ZScout5

Minimum number for tour plan is 2 youth and 2 adult, with one adult registered and has youth protection, weather, and any other required training for the activity. Remember, you are covered by your own insurance. BSA insurance only kicks in after yours. Filing a tour plan does not change the insurance coverage.

Scouttrack.com. Love the calendar and email system too.

Cubs may only canoe on flat water (lake) at council or district events. We try to offer a spring campout as council runs a fall camping event. We once had a special winter cabin camping, which although well attended, was expensive with a lot of activity and meal planning involved for the few leaders. We are a medium size pack. However, I know of a few packs that have 2 or 3 campouts a year, mostly to the same places. They are often larger packs. It just depends on the interest level of the families and the number of volunteers willing to plan and coordinate. However, 6 or more campouts for cubs seems like too many unless you also have a second pack activity those months.

Tour plan not needed.

In 2010 several councils in the Midwest put on a regional jamboree. However, this may have only been for the anniversary and not a regular event.

Recently, the use of denners in our pack has gone down, as den meetings are held more and more at the school instead of at den member's houses. Not sure why although it is not easy to have 6-8 cub age boys in a house. Before, parents signed up to have one month's den meetings at their house. It was a good way to keep parents somewhat involved as after Tiger year, they are not required to stay at den meetings. The scout whose home we would be at for the month, was the denner for that month. The scout and parent helped the den leader prepare for the meeting, set up, and clean up. The scout may also have led the pledge or promise. The scouts really liked their one month mini leader role, plus having scouts at their house. It can be a confidence-booster too. Even with meetings being held at the school, I think parent and scout should still sign up to help one month and the scout as the denner. If your den also has a den chief, the denner usually gets a kick out of working with the older boy.(This message has been edited by ZScout5)

No minimums or buyout or pack dues or cub scout accounts. We set a sales goal around $275 - $350, depending on how many scouts we have and the economy. A small gift for meeting the goal. Pie throwing for $600. Top 3 sellers receive gift certificates to the scout store. We do half our sales at show n sells. Also do door to door, take sell, and online sales. We only have 36 - 45 scouts and sell $20,000+ retail every year. Some won't do door to door, but will do the show n sells. Yes, there are families who don't sell at all and those that sell a lot. Never heard a scout complaining about this. Popcorn is the only fundraiser we have and we promote that fact to the families. We plan the program based on our average yearly sales. If our sales are lower, we add in more free or low cost activities.

Ok. I had someone in my council do some digging and it looks like Horizon's council is going a step further than what BSA National requires. Faith based orgs apparently have more advancement and camping, oversight, and continuity. (They probably also have more insurance too) New units are strongly advised to have a faith based CO. Although the Orange County Council makes it sound like a National demand to change, it is actually that council that wants the change. The reason why is unknown.

... Taking a deep breath. Just anticipating the number of people who will freak out if this happens. (And I would be on the front line to be asked about it so I don't like to be surprised) I also just became CC of a troop with a Friends of chartered org.

Horizon, I would like to be able to confirm this with my council. What is the title of the person whose name is on the letter from your council? The registrar, someone on the council board, the DE or ? This change would definitely impact a large number of units in our council, especially the packs as there is often one for each elementary school in a town. 8 months is not much time for the council staff to facilitate such a large number of new charter organizations.

I love Eamonn's comment: I much prefer the stealth way of advancement. That's where Scouts do and learn things without any mention or thought about advancement. Still by learning and using the skills they meet the requirements. This is exactly how I would like to see it work. One problem, though, is that training really doesn't prepare you to make it happen, and especially how to get there in a troop currently doing it another way. I understand the frustration with scouts that do not remember how to do something the next month, let alone next year. However, I don't know many adults who remember everything they had learned in school either. It is - use it or lose it. I see our role as making sure the scouts have the chance to use the skills over and over on adventures. Please, please do not go overboard on testing. I shudder at the 100 question/skills test mentioned that one unit does every year. Skills is only one method, advancement another. We left a troop that turned SM conferences into a retest of every scout skill of all previous ranks. A first class SMC was 3 one-hour sessions. They have had a number of scouts transfer to other troops. Sadly, others leave scouting altogether, or stay not knowing that it shouldn't be that way. Where is the fun? All I'm seeing are hoops.

Singing, dancing, duck walks: embarrassing, humiliating, disrespectful, and inappropriate. It is considered hazing even if it does not rise to the level of fraternity hazing. At the very least, it is bullying, something we are trying to teach the scouts is wrong. Please do not use the worn out answer - I remember that happening when I was a kid, I don't think I was negatively affected, so it must be ok. This thinking has been behind the continuation of a number of questionable/inappropriate traditions in society. To me, singing for items and snipe hunts fall into this category. Lost items? Like some have mentioned here: Encourage families to label all clothing and equipment. Have an end of campout lost and found check. Asking the parents and at the following troop meeting are good ideas. After a period of time - toss, donate, or put into a troop free equipment box.

