nonconformative uniforms

[tigerleader]

Does anyone know why the tigers wear orange t-shirts? It seems to me very informal considering the cubs uniforms. I was told that the uniforms give the boys a sense of belonging. However when the tigers are with the other scouts they seem to stick out,not conform.

 

[sctmom]

Up until about a year ago, Tigers were not officially part of the Cub Scout Pack. Tigers was a stand alone program. Rumor has it that eventually the Tigers will wear the blue shirt. Better make sure everyone buys it big enough to last 3 years!

 

[acco40]

Three years? The goal in my household is 4.5 years! I could tell when my boys were Wolf, you could not see their hands! {Long-sleeve shirts, get it?}

[tigerleader]

Thank you. I hope that they continue to fine tune the tiger program. I'm finding that most of the requirements can be done quickly and most of the electives are "GO" activities. There are only so many go activities to do expectially during the winter months. Also the belt loops - sports most can not be done during winter months and the acedimic ones are over most of the tigers ability.

[sctmom]

Acco40, The Webelos are transitioning to the brown uniform at the end of 3rd grade now. So, the blue one doesn't have to fit as long.

 

Tigerleader, Remember the boys have a long time to do belt loops & pins. Focus on fun. Do some of the fun things in Program Helps and the Cub Scout Leader How-To book. Play a lot of games when they get together. If you do too much, some people get burnt out.

 

[yaworski]

" Also the belt loops - sports most can not be done during winter months and the acedimic ones are over most of the tigers ability. "

 

My old pack had a long standing policy that you couldn't earn any belt loops until you earned Bobcat. This kept the parents focused on the Tiger program and not on loops.

 

Loops and Pins are not the focus of the program, they are simply rewards for thing that boys do outside of scouting.

[tigerleader]

I understand that the boys have a long time to work on belt loops and etc. However the tiger leader last year did nothing. Much of our boys dropped out. I personally think that ideas book is a crock. I am doing my own themes - Oct. is "fun with books". Activities including - reading a book "Arthur's Halloween", puppet making, making a personalize bookmark and starting scrapbook. Also every meeting we include games as well. If I keep up this pace we will need to work on other activities (belt loops) during the scouting year.

[Twocubdad]

I was a Tiger den leader last year, using the new program book. Generally, I think the program is a little below the level of most first graders, but with very little effort, you can beef up most of the achievements into a decent den meeting. "Go outside and look at the weather" is a prime example. It's easy to turn that into a lesson on weather, the seasons, types of clouds, even a game to "see" pictures in the clouds. Admittedly, the book doesn't give you much help in that direction.

 

As there are only five required den activities for the Tiger badge, use ideas from the electives for some of the others. Also, don't be afraid to go outside the program for den activities. One den meeting, we let the boys play on the church play ground for 45 minutes. The boys had a ball, the parents got to relax and visit and I got a pass on planning a den meeting. And no one asked for their money back.

 

One of the best meetings we had was based on the Food Pyramid achievement and several of the related electives. I spent 5-10 minutes explaining the food pyramid and then had the boys cut pictures of food out of magazines and paste them in the right spot on a large pyramid poster. Meanwhile, I had an assortment of ingredients for snacks -- crackers, celery sticks, apple wedges, cheese, cream cheese, peanut butter, rasins, chocolate chips, etc. The boys had to assemble a "balanced" snack for themselves. Next I told them to make a snack with foods that don't "go" together, like apple, cream cheese and chocolate chips. Most were suprised that what they came up with was actually pretty good.

 

To drink, I had a quart each of skim milk, 2%milk and whole milk. We talked about the difference, and I told the boys to try some kind of milk different from what their family usually used and tell me how they liked it.

 

By the end of the meeting, we had completed one achievement and I think three electives -- not to mention that snacks were automatically covered. And the kids loved it. What better activity than eating?

 

As to beltloops -- I think they are important for the Tigers to work on, otherwise they will go most of the year and never receive anything at a Pack meeting. We have a big Pack and advancements take a lot of time at Pack meetings -- even longer if you're not getting anything. I do, however, tell parents to "ration" the beltloops their boy earn so as not to burn through them all too soon. This is true for Wolves and Bears, too.

 

Tigerleader is right about many of the electives being "Go See It"-type activities. But don't assume they have to be done as den activities. Many can be done individually. For example, one day while at the bank, we asked if my son could see the vault. The tellers had a blast showing him the vault and behind the counter -- they even showed him where the bank robber buttons are. That was fun as a spur-of-the-moment thing, but a five-minute tour would be lousy as a den activity, not to mention the scheduling problem for dens that meet in the evenings.

