mrkstvns

12 minutes ago, Eagle94-A1 said:

District I am in wants it typed. #1 reason for that is that since handwriting isn't done in the schools locally, it is legible. Apparently they had issues in the past about legibility. The #2 reason for that is every student in the public school system is issued a laptop and the bulk of the Scouts are already use to typing everything up. Most homeschoolers and private school students also have computer access. So it isn't a big deal. 

I know my oldest is currently working on his paperwork. He has a working copy that he writes in pencil with and edits.. But he types up stuff once he finishes with the working copy.

It's okay to "want it typed" and to encourage scouts to do so. It is unacceptable to have a rule or policy about it. Such local rules violate the principal of "No More, No Less."

Good adult scouters enable scouts to succeed. They never set up roadblocks or impediments. 

Just thought I'd point out that the Supernova medals are considerably more achievable at the Cub level than they are at the Scout or Venturer levels. (By that, I mean that parents are more likely to be able to competently guide and advise their kids than they will when the subjects get more involved and the requirements more intensive).

Most scoutmasters wouldn't let themselves get into this situation. That's because they would be "Trained" leaders who know about youth leadership and the patrol method and the importance of open, honest, communication in any leadership role.

"Contraband" should be defined only based on established policies of the camp, the established policies of the troop, and solutions to problems discussed and agreed upon by the SPL-led PLC.  If scoutmasters see an issue that is not an imminent life and death situation, they should raise the issue with the SPL (explaining any valid rationale for the issue, --- like health or policy violations, etc.)  and suggest he consult with his PLC to find a suitable solution. 

When the boys solve their own problems, the scoutmaster doesn't run the risk of appearing untrustworthy or disrespecting any individual scout. It also means that parents don't have any justification for their knee-jerk reactions to situations they never witnessed themselves and only heard about 2nd or 30th hand from their scout...

14 minutes ago, Summitdog said:

My son is a boy scout who is entering the sixth grade, has not started/completed the Parvuli Dei.  The rub is my son is 11 years old and a scout.  From my reading, he is not eligible for the emblem.  Additionally, because he has not completed the 6th grade and he is not 13 years old he may not work towards the Ad Altare Dei emblem.  So as it stands, he is just in a holding pattern for a couple of years.  Does everyone agree?

Yes, I think you've figured this one out on your own.

Parvuli Dei is for 8-10 year old Cub Scouts. Once a scout crosses over to a Scout troop, he's no longer eligible. 

Ad Altare Dei is for 13-14 year olds who have completed 6th grade. 

(Info:  http://www.nccs-bsa.org/index.php/religious-emblems/ad-altare-dei)

Let your son focus on earning his ranks through First Class. He'll then be well situated to handle the (fairly rigourous) Ad Altare Dei program.

Good luck!

On 6/11/2019 at 2:18 PM, Saltface said:

What does the G2SS say about terrorists?

It says that if female scouts are negotiating with the terrorists, there must be at least one female adult terrorist present. Cub scouts are only allowed to negotiate with terrorists armed with BB guns. When terrorists are detonating bombs, the scouts must be accompanied by an NRA-certified Range Safety Officer. 

I love tasty foods, and for some reason, that's a rare beast out on the hiking trail. Doesn't have to be though.  A spicy wrap can be a great alternative to yet another handful of GORP.

INGREDIENTS:

For each wrap:

• 1/3 cup couscous
• 1 tbsp diced onion
• 1 tbsp diced celery
• 1/2 tsp granulated chicken bullion
• pouch of diced chicken
• 1 packet buffalo sauce (I save extras from Chik Fil A)
• 2 tbsp bleu cheese (or shredded hard cheese)
• 1 large flour tortilla

DIRECTIONS
At home, prepare couscous mix by adding couscous to a quart freezer bag and then adding 1/3 cup hot water and granulated chicken bullion. Stir in onion and celery. Pack the bag of mixed couscous along with a packet of buffalo hot sauce, a flour tortilla, and some cheese topping (I like bleu cheese in cold weather months, but when warmer weather rolls around, I'll substitute some shredded romano or other hard grating cheese). 