Yes, yes, and yes. For reasons like Secondclass states. The spring cleanup example actually says that it is for where the troop holds its meetings, which may not be at the CO. Either way, it is a service project. Work at a boy scout camp would count too. Note that the JTE requirements specifically asks units to do a service project for the CO and log it to even make the bronze level for that category. If you do not count work for the CO as service, then the Unit will not be able to get any points for this category. And IMO it would be inappropriate for the Unit to count the service for JTE but not for the scouts. National calls work for CO as a service project, so we call it that too. I'm not sure how to spin off a thread, so this OP has me wondering: How many service projects does your unit do yearly? Do the patrols also do their own service projects? What kinds of projects does the troop/patrols do? Do your scouts do most of their service individually, outside of troop projects, or only troop projects?

The troop record book # 34508 has what you are looking for.

My council has posted a link on their website to the video tutorial for the new online tour plan system set to start May 1. However, that still have a lot of the old information on their tour plan faq page. National's faq page is also the old one. They have a new one ready to go, but right now only employees can view it. The clarification I received from my council that would apply to howarthe's questions is that he would need one for the first case if it is out of council, or if any scout is traveling with someone other than their own parent (and parent is not along). For the second, again only if a scout will be traveling with a nonparent. I don't know, though, how a den or pack would fill out the paperwork for the second case. I can't see filling out one for each day of camp. Everyone will have to check with their own council once the system goes into effect. I expect changes at both the council and national level within the first month or two after the volunteers provide feedback.

I loved internet advancement for the pack and the troop now does the same as 5yearscouter. I have heard of a unit having BOR members sign a blank address label and then stick that on the signature spot on the printout later. Don't know if that is ok or if other councils would accept that. National needs to come up with a better way to do this, but for now I'd settle for a special signature sheet that you could print out ahead of time and attach to advancement printout after the BOR. No need for the 3 part form.

It may be true that the food pantry can purchase food more efficiently. But please note that members (scouts and leaders) are not permittted to solicit monetary donations for their unit, chartered organization, or in support of other organizations.

For many troops, this decision is out of their hands. All of the different summer camps our troop has been to ban scouts from having electronics of any kind - except a watch and camera. If the troop allows them in the vehicles for the drive to/from camp is fine, but then they need to leave them in a locked bin or leader vehicle until they leave for home. Adults are allowed cell phones and possibly GPS units, but the phones should only be used in emergencies or when the scouts are not nearby to see it used. Being separated from electronics can be difficult for some scouts AND leaders. But we hope the experience gives them a different perspective on electronics. They can be entertaining and helpful, convenient tools, but they are Not necessary to have fun or get things done. Is it really unreasonable to go a week without? Isn't one of the reasons we go to camp is to get outdoors away from our urban lives?

The blue/gold BSA Family patch is from the old family program. 10 activities - patch and/or certificate, more activities - gold house pin. The new program is very confusing as the program has changed, but some of the old wording is still used even though it doesn't apply. There is no general patch anymore. It appears to be up to the Unit how to decide how they will award the patches/pins. Our pack has gone to awarding the certificate for the initial award and then the pins for additional category activities. This takes up less real estate on the vest.

NJEaglemom is correct. But don't despair. NCS is usually offered regionally in the spring so those running camp in summer can get certified. Talk to your district or council camping or training chairs to find out when/where the nearest NCS will be held. In the Midwest, there is one held in Wisconsin.

Very nice! Wish I had seen it sooner and could have gotten something like this together for our outgoing CM of nearly 7 years. Instead we nominated him for the Unit Leader Award of Merit and it was awarded at a pack meeting.

I have also found the popcorn training to be unhelpful. Please go do the rah rah stuff for the units that are not currently participating in popcorn. I want the tips on running an effective sale and increasing our numbers. I would also like training in using the ordering system and scout online sales. While I wish there was a $5 item, the $10 items sell pretty well. Our pack is in an area where there are other packs just 5-10 blocks away. Our sales have consistently been over $20,000. This funds the pack for the year, with no pack dues beyond national registration. We also pay the scouts' fee for almost all events. Half if our sales comes from show n sells in front of local businesses. Take/sell door to door has also worked better than standard door to door sales. Both of these require a larger popcorn preorder and 2-3 organized people to coordinate it all. That being said, I do wish we had a practical product to sell. Everyone can use trash bags. Most troops (and some packs) around here sell wreaths too or instead. Talking to a lot of units, though, the highest $ producing fundraisers are the pancake breakfasts and spaghetti dinners.

For a Feb or March presentation, we order kits from CubItems no later than Dec. The kits come with plaque, assembled arrow, engraved plate, and arrow holding pegs. We stain/ poly the plaque with metallic gold paint in the light rays. Had one den leader hang various beads from arrow to symbolize ranks and awards earned. Tried colored vinyl tape one year. Normally we follow the standard paint bands to symbolize the various awards. Each boy's total kit takes about 3 hours to complete. Used to be the den leader handled doing them, but now at most the DL might help the Cubmaster.

Scouttrack has worked very well for us and has an easy to use interface. This is especially important for packs since there is faster turnover of volunteers.

Only award BL the first time they earn it. The second time as a den leader my husband knew to leave some BLs for Webelos year. Try to do some of the non BL requirements for the Webelos pins. At a pack meeting, have the whole den talk about the activities they did in their den meetings this month. Not "we did x BL". My council is now allowing districts to invite Bear scouts to their April and May Webelos Overnights. The Bears will not be Webelos until June 1, so they cannot earn the Webelos pins. However, I think they are being told to submit the pins as earned after the council promotes all scouts the first weekend in June.