, in many survival situations, you don't have much for an axe. So, for the first night or so your shelter is necessarily deadfall, flotsam, and jetsam.

Have the SPL call the camp ranger about acceptable use. He/she should be able suggest a preferred site. For example, an OA circle may need to be cleared, so, losing a few saplings here and there would be doing them a favor. Frankly, nearly everything in Florida grows back so rapidly, there may be cuttings for the taking. Just talk to the right people.

If you are proud of your uniform. Wear it. It's the best you can do. The second best you could do is have a chocolate bar for every boy who is in uniform at dinner and/or flags.

A grey area: parents can serve as Akela. But, I'm not saying take the DL out of the loop, certainly as we move into Webelos we want the parents to take a lesser role. But, if it is truly a situation where the boys feel like you "dumped" this lanyard project on them, you want the help of the parents to encourage them to think of something else. If it's just that they haven't made any effort, then pulling up other projects is just wasting your breath and their time.

If the boys decided they hate lanyards and ask you to come up with another project, maybe you should. But, if they are just shrugging their shoulders, it's on their parents to think of another project that they should do. They might want their boys to make a holiday decoration or gift for a teacher (or maybe for those talented sisters ). This falls under the "listen to the youth" aspect of scouting. You're not really dictating assignments. You're making suggestions based on where you think they would like to expand their talents. At the end of the day, if the youth would rather not do anything: no problem, no achievement, no recognition.

One early bird from Son #1's den stayed and Eagle'd at 16. He did stop attending scouts for a few months, but came back ready to do dig in an do the work. Then his dad found a job in warmer climes and the family moved away.