Cambridgeskip

16 minutes ago, EmberMike said:

Agreed. There should been a freeze on any girl uniform items for at least a couple of years. They don't need them, at the cub level the clothing is universal enough to fit a boy or a girl. If they wanted to roll out girl-specific products later, fine. But at the launch of the program, it just sends the wrong message. The opposite message of what we've been trying to express, really, that girls want the boy program as-is, and we're giving them that same program and experience. Except we're not, if you're a girl, you should wear this impractical gender-specific uniform item. 

 

If you turn out anything like the UK the girls stuff will quietly disappear.

Theoretically there is a uniform skirt. If memory serves I have seen precisely one adult wear it and not one single youth member. The girls just go for the trousers, same as the boys.

4 hours ago, NJCubScouter said:

Yes, and the terminology seems awkward and/or incorrect throughout the article.

If you're wanting the media to get the terminology right I wouldn't hold my breath. The UK Scout Association dropped the term "boy scouts" in the 1960s and has been fully coed since 1991 but read some newspapers and you'd be surprised to learn that. As someone else said, just roll with it!

15 hours ago, Col. Flagg said:

ROFL...the impact of being so close to France.

[Well done Kestrels]

As it happens that Patrol has a brother and sister in it who are half French. It may we'll be their influence!

there were a couple of other good efforts including one lot that did survival after a plane crash. The way they shot it using a paper aeroplane and three heads behind it was quite impressive! I'm away for the weekend now but might upload that clip when I get a moment.

Weird thread title but.... we had an inter patrol movie making competition tonight. Each patrol had one hour and a phone to produce a short film on a subject of their choice.

Entering the Dark was the winning entry.

Hadn't anticipated scout aged kids producing anything quite this creepy or genuinely well made.

Sleep well everyone!

3 hours ago, NJCubScouter said:

What say you, @Cambridgeskip and @ianwilkins?  Do British Scouts get dressed up as Saxon hordes or Norman conquerors or anything like that?    You have more "legend and lore" to choose from than we do. 

(Added: I found a good illustration of some Saxon raiders doing their thing, but I did not post it because it was slightly gruesome.  What I noticed that is somewhat relevant to today is that the guys were carrying... sheath knives!  Very large ones, too.)

Not really!

Younger sections, ie beavers and cubs, might sometimes have a themed camp which mind involve outfits of some sort but it's not something that would be done as a matter of course. We certainly don't have anything resembling OA at all.

2 hours ago, MattR said:

Sorry to hear about your forced vacation, @Cambridgeskip. But the book sounds like a lot of fun. I'm just hoping the main character gets into a lot of trouble along the way. What's the phrase UK scouts uses? Youth formed, or something like that. Maybe she can take her patrol on a ride down a river on a home made raft, as a way to escape the adults! Those were the books I loved as a kid.

Thank you!

My protagonist certainly gets into some mischief. The most fun is hoodwinking the campsite staff to get her onto things like sailing and rock climbing

There's also some more serious theme running through it, all the stuff teenagers have to deal with as they go through puberty. Jealousy, school bullying, boy meets girl, relationships with parents and all those other joyful things.

3 hours ago, Tampa Turtle said:

 I say give it your best shot, to get it out of your system if for nothing else.

That's broadly the idea. It seemed like one of those if not now then when moments.

Fact is that most writers don't make enough to live on but if I don't give it a go I'll never actually know whether I could do it or not.

3 hours ago, Tampa Turtle said:

(I try to take break from social media during the weekends so I am a bit behind) Bully for You! Scouts give a lot of opportunities for stories and the younger ones say the funniest things. Is this a children's book or more of a YA story? If it is a children's book will it be illustrated?

Years ago my wife got burned out at her job and took a couple years off to write a novel (based on her work place). I know it was a lot of hard work.

When I was a professor I had to write a lot and it is a slow and painful process for me...the dyslexia makes it extra difficult. I am much better at writing and giving speeches for some strange way...I am available for funerals and Scout Courts of Honor. But writing fiction is , for me, hard, mentally exhausting work. (When I was an artist doing figure painting or sketching for hours was pretty hard too...no one gives you credit for that sort of thing)

Will you be writing under a pseudonym? 

Thanks TT!

It's more of a YA book so I'm not planning on it being illustrated. The idea is that it explores some of the themes of growing up with my protagnist, who is a particularly awkward and moody teenager gradually coming to become comfortable in her own skin.

Quote

2 hours ago, ianwilkins said:

as far as I can work out, my prose style can come across a little rushed, too many commas, not enough description. Short sentences. 

 

I find prose hard as well. Dialogue relatively easy though. Maybe I should become a script writer?

