New Merit Badges

[OldGreyEagle 5]

For the New Year, is there a new merit badge you wish to have established? Lets see what we would like to have added to the mix.

 

Personally I would to see a Gourmet Cooking merit badge, this would have cooking as a prerequisite, but expand on the variety of dishes prepared and also have a few domestic (at home) requirements, such as a dinner party for 8 or something.

 

And then a Linguistics merit badge where the scout must learn another language or two, or at least have a working knowledge of them. What do you all think?

[OldGreyEagle 5]

And if you really like an idea, this is the process to get the badge approved:

 

http://www.usscouts.org/usscouts/mb/proposals.html

[sctmom 11]

I would love to see a different cooking badge. My son loves to cook. Men need to know how to cook at home for themselves and the family as well as on the trail. This might include how to set a table and proper table manners (which fork do I use? what is that extra glass for?) Being a chef is great career for many.

 

I also like your idea about Linguistics. Maybe also a badge to learn a lot about another culture --- foods, language, customs, education, etc.

 

I noticed Personal management is more about financial management. How about a merit badge that covers time management? Some other subjects I would like to see covered (and I'm NOT trying to just be Politically Correct) are conflict resolution, personal hygiene, how to dress properly, finding out about your values, dealing with peer pressure, respect for girls, respect for those who are different. I know these are by-products of Scouting now, but really address them. It doesn't have to be touchy feely group hugging stuff, but get it out there in the open.

 

Okay, I'll admit it, I've been reading Girl Scout literature.

 

Seriously, if you look at some of their badges for the same age group you will see some things that many boys aren't learning and need to know! I know the approach will have to be different with boys, and I doubt the boys will want to do a fashion show, but still these are things that boys need to learn. Years ago, boys didn't have to worry about what to wear to school, not much of a choice. But there are many choices now for boys, and how to wear their hair, jewelry, etc. Make the boys think about what values are, make them think about what really matters to them.

 

 

[evmori 11]

Competitive Swimming. This would give the Scouts who want to learn racing turns & dives a forum. Then National could move those requirements to this merit badge. Naturally, swimming would be a pre-req.

 

Ed Mori

Scoutmaster

Troop 1

[sctmom 11]

Based on a thread under the uniform section --- tailoring (or sewing). My son loves to work with my sewing machine. Many women I know say their husbands get really excited when helping them shop for new electronic, computerized sewing machine. And as I said in the other thread, many men find quilt making requires similiar thinking skills as house building or wood working.

 

There is a famous quilt teacher on TV who is male. He said the other side benefit of teaching quilt class and seminars is he gets to spend a day or more in the company of a bunch of women, who hang on his every word and make sure he is well fed.

 

[Dedicated Dad 10]

We do have a lot of merit badges!

American Business, American Culture, American Heritage, American Labor, Animal Science, Archaeology, Archery, Architecture, Art, Astronomy, Athletics, Atomic Energy, Auto Mechanics, and Aviation.

Backpacking, Basketry, Bird Study, and Bugling.

Camping, Canoeing, Chemistry, Cinematography, Citizenship in the Community, Citizenship in the Nation, Citizenship in the World, Climbing, Coin Collecting, Collections, Communications, Computers, Cooking, Crime Prevention, and Cycling.

Dentistry, Disabilities Awareness, Dog Care, and Drafting.

Electricity, Electronics, Emergency Preparedness, Energy, Engineering, Entrepreneurship, and Environmental Science.

Family Life, Farm Mechanics, Fingerprinting, Fire Safety, First Aid, Fish and Wildlife Management, Fishing, and Forestry.

Gardening, Genealogy, Geology, Golf, and Graphic Arts.

Hiking, Home Repairs, and Horsemanship.

Indian Lore, and Insect Study.

Journalism.

Landscape Architecture, Law, Leatherwork, and Lifesaving.

Mammal Study, Medicine, Metalwork, Model Design and Building, Motorboating, and Music.

