rdclements

Basic Aid Training is a Red Cross course, but it does not require certified instructors like other ARC courses. The BAT instructor should be someone with reasonable knowledge of the subject matter and take time to review the course materials and be well prepared. The course is structured for about 6 hours, so it is not going to fit into a routine pack meeting.

You can get the course materials through your local ARC chapter, or you can order them online from www.shopstaywell.org.

The Basic Aid Training Instructor's Manual is item # 654205 and it will cost you $6.50

The BAT Participant Book is # 654200 and comes in a 25 pack for $37.50

I have not run a BAT course, but others in my district have done them as part of a Saturday program.

Google docs is free and can be used to easily accomplish all of your tasks. All you need is a Google account and web access.

1. Sign in to your Google account - create one if you don't already have one. http://doc.google.com

2. Click on Create and then click on From Template

3. In the search box at the top of the page, enter "newsletter" and click the Search Templates button.

4. Scroll through the results and pick one that you like.

5. Click on the "Use this template" button and make your newsletter.

Once you're done with your masterpiece, you can email it, turn it into a web page, or download it in several different formats (including PDF). One cool feature in Google docs is collaboration. You can share your project with others and work on it at the same time.

Google came up with this:

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/5200986/WEBELOSTO-SCOUT-PLAN-BOY-SCOUTS-OF-AMERICA-The-Webelos

BSA was also using the term Webelos-ree for a while. There's some info here:

http://old.scouting.org/cubscouts/resources/13-238/index.html(This message has been edited by rdclements)

Yeah, I can understand how you would get tired of lay people offering legal advice. That's not my intent and I tried to offer that disclaimer in my earlier post. It seems that in some circumstances, some legal pros consider this a legal issue. That's why I posted the links to the sources.

I've seen the impact of scout leaders who want their troop to be run like Paris Island circa 1967. I do not believe that I can be convinced that any type of physical punishment, regardless of the creative rhetoric used in describing it, is appropriate in a youth program.

Good leaders find a better way to correct behavior and motivate future compliance while respecting the dignity of the person involved.

Beavah,

I'm not throwing around anything, just offering an opinion where it was asked for. Legal definitions aside, I believe that forcing an activity as punishment is inappropriate.

On the other hand, I am not sure that I understand your comment. Did you intend to suggest that I am being dishonest?

Whether such opinions apply to schools only or beyond, the part that caught my eye was the AG suggesting that one could be sued. The fundamental question is whether ordering such activity as a form of punishment is appropriate. So let's look at something opther than the classroom teacher situation.

Some would say that this is an accepted practice because thats how sports coaches do it. But that type of coaching is not acceptable anymore. The National Association for sport and Physical Education is a non-profit that sets standard practices for sports and physical education. Their statement is: Administering or withholding physical activity as a form of punishment and/or behavior management is an inappropriate practice.

http://www.aahperd.org/naspe/standards/upload/Physical-Activity-as-Punishment-to-Board-12-10.pdf

OK, but that's sports, and it doesn't apply to us. So, what does the BSA say about it? From GTSS: Discipline used in Scouting should be constructive and reflect Scoutings values. Corporal punishment is never permitted. and The BSA does not permit the use of corporal punishment by unit leaders when disciplining youth members.

Then you get into the discussion about whether this is corporal punishment or not. FScouter is correct - it's about power. Bullying has no place in Scouting.

I'm not sure what out past the bleachers means, but let's see what Google can find....

Here's something that talks directly to Phys Ed issues:

http://www.pesoftware.com/Resources/exercise.html#Attorney

I don't have your legal experience, but I have to think that some of those writing that opinion have relevant credibility.

Most states regard exercise for disciplinary reasons a form of corporal punishment. Ordering scouts to do pushups or run laps as punishment is illegal. Even is you are not prosecuted criminally, you risk liability in a civil action.

If I saw a scouter doing that to a scout, I would intervene to stop the action and then seek to have the scouter's membership discontinued.

There's no place for that type of bullying and abuse in our program.

Hi Robert, thanks for the post.

That's an interesting problem. Obviously if you don't have a functioning troop committee, you know that you need to fix that. It sounds like your unit has already weaned the scouts to be able to manage their own affairs in patrols. That is a more mature practice than many units that get discussed on this board. Your camping protocol issue can be resolved by leveraging that strength.

It sounds like a basic bullying problem. Does the door swing both ways? Are these adults respectful of the patrol camp sites and do they only enter them when invited?

You are the Scoutmaster. Make sure that you have read the SM Handbook so that you are confident that you are on solid ground. This is important when the blowhards start quoting made up 'rules'.

1. Do not threaten to step down/leave unless you mean it. That's not a bluff that you can win. Your sons need you in the role but I'll bet that their buddies need you more. You're the leader - do not show lack of commitment or confidence.

2. From this moment forward, adults on camp outs will be limited to the Scoutmaster and 1 or 2 assistant scoutmasters. Committee members have no need to be camping with the scouts and they are not interacting with the scouts anyway. Make this stick and you're halfway there.

3. Leverage their sense of patrol identity. Start a tradition that each patrol may invite one of SM/ASM to dine with them in their camp site. Give this time and soon you'll have patrols competing with each other to impress you and your assistants with the quality of their food and good camp site practices. Thank them for their hospitality and compliment them on what they do well.

