tcherven

I wrote this with my wood badge pencil: The SPL so perfect was he, For everyone he always made tea. He filled up the pot And returned to his cot, And said "Ouch! I've banged my knee." To the patrols he said with a plea, "Will someone please come and help me?" All the foxes agreed. They would indeed, "It's our move," they said with glee. They met to determine their vision. And ended up with a great big division. We're having a storm, For our patrol, that's the norm, But we need to make a decision. So they brought their vision to life. To make a difference, they led without strife. With tools of the trade, A successful model they made, The decision to go get a knife. "We know you that you like to make tea, But there is a problem that we see. So thick is your brew, Here's what we'll do, We have to divide it by three." And the tea was served by the wall, to everyone, both short and tall, And the staffers agree The result of the knee, Was the most drinkable tea of all. Tom Fox - C-44-06(This message has been edited by tcherven)

Tomahawk Scout Reservation will send a troop home suspend their camping priveleges for the following year if a scout is caught with food or wrappers in their tent. As a scout leader, I had to have "the talk" with my Webelos scouts about camping with wildlife and what to do with food and other smellables when we went there. Now that my son is in a troop, it will be interesting to see the troop's policy and how they handle it.

I have to chime in here. I agree with Gonzo1 in that ADHD is over-diagnosed. (By the way - the ADD/ADHD label isn't used any more - it's just ADHD.) However, like ASM915 said, Asbergers is a totally different animal. It is NOT a form of ADHD. Asbergers is on the Autism spectrum, and part of it involves reading emotions in others and reacting appropriately. I don't know a lot about it, but it is different than ADHD. In diagnosing ADHD, there are multiple possiblities: ADHD-Impulsive, ADHD-Hyperactive, and my favorite, ADHD-NOC (not otherwise classified). My son is classified in the ADHD-NOC category - his main issue is staying focused. In my scout den, I had several of these scouts: 1 with Asbergers, 1 with high functioning Autism, 4 with ADHD (impulsive, hyperactive, and NOC), and all 10 were extremely bright - they attend our district's school for Gifted/Talented students. Some of these kids are working 2 to 3 grade levels above their current grade in reading or math. Working with one scout and his father, I could see the differences once they started him on medication. Yes - he was calmer and more apt to follow instructions, but he didn't want to eat, was a bit more mopey, and just didn't have his old exhuberance for life. Hopefully as the scientists and researchers learn more about ADHD and other behavioural issues, more accurate diagnoses and treatments will happen - hopefully, with few side effects.

What they said before me. That's what I understand the Scientific method to be. You may find that all the scouts know or have done this already. The Webelos in my den came from two schools (8 from 1, 1 from a different one). If the school hosts a Science fair or completes Science activities in their classrooms, your scouts may have already been introduced and have a good understanding of the Scientific Method. I checked with the father of the scout from the other school, and they had done many of the same things. SO - the assistant den leader and I were able to spend the den meeting completing the rest of the Science Activity Badge. The scouts had a great time - this was a fun one.

We always scheduled 1 event a month for June, July, and August. We also tried to keep the cost low. In some cases the pack picked up rental shelters and hot dogs for everyone. Items we have done over the past several years: - Cub Scout Resident Camp (we schedule a "preferred weekend" for the pack and encourage everyone to make it. One year our pack was half the camp) - Pizza party followed by swimming at a public pool - Sports and games at a public park - Picnic at a swimming beach - Rent a school pool for 2 hours - Pot luck picnic and activites at city park (we invited a boy scout troop to this one and the boy scouts did some demo cooking. We also made water bottle rockets and launched them) Another thing I've done with my den is go hiking and find some geocaches. The scouts love the idea of a treasure hunt. (www.geocaching.com) (there are over 100 caches within 20 miles of your town) Ask your scouts for some ideas - they may have an idea of something that they would enjoy that completely escapes adults.