11 minutes ago, scoutldr said:

"I was made redundant"....I love the British language!  Here in the Colonies, we get "fired" or "laid off".  Question, SKip:  when you say the time is "Half eleven"...what time is it?  Wife and I watch more British telly on PBS now than we do the American mindless sitcoms.  Our current faves are "The Durrells of Corfu", "Call the Midwife", "Midsomer Murders", and "Doc Martin".    

Now fired and laid off are two different things to us. Made redundant is, I think, the equivalent of laid off. ie your job no longer exists due to cut backs, closure etc. Which is what happened to me. Sort of. Basically HMRC is changing from about 180 small sites and condensing to 14 massive sites. I could have gone to a new one but it would have meant 4 hours commuting a day or move to East London. No thank you to either option! So I took redundancy (with a pay off generous enough I can spend some time writing!) To us fired means something different, it means dismissed or sacked, typically for gross misconduct or incompetence.

Anyway "half eleven" means half past eleven or 11.30.

As it happens Midsomer Murders is filmed in and around Cambridge. Gets a bit annoying when they tinker with the geography though!

A couple of recomendations, if you are fine with "robust" language give The Thick Of It a try. Political satire at its most biting. The central character, Malcolm Tucker, is losely based on Alistair campbell who was press secretary to Tony Blair when he was Prime Minister. The Royle Family is alo wonderful comedy. Basically follows the everyday life of a working class British suburban family. And the best part is that nothing ever happens! They lead the most dull, middle of the road life imaginable but it is so wonderfully onbserved and written that it is compulsive viewing. It's mostly them sitting round in front of the TV talking. Genius!

On the topic of scouting books......

Back In November I was made redundant from my job (I worked, for HM Revenue and Customs, broadly our equivalent of your IRS) and since then having been taking a bit of a career break during which I'm attempting to fulfill a bit of an ambition to write a book. And this particular book is a children's book set in a scout troop.

I won't give the whole plot away, you can all buy it if it's published! But broadly it concerns a scout who, after getting into trouble at school, is pulled out of scout summer camp by her (my protagonist is a girl. Sorry!) parents completely unjustly. Her patrol promptly help her to stowaway to summer camp.

I'm quite enjoying writing. It's certainly more fun than tax! Will it ever get published? Who knows. Even if it is I doubt I'll ever become the next Joanne Rowling, but you never know

An update on this.... Last night at scouts I asked my 11 year old if she would like to be a PL, explaining that the PLC had selected her but I wanted to speak to her personally about it.

She was a bit shocked and flattered. Clearly a bit daunted about taking it on but said she'd chew it over and let me know.

6 hours ago, Chadamus said:

RememberSchiff, to your point about pictures - maybe an album the parents can peruse on the Troop's website. Images of smiling, dirty faces so they can see how fun it can be.

Calling all Webmasters...

 

 

edited for spelling

Yes!

There is no better way of promoting scouting than lots of photos of kids doing fun stuff with sniles on their faces.

It won't work for all parents but show them what their childre are doing an they'll more likely want to get involved.

3 hours ago, Stosh said:

Ya, but you're standing on "hallowed" ground.

Don't say I didn't warn you though.... Anyway a quick guided tour of Gilwell based on photos on our group website.

The view over North London at sunset from The Quick (That's not the Thames, it's the Lee Valley reservoirs)

Smame view with a bunch of my cubs in 2009 in daylight. Two of that lot are assistant leaders now!

Same cubs absolutely exhausted at the same event, hot chocolate and a story from the Jungle Book before they go unconscious (that's me in the chair reading)

Neckers from groups who have camper there on the ceiling of the souvenieer shop

The 3G swing, one of the preferred activities among my scouts!

Essex Chase, one of the main camping fields, January 2010

High ropes course

One of our patrols in the camp square

Same mob outside the white house (national HQ, training centre and also used as a hotel)

"Big Mac" clock in the camp square

The outdoor climbing wall

Gates to the large campfire circle

Campfire circle in full swing

"The Lid" Used for stuff like this day time and evening entertainment at big events

Please don't buy organise a trip expecting there to be more. There really isn't. Various statues. The various chapels. That's all I've not shown of Gilwell. Please don't go buying a plane ticket based on that!

On 14/01/2018 at 12:58 AM, LeCastor said:

Thanks, @Cambridgeskip!  That's very helpful. 

No worries!

I would add though that while Gilwell is worth sticking your head into if you are passing I wouldn't make a massive detour to see it  if you only have limited time in the UK. There is some scout history there but you can probably see all of it in a couple of hours. The majority of the site is a run of the mill (for the UK) scout campsite and activity centre. Eccles (BP's caravan) may be there depending on what time of year it is. Easiest way to get there is to drive but if you are using public transport take a train to Chingford and get a taxi from there, or it's about 45 minutes walk.

Similarly I would combine Brownsea with something else. When we went it was the same day as the Bournemouth airshow nearby which we combined it with. 