It can be done in separate pieces, even in separate roles, so long as the total amount of time is correct and the roles are those listed for each rank. Here's the specific section from the Guide to Advancement:

4.2.3.4.2 Meeting the Time Test May Involve Any Number of Positions. The requirement calls for a period of months. Any number of positions may be held as long as total service time equals at least the number of months required. Holding simultaneous positions does not shorten the

required number of months. Positions need not flow from one to the other; there may be gaps between them. This applies to all qualified members including Lone Scouts.

There used to be a BSA publication: Webelos Leader Guide. It is very helpful, offering detailed plans for laying out a long-term schedule for earning the activity pins and supporting activities. Don't give up on yourself; the time that we spent in Webelos were great for my son and me.

I'm with TwoCubSon on this.

1. Instructor(s) borrowed stuff without permission and did not return it correctly. This is a failure of instructor(s) and their supervisor - SPL to take corrective action. SM to work with SPL to determine the best course for correcting these issues.

2. Scoutmaster stole stoves from patrols. It does not matter if they were left out or whatever, the SM is now withholding property that belongs to patrols in a supposedly scout-led organization. Stoves to be returned immediately.

Hi DLChris, welcome to the discussion.

NC is my ancestral home: Kinston, Raleigh, Greensboro. I spent a lot of time at my grandparents' place near Southport in the 70's.

perdidochas is right, separating the group was the real problem. Of course, had the scouts taken their phones on the river and lost them, the parents would be demanding that the SM pay them for the phones.

Our troop gives the scout a lifetime membership to NESA.

I got a preseasoned Lodge Dutch Oven about five years ago. The factory finish has held up very well. Just follow the included recommendations and it will serve you well. Any hot and greasy recipe - like oil frying - is a great way to break in a new oven. My personal recommendation is scratch-made doughnuts :-).

I've seen something similar in the past.

At one point, the scout shop sold small stickers for each rank; they might have been intended for scrap books.

On the example that I recall, the top most piece for each patrol was a wooden copy of their patrol emblem, and the name plates are hooked on below. The patrol could also carry their emblem and names and hang them in camp like names on a mailbox.

I don't agree with you in the use of the term - lifestyle choices. I didn't choose to be straight, that's just what I am.

I also don't think that 'morally straight' is specific. I know homosexuals who are more morally straight than many heterosexuals that I know.

Religious grounds is not clear enough for all cases; I know a church pastor of a large congregations who is one of the least moral people that I've ever met.

Some of the challenges that we have when scouting bumps into sports or other groups is that the other groups require 100% participation. The coach or band director tells the young participant that missing a single practice means that you ride the bench or similar. There is a learning value in team sports, but on the whole I think we need more young people to learn and experience balance, trade offs, and compromise.

Then the parents get involved in that equation. Being on the team and enjoying the experience is not enough. You have to be a starter, team captain, etc.

The cost of these programs drives participation too. I have a young friend whose parents pony up several thousand dollars each season so he can play high school baseball. If you miss a practice, that money is lost.

The special ones are the ones who learn, through their own experience, the value of diversity in activities. I cannot recall sitting on an Eagle BOR where the young man that we were chatting with was involved only in scouting. Too band that the leaders of other activities as well as parents of our youth don't get that as well.

My son went to Philmont last month - he had a blast.

He was carrying approximately 32 lbs + food and water. The only Philmont gear that they used was a large cookpot. They would pretty much dump all of the dehydrated food for a meal into the big pot and then all would share it. He took his REI Half Dome and of course carried half while his buddy carried the other half. He was using a light weight REI sleeping bag (~50F) and adding clothing as need for warmth.

A nearby unit has a converted school bus. Theirs is privately owned by a troop leader. You have to have special training and licensing to be a bus operator, so your pool of potential drivers is obviously a potential limiting factor.

Clemclaw is right about trouble with the 15-passenger vans. Many charter org insurance providers won't cover these. Rear loading is a major issue, coupled with tire wear, tire inflation, and driver inexperience. If you rent one, check the tires frequently, especially the left rear. Car rental companies often keep tire pressure low in order to create a softer ride.

I've bumped into this issue a couple of times before. There is nothing gained by going through the same scout program a second time, and no provision in the program to accommodate that. Being held back a grade is stressful and socially challenging enough. Send him on with his den. The real question will be when he should transition to a troop, and that will work itself out when the time comes.

Moose-

That's a nice tradition - I'm going to have to remember that one.

Yep. If you mix 'em up right, you can get enough heat from the chlorine and pine sol to start a fire. You also get a nice cloud of chlorine gas - not recommended. If you mix 'em up wrong, you usually get nothing but you can also get a visit from your local hazmat pros or possibly a closed casket funeral. It also works if you substitute brake fluid or one of several other substances for the pine sol. Your actual mileage may vary.

I've done a more controlled ceremonial fire start with a successful light every time:

I put a model rocket engine igniter in the kindling and hide the wiring under the dirt as it leaves the fire pit. The Chief comes out, says the magic words, the hidden accomplice hits the hidden switch to trigger the hidden igniter and you're in business. It works every time but it's not as spectacular as a poison gas cloud.

Steel wool and a battery is an old standard. Try it out in the backyard.

We've had good success with using scouts in helping present the BALOO course. The course content covers things pretty well and there are some good checklists in the handouts, but there's no substitute for experience. It would be better presented as part of a weekend outing with all that extra opportunity for hands-on experience.