There are actually several different PWD software programs available. We used one for the first time last year and it was great. We have a two lane track and raced about 36 cars. Each car raced four times. By following the software, we completed our PWD in about 40 minutes. The kids loved it too. We had an adult bring a projector and we projected the information onto the wall, so the scouts could see who was racing, who was up next, and the times. Everyone loved it and best of all - there were no tears. (In previous years, at least one scout has started crying or sniffling when their car was eliminated). The idea of getting a race driver in is also a great one. I had tried contacting several people for the same idea several years ago, and just wasn't having any luck. So I made my own suit. I found some basic scout patchs, and have been adding any new PWD patches to the back ever since. The kids love it. My pack hasn't had its PWD yet, but the suit (and helmet, boots, and gloves) has already been to three. Really - I think the scouts will enjoy whatever happens. It's really about being together and having fun. I've put a couple of pics of the suit on the web if you're interested in seeing what I did. www.geocities.com/tomcherv/MT2.jpg www.geocities.com/tomcherv/pinewood1.jpg www.geocities.com/tomcherv/pinewood2.jpg

I had the opposite happen with a troop visit - we happened to hit both of their "Unusual Activity" type nights. No one picked that particular troop, but it was among the favorites of many of the scouts. You're right - Webelos don't know much about planning a meeting. The next time I get to Webelos with son #2, I plan to involve them in some of the planning - I want to take about 15 minutes of a den meeting and take a look at the our next activity, and have them help plan it. Hopefully that will help them when they move to Boy Scouts. My goal would be that over time - they could eventually plan a good portion of a den meeting. Please keep in mind that son #2 is not registered yet - he's in kindergarten.

It gets plenty cold in St. Paul too. (In fact, it may get up to 9 this Thursday) We hold our Blue-Gold inside, and I will be awarding the Arrow of Light to my Webelos. The ceremony I wrote for last year, and will be using again this year, talks about the 7 virtues of the AOL, and I light a candle for each virtue. I explain how the AOL is the only rank advancement in cub scouts to be worn on the boy scout uniform, and also to have recognition on a scouter uniform. Since we're indoors, we don't shoot an arrow, but I do present one. A local archery shop makes a cub scout ceremonial arrow with Blue and Gold fletching (uncut). I then take colored tape and stripe each arrow for the scout. I also attach a card explaining what each stripe means. Our pack has been doing this for several years, and I know several boys still have their arrows hanging in the room.

I always like reading your answers - they are very well thought out, and you always have a lot of good information. I guess what I meant when I mentioned a good Cub program, is that boys in a good Cub program are probably more willing to try Boy Scouts. Whether or not they stay is another matter. Of the 10 registered boys in my den, I have 9 that have said they are going to continue. The 10th boy was brand new this year, and we didn't see him a whole lot, unfortunately. I've given his parents several options, but I don't know what they're going to do. I haven't heard back from them yet. My older son was the guinea pig - my younger son can become a tiger this spring - and he's ready. He wants to know when we're going to summer camp. I also hope that everyone is happy with their troops. Only time will tell.

I'm a Webelos II leader, and we started visiting troops in October. (Next time I'm a Webelos II leader, I plan to start earlier). What is interesting is the troop most of the boys chose. I was planning to visit three troops as a den, but I got an email from a scoutmaster in September. He had seen the recruiting table our pack had at our school's open house (We're chartered through the PTO) and grabbed our information and email address. As a last minute addition to our troop visits, we added his troop as well. Had he not emailed me, we would have never visited his troop. 5 of my 10 Webelos are planning to join that troop. Amazing what even a single email will do. This troop has about 12 registered boys - so it's going to have a bit of growth. I did not visit this troop as by the time that visit came around, my wife and I had looked at our church's troop and my son liked what he saw. We also hope that he will get to know more boys at the church (We've been members at this church for just over a year). The troop seems to be quite active and they look like they have a good program in place. The scoutmaster also spent some time with me explaining his vision for the troop. We'll see if we made the right decision in a year - I hope we did, but if my son is not happy, we'll find a new troop for him - probably the smaller one that most of the other boys in the den joined. I think another thing (and maybe one of the most important) that encourages the boys to continue to boy scouts is a strong cub scout program. If the boys are excited and like going to scouts when they're younger, they'll most likely continue on. Tom [edited for spelling](This message has been edited by tcherven)

I have used the adding machine tape demonstration as well. One thing I've done recently (it was one of my Wood Badge tickets), was to create a list of all the volunteer opportunities (not jobs - opportunities), estimated time requirements, responsiblities, and benefits to the pack. At the first meeting where I presented this, I got 4 people to volunteer. I haven't had the chance to do it this way, but I would use the adding machine tape demonstration, and then pass out the list of opportunities to your parents. When people have a clear idea of the needs, they are more willing to volunteer than they will for something that's more ambigious and unknown.

