ScoutMomAng

Here is a link to a site where you can get the Excel version or you can download a PDF file. They are both the same thing just in different versions. Both are downloadable and work wonderful. Best thing about it is, if you have any questions you can e-mail the lady who made them and she will quickly respond to your e-mail! http://madsenco.com/scouting.shtml

Madkins! Thanks! I love it! I think I'll use it and have my hubby tweak it just a tad (actually, he'll teach me to sing it in tune since I can't carry a tune)! I seen the two from the roundtable resource and the program helps, but I wanted something I didn't think the other dens would be singing. My goal is to teach the entire pack more songs. This pack doesn't seem to know a whole lot of songs, so the more we do the more they learn. Thanks for all your help. Angela

Hi all, My Webelos I and II den has been given the job of song for the pack meeting. This usually isn't a problem for me, however, I thought this time, since we have such a HUGE new crowd I would like the boys to do a song that is particular to the theme for October. Since the theme is To The Rescue, I'm having a VERY difficult song to fit into that theme. Anybody know of a song that can fit in that theme? I've already searched online, and have looked at all the lyrics of just about every song on the most popular sites but I can't find anything. Is there some old time song that the boys can do that will be fun and fit that theme? Thanks for any help anybody can provide. Angela

AOL can not be worn on the blue uniform because the new Webelos badge is oval and can only be worn on the tan uniform therefor ridiculous to put it on the blue shirt since they are no longer wearing it. Angela

What are the two boys working on who are W2 and not new to scouting while the others are starting from Day 1? Actually, the months of October and November are going to be repeat for the 2 webs II, but they are also assisting the other boys. August and September were things that neither of the Webs II had. All the boys were given a spreadsheet for the requirements of the Athlete Activity Pin to work on for the month of September, something neither of the Webs II have. The Readyman, since it is a definite must have for AOL will be worked on, on a Saturday morning for all 5th grade boys (5 of them). The other things they will get through December, January...by then the 2 boys that were Webs I last year will have had the opportunity to earn all 20 activity pins. Aquanaut will be worked on this Saturday. The Webs I's should be able to get all 20 activity pins if they participate in all den meetings, and do any homework they are given. My whole year is planned out on the calendar and as long as nothing interferes with my schedule I should be good to go and all Webs II will have earned their Webelos Badge, and their AOL. Not all Webs II will have had the opportunity to earn all 20 activity pins since they were not around to participate in activity pins last year. The other kicker is that I will be leaving in January, for good. The ADL is the father of a Webs II and not sure if he plans on hanging around after his son crosses over. There is one more ADL but he is the father of a Webs I and the cub master so he's not around as much as he wants to be, because he right now is also running the Tiger den until the leader their can get trained. We have one more guy that I was told would be ADL but he told me he wasn't ready for that. Also, some of the Webs I and returning Webs II went to day camp and Resident Camp and earned MANY activity pins. Does all that make sense??

I am the WeBeLoS I and II leader again this year. My oldest son has moved onto boy scouts and my younger son is in Wolves. I stayed on with the Webelos because I enjoy this age group and their activity pins are fun to do! So here is my problem. Originally I decided to keep both Webelos I and II as one den (the entire pack meets on the same night in the same place just different rooms anyway). Well, when I decided to do that, there were only 12 boys in both Webs I and Webs II. Only 4 boys were Webs II and of those 4, two have never done scouting before so it was no different than rolling them into the Webs I den at the same time anyway. Now, I'm up to 18 boys total! Still only 5 of them are Webs II but of the 5, three are new to scouting. So, here is what I'm thinking.... If I take all 18 boys and divide them up, randomly, and make them into 2 patrols with 9 in each patrol and let my assistant den leader take one patrol while I take the other patrol and we work on the same things at the same time,but working seperately, with a denner and assistant denner for each patrol , can this work? We have plenty of parents that are willing to help us out when we need them but none of them, yet, are willing to commit to being another leader. We also have two other assistants that sit back and help out when its needed. They have other obligations within the pack also. Most parents stay for den meetings anyway. I'm not worried about the assistance from the adults, what I'm worried about is that one boy has already made a comment that, "if any more boys join this den then we will be as big as a pack". I'm afraid that if the boys continue to join this den, then some of the others are going to leave. Altogether we have 3 trained adult leaders and one going to be trained, 18 boys, and lots of parents that help when help is needed. One of the parents is also the COR so he helps when he can but can not be a leader because of his other position.

