dedkad

Sounds like you only have 1/2 the story, and we are getting even less than that. You say "I tried reaching out to some of these leaders for advice regarding issues I've been facing and no one would talk to me." Are you talking about the issues you are facing with regards to your termination in the pack or are you talking about some personal issues? Have you talked to any of the parents in your son's den to see what they know? No matter what you end up finding out from the leaders or the parents, this does not sound like a situation that would beneficial for you or your son to remain in. Defini

Our pack supplies the neckerchiefs for the boys in our pack. At $7 a pop and 50 boys, it's a pretty big expense each year, so we try to collect as many back at the end of the year as we can. At this year's end-of-year Advancement Ceremony, we had a few boys who refused to part with their neckerchief. Does anyone have any good ideas on what we can say at the beginning of the year when we present new boys with their neckerchiefs to try to make it clear that these are merely loaners? Maybe something cool like talking about how the neckerchiefs join the boys to the pack and carry the memories of a

I was just looking at those requirements this evening because my Webelos den is starting to work on AOL requirements. I am frustrated because I sent emails out to the two local troops who we'd be most likely to join, and neither SM has gotten back to me yet. I will be persistent because I never fudge requirements. I'll take my Webelos to another town if I have to just to do something with a troop to meet those requirements. The way I see it, the Webelos need to visit a troop (not necessarily your troop) at least twice. Once with their den for sure. The other could also be with the den, but def

I wouldn't put candy in the targets. I can just see some boys thoughtlessly running out there to get their candy before everyone is done shooting. Saw it happen once even when candy wasn't involved.

You are truly living the Scout motto.

Did you ask the boy's parents what they think? They are the ones who know him best and know what he is capable of and not capable of.

I'm posting here instead of in the Cub Scout forum because I'm hoping to get input from some SM's also. I have 7 Webelos who are working on their Arrow of Light. I believe that only 2 of them will actually be bridging into Boy Scouts. So all 7 boys will be "graduating" from Cub Scouts, but only 2 boys will do a formal bridging to a troop of their choice. How have other packs and SM's handled this situation? Do I let them all cross the bridge, but only the 2 who are entering a troop get greeted on the other side by a SM? Is a SM willing to greet all boys on the other side of the bridge, regardl

There's the Family Travel belt loop. The Grand Canyon is rich with Indian lore. Maybe there's a Bear elective for something Indian-related. They can start a collection for their Collecting belt loop. Squashed pennies, arrowheads, interesting rocks, martian bones, etc. Have them bring a camera and take pictures as part of their Photography belt loop. Have them keep a daily diary of their adventures for one week as part of their Reading and Writing belt loop. Remember that every Requirement you do in the Bear handbook that is not used towards earning the Bear badge can g

I wonder if there are any packs that enforce the all or nothing rule?

First of all, you can't complete a requirement for Bear until you are actually a Bear, so anything they have done prior will not count towards their Bear requirements. The requirement you must complete for Achievement 3 is 3j (the Character Connection), not 3i (the outdoor flag ceremony). I know the j looks a lot like an i in the handbook, but if you look close you can see how the j drops below the line. Also, whenever an Achievement includes a Character Connection, you always have to do the Character Connection, so it makes sense that it is 3j and not 3i. I have noticed there are often a few

First of all, you can't complete a requirement for Bear until you are actually a Bear, so anything they have done prior will not count towards their Bear requirements. The requirement you must complete for Achievement 3 is 3j (the Character Connection), not 3i (the outdoor flag ceremony). I know the j looks a lot like an i in the handbook, but if you look close you can see how the j drops below the line. Also, whenever an Achievement includes a Character Connection, you always have to do the Character Connection, so it makes sense that it is 3j and not 3i. I have noticed there are often a few

Seriously? You don't have to wear a uniform to participate in a flag ceremony? Do you have a link from official bsa? I only learned of this requirement from my coleaders, who must have heard it from some other leader, and it's just passed down. I do agree that the LDS are rather lax with the requirements. We require our color guard to be in uniform. If they're just participating by pledging, then no uniform required. But if they are carrying the flags at one of our pack meetings, then uniform is required. I might be a little more flexible at a den meeting, though. Especially if a boy i

You've already admitted that the Webelos den leader is awarding badges without doing all the requirements. And it sounds like the Webelos den leader has temporarily turned over their duties to the Committee Member. Maybe the Committee Member has seen what has gone in the past and is making an effort to correct the situation, albeit a little too far to the other extreme.