I just got the confirmation that my beading will be at the Annual Woodbadge breakfast tomorrow morning. My wife and I are shipping my boys off to grandma's house for an overnight sleep tonight, so she'll be able to join me. It was her generosity that allowed me to take the time to attend the class, so I want her to be there as well. (Maybe she'll become infected with some of the scouting spirit - who knows).

I appreciate everyone's responses - you've helped. I sent his mother an email letting her know what the consensus was from a scout leader board - that joining Boy Scouts in NOT required, but the conference is. I was able to provide her with the email address for the scoutmaster of the troop most of the boys in my den will be joining. Maybe this scout will like what he hears enough to consider trying Boy Scouts out - I hope so. I asked him what he had enjoyed most about Cub Scouts and his reply was Camping.

Thanks for your quick replies. What would constitute a Scoutmaster conference? He did visit a troop with us, and the scoutmaster as well as several other leaders did talk to the parents and also stopped to talk to the boys. Would that qualify? I'm not sure why he doesn't want to continue. He enjoys camping and doing things with the other boys. I know his mother would like to see him continue as well - even she isn't sure what the reason is. Thanks, Tom

My wife took over the decorating at our Blue-Gold banquets when I became cubmaster (4 years ago), and she's had some great ideas. That she's a preschool / elementary teacher helps. The important thing is to decide your theme, and use that as a starting point. We have used the themes provided. For this year (2007 - Aloha Cub Scouts) we are borrowing some tropical tree and wall pictures from our chartered organzation. Centerpieces will be a pineapple and coconut with some shells on Blue and Gold paper. (We're going to give the pineapples to our registered leaders and raffle the coconuts). We also found a beanie baby that has a lei and grass skirt. I paid for those out of my own pocket and I'm going to give them to the mothers of my Webelos 2 den. The other thing I've done is printed the opening prayer onto small cards and scattered them around on the tables. Much closer for everyone to see instead of a big piece of paper taped to the wall. For the diamond jubilee we made Diamond Mines. (the Wolf den crumpled paper to form a cave, and then glued plastic gems to it. We also made picks from foil and tooth picks) If you're doing a Mexican / Spanish theme - you can make sombreros out of styrofoam cups. Color them with marker, put them (open side down) on a cookie sheet and bake them for about 15 seconds at 350. (I think - you need to test and adjust). They look really cool. What theme are you using? I'm sure many here would have some great ideas for your.

I have a scout in my Webelos 2 den who has been quite active, and visited a troop meeting with us. My question relates to the scoutmaster conference. This scout is not planning to continue on into Boy Scouts. I would like to award him the Arrow of Light, but I'm not sure if he has met all the requirements. Is continuing on to Boy Scouts necessary to receive the Arrow of Light? Thanks for your help. Tom

I haven't been beaded yet. I think it will most likely be at the Woodbadge breakfast (12 days from now). I'm going to contact my Troop Guide again and see what he found out.

I finished my ticket last week and talked to my troop guide last night. Apparently, I'm the first in the patrol (though not the course) to finish, but my goal was to be finished by December (7 months from course completion). We're discussing when and where the beading should take place. My original thought was the annual Wood Badge Breakfast (end of next month), since there would hopefully be a number of scouting friends there, and possibly another beading from my patrol. I am open, though, to having it done at a roundtable (though only 20 to 25 usually show up) or at one of my pack meetings. (The pack paid for my woodbadge course and was the focus of the majority of my ticket items). Working my ticket taught me about group dynamics and pulling people together - I believe it was what the creators/designers/staffers of WoodBadge Course wanted the participants to experience. I know I'm not finished learning - there's a whole Boy Scout World I'm just starting to explore with my older son. All I know is, I'm Hooked on Scouting. (anyone hearing synchronized hand claps with classical music? lol) More important to me than the beads, though, is the fun I've had watching the growth of my son and the other boys in his den. I've seen some quiet ones step up and take a leadership role quite capably. I hope I get to see many of the same things happen when my younger son becomes a Tiger in a few months. All the best to everyone. Tom C-44-06 Fox (Edited for grammar)(This message has been edited by tcherven)