We have a boy that wants to join our pack because all his friends from school are in the pack but he is already 11 yrs old. He has never been in Cub scouts before and this has been his dream for a long long time. Is there anyway he can still be a Webelos II even though he is 11? Angela

Jens3sons....I think your son will still have the same amount of time to complete his Eagle rank because the guidelines say he must be 11 yrs old to enter into Boy Scouts unless he is 10 and completed his Arrow of Light...That being the case then he will have probably 6 months less to complete his AOL. I could be wrong, because I'm just thinking off the cuff. Angela

one den meeting once a week the same day and same time and on the fourth week (same day and time) the pack meeting. Works great. Cub scout den meetings should not run any longer than 1 hour and 15 minutes. Angela

No...I don't think I will run away from this troop fast. This troop needs me! I see, in the future, that this troop is going to have complications from these new by-laws. They are also going to hava complications when these two people leave this troop. If I leave they will not have somebody to stand up for the boys and bring the boys into the decision making of the troop. Second, when the one lady leaves (if she leaves) they will be left without a troop Committee Chairperson. Eamonn---I have to agree with you...as a troop committee we can not make the by-laws so they go against or make the BSA's policies more strict. I do not currently know how many of our committee members have been trained but I know that our council is not the best in its trainings and when August/September rolls around and they shell out another training for committee chair...I will be sure to be in that place! CNY--I agree, the boys should be a part of making the by-laws...thanks for bringing that forward. SMRon---a vaild excuse is pretty much anything! A boy can call the scoutmaster and say, "I have too much homework", "I have a baseball game tonight", "My mom won't drive me so I don't have a ride"....apparently all of those are valid excuses, they just have to make the call. But if a scout is not present 80% of the time without an excuse then after two months they will be removed from the troop roster until they have a scoutmaster conference. Student---how very wise you are! You shed a little more light in my wisdom tunnel to make me think a little harder and come up with a new plan. Thanks to all for your advice and wisdom. I will let you know how things turn out in the end. Ang

Okay all...I know I brought this to the table once, but remember I've only been doing Cub Scouting for the past 4 yrs and have now ventured into the Boy Scout world. I did as told and went to the "By-Law" meeting and voiced my opinion and the BSA rules and regs and was pretty much not listened to. The "committee" has gone ahead with the new "by-laws" and they are currently 9 (NINE) pages long!!!!! I disagree with 90 percent of it. The scoutmaster says he's not signing it and if he doesn't sign it then there will be no by-laws. As it turns out the two people doing most of the by-law making are....well one will be leaving the end of this month...supposedly, and two....the other should be leaving by November. Things in these by-laws are ridiculous, to say the least. 1. A boy must be present 80% of the time or he will be considered in active unless he has good reason. It doesn't say if 80% is a month or 2 months a year or what! 2. A boy may not wear a bolo tie unless he is at least a star rank...is that a by-law???? I thought anything the BSA put out whenever is considered appropriate uniforming...nothing retires ever. 3. The scoutmaster is appointed by the COR AND approved by the committee chairman!?????? I thought this was the other way. 4. Merit badge counselor cannot be a family member if others are available, unless it is being taught in a group setting. If a family meber must be a merit badge counselor all work must be verified by a second adult working as a co-counselor????? Anybody have any words of wisdom for me????? Is there a way, without typing all 9 pages out, to link to the by-laws or can I copy and paste it to here for anybody wanting to see the whole darn thing??? Ang