We purchased a timer from Derby Magic this past year to use on our wooden track that we have had for years. Their prices were the best, and I was very happy with their customer service. Not sure what their tracks are like, but the price seems very competitive for tracks too. I would definitely purchase the track and timer at the same time from the same company, just to make sure it all works together seamlessly. We had to do some adjustments to get the timer to work on our wooden track. We run our derby without software. If you are looking to save money or phase the purchases over a couple of

The solar system would make a great target! You can give different points for different planets.

What we did this year was assign each den leader a pack meeting. It was their den's responsibility to come up with the program for that month. As one leader put it, it was their job to "entertain" the rest of us for 1 hour. Many of the dens used that as an opportunity to showcase or complete some of their den requirements. For instance, my Webelos put on a puppet show to earn their Showman badge. The Bear Den constructed a bunch of games to meet one of their requirements and the whole pack got to play them. The Tiger den leader scheduled a hike for the pack to meet his hiking requirement. Some

KDD, our Roundtables are at the Elks Lodge, so I get my drink after.

We have our meetings at a school and do our recruiting solely at that school. We try to keep visible at the school and make sure people see the boys in uniform having fun. That helps get boys interested. We send out flyers to all the 1st through 4th grade boys at the beginning of the school year, and we sometimes go and speak at the Back to School night. We are lucky that our school is so supportive of Scouting. Sometimes we get referrals from the local Scout office when people call there looking for information, so make sure you have your Pack info on file with your District.

jc2008, I don't know how soccer, football and baseball in your area work, but where we are at, the kids don't get to choose what days to practice. They are assigned a team and that coach decides what day to practice. If it falls on a den or pack meeting day, tough luck. It is much easier to ask the boys in my den to miss just one practice a month to attend a den meeting, then it is to compete with that sport on a weekly basis over the entire season.

But wouldn't giving them their new neckerchief and slide imply that they have advanced and can no longer work at the old den level? I like the idea of being able to do that because it allows them up on stage with the other boys in their den to get some sort of recognition, but just not sure if that is considered OK.

As Sqyire21 said, the program is easily completed in a matter of a couple of months, so holding monthly den meetings (with a few extra thrown in here and there for field trips and whatnot) is more than sufficient for us to complete the badge requirements. Judge our program all you want, but as one of the largest Packs in the community, I can assure you that it works. Even if you meet weekly, you are still going to have boys who don't complete their requirements because they are just not making the effort or have different priorities. It has not been a problem for us in the past, but for some r

We have a unique Pack in that our dens only meet once a month, so it takes us the whole school year to complete our badge requirements. We hold our Advancement Ceremony at our June campout, which consists of awarding badges, moving their name up the Advancement Ladder to the next den level, and getting their new neckerchiefs. We have a few boys who will not be done with their badge requirements by the campout. Our Unit Commissioner said the boys can use the summer to complete their badge requirements. I was thinking that we would acknowledge the boys at the campout and announce that they are g

When I joined Cub Scouts as a Tiger Den Leader, our Pack had all the dens cross over a bridge to signify their moving up to the next level. We continued that tradition until this year, when I learned that it was supposed to be reserved just for the Webelos crossing over to Boy Scouts. As one of their Craftsman reqiurements, my Webelos built an advancement ladder to be used instead of the bridge. Each boy in our Pack did a leather stamping project and made a leather strip with their name on it that hangs on the rung of the ladder corresponding to their den. At our advancement ceremony this year

Selfishness and immediate gratification. They want it now and are now willing to work for it. They give up easily and are lazy. Their first thought is not "how can I help others" but rather "what's in it for me." Sadly, they are learning this from their parents. I can't tell you how many times parents have said they would do something, then not follow-through because they don't care how it affects others.

In order to get attendance up, you are going to have to start with the parents. If you can't get the parents on board with attending the Pack meetings, then you just won't be able to get the attendance up because the boys aren't going to get to the meeting by themselves. You might try asking some of the parents who do not attend regularly why they don't attend. Are they just too busy? Do the meetings end too late? Do the meetings interfere with dinner time? Are the meetings boring? Do they realize the importance of attending the meetings? Maybe a common theme will arise in their answers and y