Nature.

Oceanography, and Orienteering.

Painting, Personal Fitness, Personal Management, Pets, Photography, Pioneering, Plant Science, Plumbing, Pottery, Public Health, Public Speaking, and Pulp and Paper.

Radio, Railroading, Reading, Reptile and Amphibian Study, Rifle Shooting, and Rowing.

Safety, Salesmanship, Scholarship, Sculpture, Shotgun Shooting, Skating, Small-Boat Sailing, Snow Sports, Soil and Water Conservation, Space Exploration, Sports, Stamp Collecting, Surveying, and Swimming.

Textile, Theater, Traffic Safety, and Truck Transportation.

Veterinary Medicine.

Water Skiing, Weather, Whitewater, Wilderness Survival, Wood Carving, and Woodwork.

 

 

[evmori 11]

What's your point?

[Dedicated Dad 10]

I would seem that we need to consolidate some of our current badges before we expand to more. This message brought to you by the Redundancy Office of the Department of Redundancy.

[FScouter 24]

I'd like to see the beekeeping merit badge returned.

[evmori 11]

dedicated dad,

Not a bad point. There are a lot of similar merit badges that have similar requirements. However, the ranks requirements are similar, too. I feel new merit badges should expand on existing ones.

 

Ed Mori

Scoutmaster

Troop 1

[Dedicated Dad 10]

Animal Science, Bird Study, Dog Care, Horsemanship. Insect Study, Mammal Study, Pets, Reptile and Amphibian Study, Veterinary Medicine.

 

 

Athletics, Cycling, Golf, Personal Fitness, Skating, Snow Sports, Sports, Water Skiing, and I know there use to be a snow skiing merit badge, I have it.

 

And there are many other similar groupings.

 

For the record, I would like to see a tailoring or sewing aspect to the merit badge system, perhaps as an expansion to the textile badge. I would, however, call it garment manufacturing or something similar so not to stigmatize it with any more of a feminizing appearance than necessary. I wouldnt be in favor of an interior decorating merit badge for similar reasons, I think the feminization of men/boys is counterproductive to the program.

 

Further, and in contradiction to my own opinion of consolidation, I am not in favor of making any of the requirements more difficult or time consuming than they already are.

 

[Dedicated Dad 10]

A side note, does anyone remember or know whether the old design of the Shotgun Shooting merit badge had an actual shotgun embroidery as opposed to the current powder magazine and shell casing? I seem to recall this was the old design.

[Dedicated Dad 10]

And if you really like an idea, this is the process to get the badge approved:

http://www.usscouts.org/usscouts/mb/proposals.html

If this thread gets some good ideas, we can reply with a hyperlink of this entire thread.

 

[OldGreyEagle 5]

Sctmom I love it, what about this:

 

A section on Eating Etiquette, a section on how to formally set a table, tieing two knots with long ties and tieing a bowtie. How to prepare a gourmet dinner, (for two rather than eight)how to dance the waltz and at least two other "classic" dances. When it is proper to wear a tuxedo and when not and perhaps how to tie a cumberband

 

The merit badge design would be a single pearl, as in cultured

[sctmom 11]

"I would, however, call it garment manufacturing or something similar so not to stigmatize it with any more of a feminizing appearance than necessary. I wouldnt be in favor of an interior decorating merit badge for similar reasons, I think the feminization of men/boys is counterproductive to the program. "

 

It isn't about the feminization but about teaching skills that are very important, but often stereotyped as "female only" in our current society. How do you handle the boy who is interested in something that is "woman like" such as nursing? There are many stereotypes of men that boys need to be made aware of. Instead of continuing these stereotypes find a way to teach the boys they are not true.

 

I like OGE's ideas too. The Cub Scouts used to have to learn how to tie a necktie. For some boys you could start how to dress proper with how to wear a belt and how to pull up your pants. A lesson in why showers are good and why soap is good.