Congratulations - I have been having a lot of fun with the Cubmaster role. I was asked to be CM while my son was a tiger as well, and he's going to cross over this February. Things I would have done differently: 1) Be the cubmaster, not the cubmaster, den leader, popcorn chair, etc. 2) Keep the ACM more involved 3) Consider limiting my time to 3 years instead of going 4 4) Not tried to be the cubmaster before me Things I would not have changed: 1) Adding my bit of zaniness to the pack meetings 2) Doing what I feel is best for the pack 3) Having fun Each person will bring their own unique qualifications to the position. Don't try and do what previous cubmaster did. You're you, and not them. I tried to do that my first year - it felt flat. When I started adding my personality to what I did, the meetings became a lot more fun - not only for me, but for the scouts as well. All the best, Tom

Well - I did my best to create an SATB arrangement of "Back to Gilwell" for you. I'm putting it in the mail today (I don't have a scanner at work, and I wrote this one by hand). Give it a look - if you think it works, I'll enter it into some music writing software I have and get a nice, clean copy. (Either that, or I have several friends that have advanced software and I'm sure they would be happy to enter it for me.) Hope your Holidays are happy. Tom

I looked at the link, and it doesn't provide the parts like you want. Send me a PM with your address. I'll write some out and mail them to you. (I've already got the alto and tenor parts running through my brain.) Tom

I'm not an Eagle (I'm a Fox), but I know a couple of Eagle Scouts. Anyway - I've completed my ticket. As I was nearing the completion, I realized that it was a good way to get things done. SO - I'm going to use the ticket process to create my next set of goals to complete. I think this is probably something that they hope we continue to do. Think about this in the context of an Eagle project: what's more important - the project itself, or the process that the scout has to go through to complete his project? Which is going to better serve the scout in the future? It's really a two-pronged approach. Now - I've also heard the comment about the Eagle project/Woodbadge ticket - but only in the context of time, and in a way to emphasize to the boys that working on a Woodbadge ticket is a time consuming endeavor, just like working on an Eagle ticket. It was mentioned so that the youth might gain a little understanding of the impact and effort of their scouter. As scouters - we have more experience and resources available to us - but we also have more commitments as well. No matter what is said, each is impressive as it relates to the individual doing the task. I've read several great comments on here, and learned alot. (I always do from this board). I hope everyone's upcoming holidays are happy. As for me, Christmas is going to be fun this year. Thanks, everyone, for being involved in scouting and making a difference in youth's lives.

John-in-KC - very well stated. I don't know much about the Eagle Scout service project, but I understood exactly what you said. And even more importantly, it makes sense. I always enjoy reading your posts - you have a lot of good ideas. (I feel like such a newbie alongside you and several others on this board.)

I made it. I've been being chased by sick kids, so I apologize. (My younger first, then the older had a 103 temp.) Anyway: I used to be a FOX, a good ole' FOX too. And now I'm finshed FOXing, I don't know what to do. I'm growing old and feeble, and I can FOX no more, So I'm going to work my ticket if I can. Back to Gilwell, happy land, I'm going to work my ticket if I can.

In the end, your patrol is the name of a critter. While everyone argues about which critter is best, it was always in fun (at least with my fellow Wood Badgers) and we knew that working with your patrol, whatever critter you were, was the most important. I was fortunate enough to be placed into a group in which we moved through storming to performing quite quickly. We came from completely different backgrounds, had different scouting positions, and our homes were not in the same area as each other. Where each of us had a weakness, someone else had that same area as a strength. You'll create a new group of friends, no matter what critter you become. Just enjoy the experience, and if you're lucky, you'll be a fox (or a beaver, bobwhite, eagle, owl, bear, buffalo, or antelope). Tom C-44-06 (Shining brightly for the future) Fox Patrol