Making the wrap is easy. Spread the couscous on the tortilla, heap on diced chicken, cheese and hot sauce. Roll it up and savor the flavor!

1 hour ago, WolfDenRulz said:

Thank you, and very cool requirements, but may I assume that school work is accepted?

Some requirements might be particularly easy to meet via school work. As I look at some of "Act like a scientist" requirements, some of the potential experiments look very similar to things I've seen my kids doing as school projects.

Again, talk to your Nova counselor to ask if they apply. The answer might be "yes"...

56 minutes ago, WolfDenRulz said:

I wish more Scouts promoted this.

Like a lot of things in scouting, it's often a matter of opportunity.

When I was a scout, my troop was chartered by a school PTA. The CO didn't care about religious emblems and nobody in the troop really talked them up. Some scouts kind of sort of knew they were out there, but I don't recall a single one of my friends earning one.

My son's troop is chartered by a catholic church. The COR cares a lot about religion and duty to God. The CC and SM (and about 50% of the adult leadership corps) are members of the chartering parish. As a result, not a year goes by that an adult doesn't step forward and offer to lead a religious emblems class. My son earned his religious emblem in the troop. So did a lot of his friends. 

The difference is simply opportunity.  If the religious emblems are important to the scouts in a troop and to the adult leadership, they will happen.

9 minutes ago, WolfDenRulz said:

Thank you, and very cool requirements, but may I assume that school work is accepted?

That will be a judgment call by  your local Nova Counselor (or Supernova Mentor).  If the school work is on point and the scout understands whatever the crux of the requirement might be, then yes, it will probably be accepted.  On the other hand, if the den is doing a group activity aimed at completing a Nova award, and the scout is part of the den, then I would expect him to participate in the activity fully regardless of whether he might have done something similar in school.  It just depends.

25 minutes ago, WolfDenRulz said:

Thank you for giving me this information, but I am sorry that I still don't understand.  I see what loops are needed, and they give alternative exercises, but nothing that says a Scout can't earn it from getting the proper loops.  I am not trying to be difficult, just wanting to know more.  I thank you again.

No problem, let's look at one of the NOVA awards as an example (they all work the same way at the same scouting level). Work through the mechanics of an award and you'll see how the NOVA differs from earning "the proper loops":

1. Visit BSA's Cub Scout NOVA page:  https://www.scouting.org/stem-nova-awards/awards/cub-scout/  
2. Click one award to see the specific requirements.  Let's choose "Tech Talk" as a representative example.
3. Notice that Requirement 2 specifies specific "Adventures" for different Cub Scout rank levels (Wolf, Bear, Webelos --- Tigers are generally not supposed to work on NOVA awards).  In the past, these referred to belt loops and pins that needed to be earned, but the current Cub Scout Advancement program uses "Adventures", so that's what the current NOVA program requires.  
4. Each NOVA award has 5 to 6 requirements. Only requirement 2 of each award can be satisfied by simply earning recognition via the normal Advancement program (e.g., "earning the proper loops").
5. Requirement 1 requires the scout to watch documentaries, read books, or both. That may or probably won't have any relationship to Adventures (or belt loops or pins).
6. Requirement 4 requires the scout to go visit a place where technology is being used. Again, not necessarily any part of the requirements for a rank advancement.
7. Requirements 3, 5, and maybe 6, work the same way. They're "above and beyond" the belt loop, pin, or adventure requirements outlined in your Cub Scout Handbook for the appropriate rank level.

Just now, WolfDenRulz said:

Yes, you are correct for a Boy Scout, but I was referring to a Cub.  My mistake/

No, I'm referring to the Cub Scout NOVA program.

If the leaders in your unit aren't doing all of the things I described, they're not following BSA's requirements (even in spirit) and they're denying your kids the opportunity for meaningful STEM experience appropriate to their age.

Don't take my word for it, though.  Visit the official BSA pages that define the NOVA program *FOR CUBS*:
https://www.scouting.org/stem-nova-awards/awards/cub-scout/ 

4 minutes ago, David CO said:

I understand that. The problem is that about half of this food ends up in the trash can. They don't eat it. 