As it happens I am at Gilwell Park as I type! Massive event called winter camp, big weekend jamboree affair. We come every year it's great fun

Gilwell are quite welcoming to visitors, phone in advance and they'll have you there. Be aware that's it's in a transitional phase. A lot of the old buildings are being closed knocked down and replaced. So the famous camp square looks quite run down but is due to be totally rebuilt.

Brownsea is indeed run by the National Trust which is a charity that looks after a lot of historic sites. It's open to visitors all year, no need to book advance. There's a passenger ferry from Poole harbour. Very beautiful and the original campsite is still there. Scouts can camp there but need to book years in advance! If you have any problem with wasps be aware it's infested with them.

There are plenty of places to camp near Poole and you can do a day trip there. We went for the day in 2015 while camping at a place called Ferny Crofts in 2015. Photos here http://12thcambridge.org.uk/summer-camp-2015/

28 minutes ago, vlca said:

Hi fellow scouters,

For my final Woodbadge ticket item on diversity, I am writing an eBook (which will become freely available to anyone) called 'Games for Scouts from around the World', but I need help!

I need to gather a collection of games that are played (preferably by cub/boy scouts) from different countries. Even better, if I can dedicate each contribution to a particular pack/troop (and even better still with a great quality photo of those scouts playing the game!).

If you are, or have contacts in, a country other than the USA, I would love to hear from you with your games ideas! It's going to be a great book

Thank you in anticipation,

Vicki Armstrong 

Cub scout pack 527 and W4-51-16 (California, USA)

More than happy to oblige! I'm a scout leader in the UK. A few of our troop's favourite games.....

George and the Dragon 

For this you need one scout to play the princess and however many you want to be the dragons (two works well),  the rest of the troop pair up as knights and their horses.

At one of a field mark out two squares, one inside the other. In the inner square is the princess who cannot leave until rescued by a knight. The outer square is the only area where the knights can dismount from their horse and is where the dragons start the game. At the other end the knights mount their horses by going piggy back and on the whistle charge across the field towards the princess. The dragons aim to tag the knights who are out if tagged, and also out of they dismount outside the square. The knights aim to avoid the dragon and be the first to rescue the princess.

Electric Chair

An indoor game good for killing a few minutes. Whole troop forms a circle and joins hands. In the middle is a chair. Object of the game is to drag other scouts so that they touch the chair in which case they are out. Also out is anyone that breaks the circle.

Hunt the Shoe

More popular with cubs than scouts but still great fun. Each scout removes one shoe and puts it on the floor before leaving the room. Once they've left the room adults mix them all up, turn out the lights and the scouts come back in. Winner is first scout to leave the room with the right shoes on.

Quiz relays 

Great inter patrol game. For this you will need a mutiple choice quiz. There needs to one fewer potential answers for each question than there are patrols. Patrols gather one end of the room. At the other end are a line of chairs, 1 fewer than the number of patrols. ie same as the number of answers. For each question 1 member of each patrol has to run forward and sit on the chair allocated to the correct answer. If someone is already on it they have to sit on their lap. Different points depending on how far down the pile you are! As an extra twist have a leader stood behind each chair who tries to convince the scouts that they have the correct answer, call my bluff style.

Honey pot

Good one for a hut summers day and works best with a large patrol. You need a chair, a blindfold, a water gun and some keys. One scout sits blindfold on the chair, keys or anything else noisy underneath. Rest of the scouts sit silently in a circle about 10 meters away. by whatever method you chose scouts get chosen to try and get the keys from the under the chair, blindfold scout has to try and shoot them with the water gun. Works best using a water gun that needs regular pumping to maintain the pressure to stop them holding down the trigger.

Human Knot races

Another good inter patrol game. Each patrol has a rope. Every member has to hold it in one hand only. Its then a race to tie a knot in it, getting increasingly complex as you go along.

I'll add more later if you want?

7 hours ago, qwazse said:

'Skip, can you clarify one thing? How much of these concerns are your own?

Have your co-leaders or parents raised issues?

The age of a youth leader doesn't come up much in our troop. But when SPLs from the rougher part of town get elected, we hear about it at committee meetings. None of those conversations compelled us to replace a leader, but it did make the SM feel unfairly like he was under a microscope.

The whole adult team raised an eyebrow! Everyone agreed that she's a pretty sound kid. I think what concerns everyone is thinking of that moment where she's got a 13 year old 18 inches taller than her that she needs to tell "pack it in, you're meant to be collecting fire wood." Fact is that there are older scouts than her in the troop that the PLC have over looked for being a PL, and they've been overlooked for a reason. 

No comments from parents as we haven't said anything to them.

Having slept on it I am increasingly of the opinion to go with the PLC decision but make sure she gets that bit of extra support as finds her feet. Assuming she wants the gig of course! Another option is we're expecting to lose 5 more to explorers in June so APL until then.