 

Stick to one Go See It a month with the den. If you do the five required for the Tiger badge, you only have a handful more for the balance of the year.

[kittle]

Sctmom,

 

I was told at the Scout shot that Webelos could wear the blue or tan shirt. Is this not true? I bought my son's shirt big enough that it would last at least 2 years, changing to the tan shirt in his 2nd year as a Webelo.

 

Katrina

[yaworski]

"I was told at the Scout shot that Webelos could wear the blue or tan shirt. Is this not true? I bought my son's shirt big enough that it would last at least 2 years, changing to the tan shirt in his 2nd year as a Webelos"

 

It is true that a Webelos has the option of wearing either the blue shirt or the tan shirt. The boys in my son's den decided to stick with blue. As my son said, "I'm not a Boy Scout yet."

 

I did wind up buying my son a new Blue Shirt for his last year in Cubs (Webelos to the rest of you). He simply got too tall for his old shirt. Many parents were astonished that I'd spend $25 for a new shirt but these same people willingly spend $20 or $30 for a new movie or game cartridge for their kids.

 

I do find the ridiculously large shirts that many parents buy somewhat amusing. My son is about 5' tall and wears a youth medium. One boy in our troop is significanly smaller than my son and his mom bought him a MEN's MEDIUM shirt. For a point of reference, I'm 6'2" tall and I wore a men's medium until I hit about 190 lbs. This poor kid is swimming in his shirt. Oh yeah, the mom in question doesn't bat an eye at new game cartridges or DVDs.

 

[yaworski]

"Up until about a year ago, Tigers were not officially part of the Cub Scout Pack. Tigers was a stand alone program"

 

Not quite right. Tiger Cubs started out as a stand alone program. Then, more than few years ago they became part of the pack and attended pack meetings. Finally, last year the big change occurred and TigerCub became a rank which has caused tons of problems.

[Bob White]

What problems? They got their own handbook, a belt totem instead of the paws that wouldn't stick to the shirt, and added a den leader position. The basic structure and purpose has changed very little.

[sctmom]

Yaworski is right about the uniform. BSA "wants" you to buy a new uniform at the beginning of Webelos. Personally I'm still telling parents to wait until it fits.

 

Some packs in the past few years were including Tigers and some weren't. Our pack was including Tigers. The new books aren't a big change for the pack itself. The Cubmaster always gives the Tigers a plastic "tiger claw" (bear claw from the scout store) if they come to the pack meeting. This was started years ago and is still being done. It gives the Tigers a chance to be up in front of the pack and an incentive to attend the pack meeting. We put them on a piece of plastic to be worn as a necklace or from the belt.

 

I'm not very familiar with the new Tiger book. I do know it is more structured than the previous Tiger program, which I think is a good thing.

 

Marbles would be a good belt loop for Tigers to do indoors. Use tape to make the circle on the floor.

 

Look through Baloo's Bugle at www.cubmaster.org for ideas for den meetings, crafts, games, and food. Baloo's Bugle is a monthly online newsletter. You might get some ideas from past issues of things for the Tigers to do.

 

What "ideas book" are you referring to as a bunch of crock? Program helps? If that is the one, it is a beginning not a be-all for meetings. Take some of the ideas from it that are listed for Wolves, if your boys can do them.

 

Do some unconventional things -- play board games, play video games, watch a video -- then talk about playing fair or something to tie it into scouts. Something, anything, to keep the families involved. You are right if the leader does "nothing" people will drop out.

 

Shared leadership is a great theory but the parents are still looking at YOU to be THE leader. Sounds like you are on the right track. I like the "fun with books" idea.

 

[tigerleader]

Thanks sctmom,

You gave me some ideas that were good ones. Sounds like you "know" scouting and boys. The "Helps program" was what I was refering to. I've not found much help with the themes I'm doing.

[Bob White]

The BSA does not want a scout to buy a uniform when they become a Webelos cub scout. they want the scout to be in a tan shirt before he ends his time in Webelos. Because 1)most 10-year olds don't want to wear the same uniform as a second grader. 2)It helps to encourage Webelos to crossover to Boy Scouts. 3)Most boys by the second year of Webelos have outgrown the blue cub shirt and it is more economical for the families to put them in a tan Boy Scout shirt since they will soon cross over.

 

The BSA does not care if you buy the shirt new, use a uniform exchange with a troop(which they recommend), buy at a discount shop (which they also recommend), or get it off the Internet. it's about what is best for the needs of the scout and the families not about selling a new shirt.

 

Bob White