Ummmm....NO! I have a daughter and two sons, I don't think 6-10 grade girls need to be participating in BOY scouts. I like the idea of venturing but let me tell you as the mother of a daughter, I will be VERY VERY nervous if she joins and goes on a campout with them! What I think...is that GIRL scouts needs to get back to the basics of what Girl Scouting was meant to be. Quit changing the rules CONSTANTLY and the uniforms! JMHO--- Ang

If my son would've told dad (the assistant scout master) and the Scout master he would've eaten. And the boys would've had their talking to before they left camp. But because he neglected to tell anybody he suffered. Hopefully he has realized that if he doesn't like something he should ruffle some feathers. He doesn't get his quietness from me! I regularily ruffle feathers...makes for interesting days! I'm not saying my son was wrong or right however, he should've used better common sense. I just wanted to know basically what other troops would do in this situation before I went to the Scout master (yes me, not dad...maybe that is where he gets it from). As for a stocked pantry...it's possible it was there and my son didn't know and the other boy...who knows???? My son now knows what he did wrong and what the boys did wrong, and dad has learned something too. I'll let you know how the next campout goes in July. Thanks again for all your input. Ang

Well, talked with the Scoutmaster tonight...this problem has happened before. So he will talk with the older boys and see if he can get them to figure out what went wrong and what they need to do to make sure it doesn't happen again. We didn't get to talk to the SM until after the meeting because we had something else going on. My son knows that he too needs to be able to follow some sort of "chain of command". There were actually only 9 boys that went in the end. I know I put 11 on the tour permit. The reason they kept them as one patrol is because only a couple from this patrol went, a few from that and a few from the next, and with the new boy patrol it seems to me that it made sense that they were one patrol or at least with some experience (maybe not the best experience but better than on their own) since their older boy that is "teaching" them wasn't on this campout. Ed---I know the first morning they had some pretty "crappy" eggs, but on the second morning I'm not sure and have not had a chance to ask my son yet what was supposed to be for breakfast but as long as it isn't a vegetable he'll pretty much eat it. Bob--I understood your first post totally. I know you weren't saying he should've made waves just to be making waves but he should've followed some sort of chain and I'm not sure why he never told the SPL, my guess is still because once he's told some excuse, reason or answer he just goes with it. He's not the type of kid you want to just joke around with...he is very literal. You could NEVER tell him he just failed the 5th grade even though he knows he's smart enough and should've passed the 5th grade because he would just believe you and go with it...he might go to his room and cry but you'd never know it. Kenk--I brought up to the Scoutmaster that I think the cooks should've eaten last or at least been able to do some sort of portion control because he said himself that they have some boys that are VERY BIG eaters. In Girl Scouts we have Kaper Charts...each "patrol" is responsible for some sort of thing at each meal (one "patrol" cooks, one prepares and one cleans up---clean up crew eats first so that they can start with dishes). This is what I did with my Webelos when I took them camping...it worked very well. He agreed that they should at least do some sort of portion control to insure everybody got something. Hopefully things will work out and my son has learned something. Thanks again for all your input. Ang

There were 11 boys on this campout, although there are 30 or more in the Troop. They went as ONE PATROL so the Senior Patrol Leader was in charge and whoever is below him was second in charge. The second in charge is who my son told. Dad is planning on talking with the ScoutMaster tonight and let him know what happened. Madkins--- I'm sure my son wasn't out "doing something else" when he wakes up in the morning he is usually the first one to the table because he is hungry, always has been always will be as far as I can guess. Out of the 11 boys 4 of them were new boys to the troop. From what I understand the SPL got up before everybody else and started cooking breakfast, so I don't think there was really a "call" for breakfast. As far as PB & J...I have no idea, I'm sure if it was there he would've eaten it since it is his favorite sandwich. I'm not sure what was for breakfast, Ed, but does it really matter? I'm not sure why he didn't talk to the SPL...maybe he couldn't find him at the time, maybe he just decided after the first answer there was no sense in pushing it...he's like that, even with me...if we say no or not now or maybe later..he just deals with it. I'm thinking there was no portion control since there was nothing left by the end. In all my times I've been camping we've had enough food to feed seconds to everybody at every meal. Bob---we had a long talk with our son and hopefully he realizes now that he should've made waves in this case but only time will tell. We will talk with the Scoutmaster tonight and I will let you know what happens. Thanks to all for the advice and understanding.