15 hours ago, Stosh said:

I let my boys know up front that they have 100% of my trust in all their decisions they may make.  However, if that trust is ever broken, they will never again achieve 100%  I then leave it up to them to decide how they wish to proceed.  Out of the past 45+ years, that trust has been broken maybe a half-dozen times.  The interesting thing about broken trust, the boys that want to earn it back work harder than those that simply maintain it in the first place.

The biggest obstacle to this whole thing is whether or not the adults wish to trust in the first place.  A few, like me, do.  Most don't.  The boys can spot that dynamic a mile off and conclude, why try to build trust that will never happen.  I agree with them.  I wouldn't even bother trying.

I guess this is the broader question.

If we put aside the specific situation, at what point should an adult intervene and say this really isn't a good idea? I'm sure you'd agree on a point of safety where the decision was going to get someone hurt or worse. But are there other times?

On 05/01/2018 at 9:12 PM, Stosh said:

Keep it in mind that females at this age are scientifically proven to be on average 2 years more mature than males.  With that being said, one could feel fairly confident that she would be on par with an equivalent 13 year old male.

I've never been completely convinced by that, at least not in a scouting context.

What is true is that girls become more articulate than boys at an earlier age which can give the impression of maturing more quickly. I think it a mistake though to necessarily see that as a sign of excessive wisdom. Boys and girls tend to bring different things to the troop/patrol. 

If it works out anything like here no one will buy them.

There is a uniform skirt for girls but in all my years I've seen precisely one adult wear it and not a single solitary youth member. 

Your girls will go for the shorts and trousers I'm sure!

As Tahawk says, the patrol system runs a bit differently here. Ultimate call does rest with the SL albeit they give as much responsibility to the scouts as possible. The view of the forum is simply to get some outside opinion. In any walk of life it's sometimes easy to miss something that you may wish to consider when only seeing things from the inside. Getting an external view can be very helpful!

Right, thought I'd get the perspective of you chaps across the Atlantic on this one....

First for those not familiar with UK age ranges scouts runs 10-14 years old, explorer scouts 14-18 years old. I run scouts. So far so good.

So.... first night back after Christmas tonight and we had a PLs council before hand. On the agenda was who should be the next batch of PLs. We're due to lose 3 out of 5 PLs and 2 out of 5 APLs to explorers at Feb half term and they'll need to be replaced.

The current PLC selected, among others, an 11 year old (12 in June) to become a PL in February.

Selection of PLs here doesn't follow a set process like it seems to with you. Each troop has its own way of doing it. With us we have traditionally had the PLC (both those due to remain and those due to go) select the next batch with me reserving the right to over ride them if I deemed it appropriate. In reality I don't think I ever have done for a PL. I think I drew the line once or twice about the odd APL but I have typically let them get on with it.

This 11 year old is exceptional for her age, intelligent and mature and there is family history in that her older brother is a current PL and a complete super star. If she follows in big brother's foot steps she'll be fine.

She is though only 11 and we do ask a lot of our PLs including leading patrol camps on nights away passports (ie no adults with them). I find that stressful enough as it is (I don't sleep well when they are doing it), I think realistically if she was a PL I'd have to draw a line there and say no, we'll need adults on site.

So I guess the question is 11 year old PLs. Who's done it? Has it worked? Any thoughts or comments? And with your big emphasis on scout led, would you just let them chose and see what happened?

20 minutes ago, Tampa Turtle said:

Brrrrr....

Where in bonny Scotland was that?

The centre the course operates from is in the village of Lochearnhead, Perthshire, South Eastern Highlands. Nearest major mountains are Ben Vorlich, Stuc-a-Chroin, Ben Lawers, Ben More. Depending on weather they sometimes get a bit further afield places like Bridge of Orchy.

A couple of our explorer scouts (14-18 year olds) have just got back from the Advanced Mountaineering Course run by our neighbouring scout county in the Scottish Highlands over new year. Piccies here! Our mountains aren't quite the Rockies but as you can see they certainly found themselves in a winter wonderland. I'm quite jealous! I'd have tagged along (adults can do the course as well) if I hadn't been on the grand tour of the family over Christmas and New Year. 

One that my family play that I keep meaning to test on my scouts is a variation on charades.

Each person player has 3 pieces of paper and has to write on them the name of a book, a film and a TV show respectively. Fold them up and put them in a bowl. The group is then divided into two teams.

Someone from team one has one minute to take pieces of paper out the bowl and describe whats on them to their team and the team has to guess what it is. They can pass on one. The bowl goes to the other team and back and forth a minute at a time.

When all the bits of paper are used you add up the scores.

Then to round two.... the same bits of paper go back in the bowl and it works same as before but who ever is picking the bits of paper has to mime.

The to round three and this time you have to describe it using just one word.

Great fun! I just keep forgetting to suggest it to the scouts.