Age or grade for Tiger

[kittle]

I know that a Tiger is supposed to be 7 or in the First grade. But do they have to be 7 before the year starts or turn 7 during the program year. I have had another parent ask me. There son will turn 7 next Jan and he wants to start Scouts.

 

Second part of the question: is it better to go age based or grade based? I have my opinion on this, but I am wondering what others think.

 

Thanks,

kittle

[msnowman]

AFAIK it is First Grade or 7 years old.

 

It seems that (at least around here) most first graders are 6 years old...or turn 7 sometime during the school year. Heck, with my birthday I didn't turn 7 until a week after I started second grade.

 

Age versus grade based would seem to me to be a local choice. We go grade based - probably out of habit, but it does at least seem that with grade based the dens would be a bit more stable, less in and out during the course of a program year. Also, since many Packs run a school year program, grade based seems to fit that style program better than age based.

 

LDS groups are, of course, an exception.

 

YiS

Michelle

 

 

[ScoutNut]

The Youth Application states -

 

"Tiger Cub Must be under the age of 8, have completed kindergarten or be in the first grade, or be age 7."

 

These are the requirements to REGISTER as a Tiger Cub. It does not state that they may be reached at some future time during the year. If the boy does not currently meet the joining requirements, at the time he is filling out his application, he can not join.

 

If this boy has COMPLETED kindergarten he can register as a Tiger Cub. If he is going INTO kindergarten, and is not yet 7 years old, he can not register.

 

[Karen_216]

It is grade based.(usually)

My son is 7 and just completed wolf year -- he is in 2nd grade and is younger than most of his group-- you can tell by behavior too.

I asked the council about a friend who is same age and wanted to join our den but was in 1st grade and was told is he would have to be 8 or 2nd grade to be wolf so he must join tigers if he wanted to join. So following this you have to be in 1st grade or 7 to be a Tiger.(not both)

If a boy turns 7 in Jan and is in kindergarten he would need to wait until the end of his kindergarten year to join.

He would be with the children of his same grade.

 

Only exception may be a child who perhaps was held back for education reasons.

that's my interpretation.

[Lisabob]

Most people in our area go with grade level because that way boys are together with their friends from class. I can see doing it based on age too and I'd say go with whatever works for your area - but that's the norm around here.

 

As for the 6 year old in question ...if he will be in 1st grade in the fall he can be a Tiger starting the end of this school year.

 

(However I do know a couple of packs who won't take Tiger apps until fall because they don't want to take very young boys to day camp with them. I respect that, even though at a district and council level we tend to push day camp as a great intro into cub scouting for brand new Tigers and their parents.)

[SctDad]

ScoutNut

 

I think you might be mistaken. THe way that I have been told is these are the requirements

 

Age 7 - Cut and Dry. Must be 7. There is nothing saying that a boy cannot start halfway through the year.

 

Or he Must have completed kindergarten. I know some are going to comment on this. My DE is getting ready to have a round up here in a few weeks for new tigercubs. This will be good so they can attend some of our summertime events with us and get into scouting.

 

Review so you know what I have interpreted and been told

 

Age of 7 or 6 and completed Kindergarten

[FScouter]

Application: "Tiger Cub Must be under the age of 8, have completed kindergarten OR be in the first grade, OR be age 7."

 

Seems clear enough. What's to interpret? "Interpretations" arise when we want to slip a kid in that doesn't meet the requirement, or keep some other kid out, or maybe we just want to re-write the rule using different wording like age-based / grade-based. BSA already covered that.

[ScoutNut]

Nope, I'm not mistaken. There is nothing to interpret. I quoted the Tiger Cub Joining Requirements straight from the Youth Application.

 

I never said a boy could not join at any time he chose. However, when ever a boy chooses to join the BSA, even half way thru the year, he must, AT THAT TIME, still meet the current joining requirements.

 

If the boy Kittle is asking about has completed kindergarten, he may register as a Tiger Cub Scout, even though he is curently 6 and will not turn 7 until January.

 

If the 6 year old boy is only entering kindergarten he can not join Cub Scouts yet. His parents can consider registering him as a Tiger in January, after he turns 7 and meets the joining requirements.

[Scouting Mom]

If the rest of the pack in grade based, the Tigers should be too. If the wolves are all second graders who (depending on when their birthday is, and when the school cut off date is) are 7 and 8 years old, the Bears are 8 & 9 year old 3rd graders and the first year Webelos are 8 & 9 year old 4th graders, then the Tigers should be 1st graders, be they 6 or 7 years old.

 

If the boy was held back and is 7 and in Kindergarten, then technically, he can join as a Tiger as of his 7th birthday, even if that is in the middle of the school year, however then he technically cannot move up to wolves until his 8th birthday in the middle of his 1st grade year. The boy then gets off schedule from his den and keeps switching dens. Now I realize LDS packs do this and that's just how they work, but they don't have Tigers anyway, so I imagine the pack in question is a grade based one.

 

Also, consider...if a boy is 7 and in Kindergarten, isn't it likely he has a special need? Few jurisdictions will hold back a child that young unless there is a special need. Therefore, if the school system feels the child is on a K level, is it in his best interest to put him in Tigers now, or to wait until he's in 1st grade?

 

My understanding of having the grade and age requirement differ...considering that the age is generally a year older than the typical boys in the mentioned grade (ie. most 1st graders are 6, not 7, 2nd graders are 7, etc. at least in the beginning) has more to do with the way LDS pack operate, while everyone else looks at grades. It also helps keep boys who join mid-year in the den that corresponds to their grade level....

 

A couple of years back, we had a brand-new CM installed in February. In March, two boys joined the pack and the CM was taking their applications. CM was a homeschool parent, so grade levels meant little to him. He tried to put these two 3rd grade boys in a Webelos den, because they were too late to realistically earn their Bear by June and both boys were already 9 years old. The rule for Webelos is 4th grade or 10. He didn't believe me and demanded verification of the rules because he'd already told these parents that there was no point in joining the Bears because they couldn't get their rank. I agreed with him that they wouldn't get rank, but could have fun with their 3rd grade peers and move up with them June 1 and begin working on Webelos then. Still the CM wanted to argue that he had to see proof (which was not readily available) until one of the parents said, "My son's friend is H...what den is H in?" H was a Bear, end of argument.

[kittle]

Thank you for all the responses. I didn't have a youth application. That give me the information that I need to share with this parent.

 

I put my son in according to age and not grade because grade would have put my Tiger aged son in a Wolf den. I am a homeschooler and my son is at a 2nd/3rd grade level. I am more interested in making sure that he is the right age when he crosses over into Boy Scouts. I didn't want him to be to young and immature. But, also, if my son had been held back a year I would put him in a den according to age and not grade. I wouldn't want him to crossover and have a year less to work on the advancements.

 

Thanks again for all the answers.

[SctDad]

I am posting to admit I missed something when I read the post by ScoutNut. I Missed the word "under"

 

I can see what you are talking about. And I think we were meaning the same thing just talkin in different languages.