Ed, Adults take their own food and are not part of the patrols food budget. The adults ate what they brought. Ang

Don't get me wrong...mom is upset also. In Girl Scouts the team that is doing the cooking eats last and nobody eats until all girls are served and a grace is said. Ang

Dad said he should've let him know because he could've made sure he had something to eat.

As many as we can get! We had 60 boys this past year in the pack, total. I crossed over 7 Webelos II, leaving me with one new Webelos II. I have 7 or 8 new Webelos I from the previous Bear Den but if 12 more wanted to join my den I'd be more than happy to take them!!! Some of the boys have moved away due to military obligations so we are now down to about 30 boys total. Are you going to teach us how to get those boys to come and join our pack??? My son is working on getting his recruiter strip as a Wolf, he has recruited one for sure, and maybe a second one by the fall. The youngster keeps changing his mind. Ang

My son went on his first Boy Scout campout this weekend (he has done plenty of camping with the Cub Scouts though). His dad was with him because he is the ASM, however, dad is not the type of dad to do for his son. He will help if questions are asked but he will not do for him so....here is the problem that happened this weekend. Last day on the campout and breakfast is being served. My son, at the end of the line to get food, finally gets to the front of the line only to discover there is no food left. My son says he told the Assistant Patrol leader that he didn't get any food (the SPL and the Assistant did the cooking). The assistant tells him there is no food left to cook. So they leave my son hanging, and my son not wanting to feel like a "whimp" doesn't say anything to anybody until he gets home when mom asks, how was the camping trip? HOw was the cooking? Dad is upset because first off, there wasn't enough food to go around and second because my son didn't tell anybody but the Assistant patrol leader. Is there something else my son should've done or could've done??? There wasn't any more food to cook. Any help or advice??? Ang

Being a leader for both the cub scouts and the girl scouts I will have to say that Semper hit the nail on the head with his discription. I don't think the two will EVER merge. And I think the GSUSA might want to take a look at the Boy Scouts and how often they have changed their policies, programs, and advancement requirements and think about not changing around so often. It seems, at least in our council, the GS is a fly by the seat of your pants operation. It seems too many people aren't sure of how things are supposed to be or where they are going, or what is going on. Too many cooks in the kitchen. Will their ever be co-ed scouting??? hmmmm...that is tough to say...I see the BSA is leaning toward it in some instances with their Venturing programs but complete co-ed?? I dont' think it will ever happen with the GS, becuase anytime it is mentioned, "The BSA does it like this..." the response given back is, "we are not the BSA" Even if it is a good policy or whatever...just because the boys do it the girls aren't going to. That is just from what I get in my area. Ang

"Ang: I believe you mean Scoutmaster and Assistant Scoutmaster? The Boy Scout Fast Training is on-line and short, and it may help you out some." Laurie...there I go again, mixing GS with Boy Scouts. Happens all the time...should've seen me trying to do the GS promise Friday!!! It came out with a few slips of tongue leaning into the Cub scout promise...the girls noticed it!!! They forgive me though. As for the by-laws...I missed the meeting because I had some pressing GS issues to take care but was never sent an e-mail to let me know where the meeting was going to be held so.....although at the last troop meeting I was asked to also serve as the secretary since I seem to be so organized...I'm not sure about all that so we'll see. On another note: Dad and son went on the first boy scout camp-out this weekend. Some issues arose for my son that hopefully he will be able to bring them up at the meeting tomorrow to the SPL and things will work out.