True enough.  But encouraging kids to eat lots of grease, salt and sugar leads to obesity, diabetes, etc. 

I am thankful that I'm not one of the bureaucrats in Washington tasked with solving this kind of dilemma. A single solution that meets all goals for everyone is never easy.

On 6/14/2019 at 2:27 PM, Thunderbird said:

...Also, we would try to schedule a couple activities each month, so that families could attend at least one of them (due to summer vacations, etc.).

-Nature hike + service project
-Pack overnight campout
-Geocaching
-Scout night at a local minor league baseball game
-Cubmobile

Scheduling at least 2 activities per summer month is a really good idea....let's all the families have a chance to take part in something.

When my son was a cub, his pack reserved a neighborhood pool one evening during the week and had a "pack swim".  It was a hit with the boys and easy for the parents to support. Win-win.

2 minutes ago, David CO said:

Take, for example, the federally subsidized school lunch program. I understand the good intentions of the program, but it upsets me to tell a hungry child that he/she can't have any more food because a bureaucrat in Washington has decided that every child needs to be on a low-cal, low-fat, low-salt, high-fiber diet.

Easy to complain about, isn't it?

Without the school lunch programs though, many disadvantages kids would find themselves on a NO-cal, NO-fat, NO-salt, NO-fiber....NO-food diet. 

11 hours ago, mashmaster said:

... the kids made poor decisions on food and not fully water proofing the food.  

We survived those decisions.

Excellent!!

I'm glad to hear that the kids had an opportunity to learn from their mistakes and grow their experience and wisdom.

15 hours ago, David CO said:

I also know a clergy member who always refuses to write anybody a letter of recommendation. He says that it is a new policy from his superiors. They don't want to be put in the difficult position of having to explain someday why one of their clergy members wrote a glowing testimonial for someone who was later accused of sexual misconduct. 

That's okay.  He can content himself with knowing that he's the kind of clergyman who would refuse to help a young parishioner as he grew up to find the cure for cancer leading to his earning the Nobel Prize.

Many scouts think of themselves as "gung ho" outdoorsmen, but few have the National Medal for Outdoor Achievement to speak for them...

A scout in Michigan earned one.  He is in rare company...I salute his achievement!
https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2019/06/ann-arbor-boy-scout-awarded-national-outdoor-achievement-medal.html 

4 minutes ago, JoeBob said:

Or is the Patrol method truly dead?

Nope.  All of those were in the original list published by BSA...

For scouters in the BSA, the area where ticks are a problem is everywhere.  There is not a single state in the U.S. that does not have a native population of ticks ready to bite and spread disease.  

The CDC has a web page about ticks that bite people, and which  diseases they most commonly transmit.   The page is here: https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/geographic_distribution.html   

• Most common is the Brown Dog Tick, found in every state and known to transmite Rocky Mountain Spotted fever in the southwest U.S.   
• The American Dog Tick is common in the east and in California.  
• The Blacklegged Tick is common in the east and can transmit a smorgasbord of diseases, ranging from Lyme disease to Powassan virus.  
• The Gulf Coast Tick is common along the Gulf Coast (no surprise there), but is also common along the Atlantic coast as far north as Maryland, and in the states of Oklahoma and Arkansas. 
• The Lone Star Tick is also common along the Gulf Coast and in the midwest, the rust belt states, and all states along the Atlantic Coast from Floritda to Maine. 
• The Rocky Mountain Tick is found from the Pacific Northwest southwards to northern Arizona and New Mexico (so you Philmont trekkers might find a few of them). They are known to transmit Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever among other illnesses.
• Although the Western Blacklegged Tick is most common on the Pacific Coast, it is also common in the state of Utah. It carries Lyme disease and Anaplasmosis. 

In addition to those common ticks, there are also "invasive" tick species that you might find in some locales, such as the Asian Longhorned Tick. 

Stay safe!  Check yourself for ticks each day and carry a tick key, tweezers, or other gadget to remove them when found. 

People on these forums use 1,001 different abbreviations and acronyms. Many are common across scouting. Some are just invented on the spot and assumed to be understandable (but rarely are).

