New scouts that join at end of scouting "year"

[TundraHawk]

We are planning a recruitment night in mid-March for our new pack. We will have several current scouts but most, of course, will be brand new to scouting. As of right now the scouts who will transfer in are one Tiger and two Wolves (all have already earned their rank).

 

How would y'all proceed for the next few months until they all crossover (Tiger to Wolf, etc.) on June? Since the new scouts won't have time to earn their rank, I was thinking of working on a non-rank related award (our council has a area-specific heritage award, etc.), plus working on their Bobcat. In packs that I have been involved with in the past, our Tigers earn their rank by Blue & Gold so they are working on the Bobcat from Feb-May --- would y'all see this as a problem (starting out with the Bobcat for the brand new Tigers)?

 

Any thoughts on how you would do things differently?

 

 

 

 

 

[acco40]

When I was involved with a Pack (before the Tiger program was fully integrated into the advancement program) we recruited new boys, specifically Tigers in the spring (April/May) so that they could enjoy the summer programs. That is the sizzle of the program!

 

Therefore, we would not recruit a 2nd grader in May as a Wolf, but as a prospective Bear.

 

The old question for rank advancement (to which I've never heard a definitive answer) is does ones participation in a school grade end the last day of school or the first day of school? For example, Johnny a 3rd grader, is working on his Bear rank. Regardless of how many requirements he completes, when he becomes a 4th grader he will be a Webelos Scout. Now, what is the timing for becoming a 4th grader, immediately after his last day of 3rd grade (i.e. June) or will he remain a 3rd grader right up until the first day of school in September? What commonly happens is that boys work on the rank that they have not earned yet in the summer so if Johnny had not finished with all of the Bear reqs, he could work on them in the summer and if he had completed them, he could begin working on his Webelos reqs (with his den leaders approval).

[johndaigler]

Our pack would use the summer as a catch-all.

 

Let the boys who need/want to continue working on the previous rank, do so. Let others who are ready and choose to, begin work on the new rank level. We don't allow the summer time for earning arrow points under the old grade level.

 

In TundraHawk's scenario, boys could use the rest of this school year and some of summer to earn this year's rank badge. Or, if it's less important to some, let them begin work on the new rank at the beginning of summer.

 

We wouldn't let them have a head start during Spring on the new grade rank, except they could, I suppose, bend the rules by "studying" or "practicing" skills and knowledge needed at the new level.

 

And, of course, activities could not count toward both finishing one rank badge and the beginning of the new.

 

jd

[TundraHawk]

I really appreciate the input...thank you!

 

acco40 -- If all goes well, it looks like we'll be doing a recruitment in March and again in May. I hate that they will run so close together, but hopefully in March we will be able to pick up a few boys to start up the pack and the May recruitment will help bring in a few more, along with our new crop of Tigers.

 

I have yet to deal with having a scout earn rank over the summer so this is new territory for me! In my limited experience, I've always taken it that the scout must earn it by the end of the school year (May/June) and an extension could be granted on a case by case basis.

 

johndaigler -- We definitely would not let them have a head start on the new rank, but I thought we could go ahead with the Bobcat (even with the Tigers...very soon to be Wolves) since it is required for everyone. Then once summer roles around, they would be given their new rank handbooks and neckerchiefs, and they'd be free to work on their new rank.

 

I certainly don't want to rush these new scouts to earn their rank (too much, too soon) but at the same time I want to encourage any little go-getters. If we have a new scout that is really interested in earning the rank, we could allow him to use the summer.

 

 

[johndaigler]

sounds good - FYI, the Bobcat cannot be earned by Tigers. They can practice the knowledge and skills but the great BSA computer (or so Council tells me) will not recognize their achievement until the first day of their Wolf year.

[fotoscout]

If you do a March recruiting the new boys would probably start in April. That gives you 3 months of the school year and two months of the summer to bring these new boys up to speed. The existing boys can go either way for the summer. There is no hard an fast rule about where the boys fall for the summer months with respect to their ranks. Use that to your advantage!!! There is no reason why the new boys cannot earn their rank badges for this year, even if the dont get started until April.

 

Your bigger problem will be integrating the new boys into the program mid year. Youll have to be very on the ball to keep everyone excited and interested. Working on Bobcat material is a good idea, but youll also have to do some advancement work with the new boys. The existing boys should be OK with some repeats, IF, you can present the material in a different manner than the first time they saw it. They are young, as long as these are engaged in something thats fun, they will be happy. If you have additional adult help, you could even break the boys off into groups, with one group doing advancement work and the other working on arrow points.