Thanks for all the input! I certainly am learning a lot, even about liver!! I personally have to agree with the "Ewwwwwwwwww" but I might try it as a fishing bait someday! My cats like the turkey and chicken livers though! The more this discussion about Merit badges, Committee Chairperson and by-laws goes on, I continue to believe that there is really no need for a "by-laws". A Troop Guide pamphlet is more in order for example: Troop MMM says that it follows BSA guidelines and firmly defines in it's own belief the following "gray" areas. Since our troop only meets the first three Tuesdays of the month then the Actively serve guideline means that a scout must be present in at least two of those meetings and one camp out. Or something like that. I haven't noticed many other "gray areas" than that one. I actually encountered that one as a Webelos leader and since I don't encounter that again I will address it in my "parent meeting" at the beginning of the new season. Thanks for all the advice, I will let those interested how it goes when we have our meeting Thusday. I have one question that comes to mind before I go to this meeting. I have been told that the Troop Master and Assistant Troop Master "work" for the Committee Chairperson. I find this VERY hard to understand and hard to believe. Please help me on this one or clarify if you can what this is supposed to mean. Ang

Well, today I decided to make some phone calls to some district people to see if they could put their hands on a copy of BSA policy or rules and guidelines and they are working on it for me. However, I also found out that the district knows of the situation at hand and sees nothing wrong as to what happened and said it is for the troop to figure it out, which I guess is why we all of a sudden need new "by-laws". I told the guy I spoke to what I thought about by-laws even though I know the troop he is involved with has by-laws and he said agreed with me that if we are following BSA than we don't need by-laws. The things that are in their by-laws are things like a parent can be a merit badge counselor to his own son as long as he has at least 2 other boys participating because they have several sets of twins in their troop but... I told him I feel like a lot of people in the troop have a grudge against one particular guy and thats all this is and if that is the case then some of the adults in this troop need to take a step back and look at what they are doing because now it doesn't seem like its for the boys but a vendetta (sp) against one or two people. I guess I will be the squeeky wheel and you all know what they say about the squeeky wheel!!!! Thanks for the advice! I will get my own set of Scoutmaster books, merit badge book, scout handbook and Advancement committee publication and go to that meeting well prepared. As a regular committee member I should have a uniform??? Hmmm...should I just switch the tabs from cub scout to boy scout and just go with the shirt I have or should I get a second one??? Maybe I should just get a second one! Might be easier in the long run!

Hi all, Finally got a copy of our "by-laws"...they really aren't by-laws. They are more or less JOB discriptions! I asked our committee Chairperson where the by-laws were. She said those were it! I said, "Well....where in here does it say that a parent can NOT be a merit badge counselor for their own child?" She said, "It doesn't". I said, "then whats all the big fuss?" She said she thinks it should be that way...then came my "I don't think we need bylaws. The BSA has policies for us to follow and if we do it like they planned then everything will work out okie dokie!" Of course then came the big stink about, "so you think we should just take the boy and his parents word for it?" I said that is what we are trying to instill in the boys, to be trustworthy. She said, but there has to be two deep leadership. I don't think she was ready for me because I told her the BSA does not say two deep leadership for merit badges it says the scout must use the buddy system and it allows for another parent, sibling, relative, another scout etc. BSA says we should take their word on it and that is what I believe we need to do. If you can't tell your scout that you trust him how are you going to teach him to be trustworth? She said, "so you are telling me that you believe all the boys in this room drive the speed limit all the time?" Of course I think this is comparing apples to oranges and is irrelevant to the subject at hand. Needless to say, we did not accomplish much except the fact that I believe one thing and she believes another. I have since found out that our commitee chair may have a hidden agenda. Her son did not make his Eagle for whatever reason and has since dropped out of scouting. She also believes that if a parent is a merit badge counselor the boy should have another merit badge counselor (any counselor) double check his work where his parent has signed off. I told her that too goes against BSA policy. Anyway, we have another meeting next Thursday "to go over the bylaws". I will stand my ground and once again say, "We don't need no stinking by-laws!" but I see it as going to be a long battle. Any help or wisdom?????? Ang