BSA publishes a list of common scouting acronyms.  The list is here:
https://www.scouting.org/resources/los/abbreviations/

As I read through the list, it is obvious that the folks compiling the list missed many, many very common acronyms.  Here's my quick and dirty list of additional acronyms....

AC - Advancement Chair
BL - Boys Life
BOR - Board of Review
CC - Committee Chair
CM - Cubmaster
CO - Charter Organization
EBOR - Eagle Board of Review
G2SS - Guide to Safe Scouting
ILST - Introduction to Leadership Skills for Troops
JTE - Journey to Excellence
LDS - Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
MB - merit badge
MBU - Merit Badge University
NAYLE - National Advenced Youth Leadership Experience
NSJ - National Scout Jamboree
OE - Outdoor Ethics
QM - Quartermaster
SM - Scoutmaster
SS - Sea Scouts
WSJ - World Scout Jamboree
YPT - Youth Protection Training

Got more acronyms that BSA and me overlooked???

5 minutes ago, ItsBrian said:

I would make sure that your scouts know that they should report it. About your question for who can administer first aid, I believe anyone can. I don’t think there are age restrictions, I am the highest certified in my troop but I am a scout. 

Point well taken.

Many of the adult scouters in our troop are quite weak in basic scouting skills, including first aid, while we have youth who hold Red Cross certifications, Wilderness First Aid, etc.

This is particularly true with regard to water rescue skills. Our troop has exactly 1 adult with any real lifeguard experience and BSA Aquatic Supervision training, while most of the rest just have the simplistic Safety Afloat and Safe Swim Defense.  On the other hand, we have several scouts who have earned their Lifesaving merit badges and a couple with BSA Lifeguard and even summer job experience as a lifeguard. Those scouts are much more qualified to actually recognize an incident and respond quickly and correctly than would most of the adult scouters in the troop.

Being an adult does not automatically endow one with skills and wisdom.

10 hours ago, mashmaster said:

Just got back from a 72 mile canoe trip on the Buffalo River in Arkansas with our Sea Scouts.  It was quite the experience.  It was a long drive there and a long time paddling but it was quite the experience.  We even got buzzed by a Bald Eagle.

Best part was my son's Instagram post:  "We all had a great time except for some near death experiences but it was totally worth it!😅😎"

Sounds like a great time!  I wish my son's troop would do more of these "roll your own" type of adventure trips.  

How many days did it take you to paddle those 72 miles?

Who would ever imagine that a group of paddlers would need rescuing at exactly the time and place where a scout troop was learning about river rescue....

Coincidence?  I suspect the hand of God was involved here...

I'm curious....

Is it common for a parent to write the "religious letter"?

Seems to me that there are an awful lot of families that do not participate regularly in a church...

38 minutes ago, CubScoutIdeas said:

I have a post on my blog with 75 ideas. Hope it’s helpful!

https://cubscoutideas.com/6276/75-pack-activities-for-summertime-pack-award/

Wow!  You sure put a lot of thought into that post, and you have some excellent ideas!  

A couple thoughts on a few of your ideas....

Attend minor league baseball --- yes, definitely a lot of fun for kids, and a whole lot more family oriented (and affordable) than big league games.  I'd just like to add that many teams have specific "Scout Nights" when your kids might be able to sleep out on the field after the game, run bases, or play catch with a player....

Water balloon baseball --- That sounds TOO fun for words!  I might change it up to be "Water Balloon Tennis" simply because tennis rackets have more surface area than baseball bats letting the little guys more easily hit the balloon.

Theatre night --- Excellent idea!  A lot of cities also do free outdoor concerts or theatre during the summer, so this might be cheaper than expected.

Outdoor movies ---- Yes.  If you don't want to do this yourself, there might be drive-in movies within a reasonable distance. I live in Houston and there is one to the northwest of the city, always a double feature and my kids love bringing friends and lying out in the bed of my pickup truck with the tailgate down and sleeping bags and pillows spread out in the bed.

Thanks for all the great tips!  (Love your other blog posts too....)