 

Good Luck.

 

[TundraHawk]

johndaigler -- I've always been told/have read that Tigers can begin working on their Bobcat as soon as they earn their Tiger rank. Actually, the Tiger handbook even mentions that the boys should "keep your Bobcat badge in a safe place. After you graduate to a Wolf den, you will wear the badge on your blue Cub Scout uniform shirt." (from the Tiger handbook printed prior to the Tiger uniform changes) I wonder if this has changed??

 

foto - Most likely we'll have more new scouts than existing scouts after our recruitment so if we work on advacements we will definitely have to be creative and present the information in a new way to keep boredom at bay. I certainly agree that our new scouts will have plenty of time to finish up their rank through the summer. I think a lot will depend on the parents - if they seem gung-ho about the program there should be no problems, but many new scout parents I've dealt with in the past expect everything to be done, achievement-wise, at den meetings.

 

Y'all have given me some great food for thought -- thank you!

[cubmaster3947]

We typically target awarding the Tiger Cub rank at the B&G. After than, the TCs work on their Tiger Track electives, but also on the Bobcat badge. We hold a "Tiger Cub Graduation" ceremony at the last Pack meeting of the school year (May), at which the TCs (hopefully) receive the Bobcat and become "real Cub Scouts". We make a big deal out of it, using a "Cub-o-matic 9000" machine - step in as a Tiger Cub...whoosh! ding!...step out as a Cub Scout.

 

Of course, the new "upgrade" to the TC program changes things a bit, but the mechanics stay the same...TC rank at B&G, Bobcat in May.

 

mark

[Torveaux]

According to the Cub Scout Leader Book (pg 20-7)

 

"At the end of a school year, and once a boy moves to the next Cub Scouting level, he may not "go back" and earn Arrow Points from the earlier rank"

 

As for 'when' someone moves on, it is also in the book. (pg 20-6)

 

"When he completes third grade (or is 10), a Cub Scout may be recognized in a pack ceremony as he enters a Webelos den."

 

"The Bear rank is for boys who have completed second grade (or are 9 years old).

 

There should be no question as all of the grade requirements talk about having completed a grade, not necessarily started the next one.

 

Exceptions are made for children with disabilities.

[JDickerson]

Our pack is planning to advance our boys into their new dens at the May pack meeting. We are also recruiting new Tiger Cubs during May and we'll introduce them at this meeting. We've found that keeping the pack going throughout the summer really helps retention for the coming school year.

 

We also have a rally in September and again in January to recruit new Cubs. Really, a boy can start anytime, with no previous Cub Scout experience. He just needs to earn his Bobcat badge first.

 

In my Bear den, five of the boys are ready to get their Bear at this month's B&G. One boy started in January, so he's not even close, but he understands he has three more months to earn the Bear. I've mapped out the rest of the school year to help him along using achievements not already earned by the other boys. The other boys will earn arrow points. This boy does not get a lot of support from his parents, so the den will help him along.

 

We try to keep the boys in with their school-age peers, even though he might not earn a specific badge in the given time frame. Cub Scouts can still be a positive experience, even if he participates just a few short months.

[Torveaux]

Great!

 

We are shooting for adding Spring recruiting this year. Our feeder school has 15 boys in the current Kindergarten class. 3 of them have older siblings in Scouts. Most of the other 12 are the oldest children, so the parents will be brand spanking new. Of the other 3, one is the soon-to-be CM's boy (he is also the soon-to-be Bear DL).

 

We are thinking about trying to recruit the Tiger DL (or whatever they call the Tiger Leader) before we get to the boys. We usually have about a 50% hit rate on boys in each class joining. Is that normal?

 

The feeder school is a small private school with up to 30 kids per grade. That gives us about 12-17 boys each year as natural targets. We are also considering trying to reach out to other members of the parish that do not send their kids to the school. The difficulty is that we need more leaders. We are building a solid nucleus, but if we get a really good turn out we will need to find more DLs and ADLs. I suppose that is a good problem to have.

 

Any suggestions would be welcome.

[deltascout]

Our Pack holds an advancement ceremony at Family camp in mid summer. Family Camp for our pack is a huge event. With 87 registered boys we have anywhere from 250-350 people at our Family Camp. Boys generally earn rank by B&G and work on electives until Family Camp. If a new boy joins after B&G he can still work on the appropriate rank but must earn it before camp, when the den advances to the next level. Once the den advances ther is no going back and all boys must work on the next rank.