Are more Den meetings better?

[Cubmaster Jerry]

Whenever I provide guidance to my den leaders, I always tell them that I would highly recommend (and wish I could mandate) that they have at least two den meetings per month. Three if they could swing it. This does not include Pack meetings or Pack outings, depending on what they are.

 

What are your thoughts? I have been a den leader before and I scheduled meetings every week except pack meeting weeks. My argument behind this primarily supports the fact that the more meetings there are, the more the boys are involved and easier to maintain interest in the program.

 

I have also seen the other end of the spectrum, where leaders only meet once a month plus the Pack meeting. Usually, but not always, these leaders are not as involved themselves and they experience higher attirition rates than leaders who meet more regularly.

 

How do your units work?

 

Jerry

[Bob White]

Cub Scouting is designed to be, and is most effective when the boys meet once a week, three to four den meetings and one pack meeting each month. While fewr but longer meetings may fit an adults preference3 more the program is not designed to teach adults.

 

Children at this age require more repetition and exposure to information than once every two weeks if the information is to be retained. Plus, longer meetings conflict with a childs attention span at this age.

 

The best plan to follow is the one laid out for cub leaders in the program helps book, at least three den meetings and one pack meeting each month.

[johndaigler]

Our Pack leaves it up to the DLs. During the school year, my Bear Den meets every week, except the week of our Pack Meeting. In reality, though, there are holidays, school vacations, etc. - so a truer picture for my Den is twice a month plus a Den activity/trip. Then, of course, there's the Pack Meeting and usually a Pack event/trip.

 

During the summer, it is nearly impossible to get my boys in one place at one time, so I have one Den Meeting a month, but double the length. It's a great opportunity to do some of those multi-step projects/skills that are too complicated to fit into an afterschool meeting - or are perfect for the summer outdoors. We still try to do a Den trip.

 

jd

 

 

[OneHour]

As with Johndaigler's pack, our dens are pretty much following along the line of:

 

1 pack meeting

2 den meetings

1 den outing

 

per month ... which works out to be once a week.

 

Although, the best laid out plan sometimes works against you. Some of parents who went through from Tiger to Webelos told me that meeting once a week for cub scout for five years got them and their sons burnt out to continue with boy scouts. It seems that the once a week commitment is one that some of them are not willing to make. One told me that the thought of once a week for a whole year is tiresome whereas in sport ... it's once a week for three months until next season which is 3 to 6 months away. I have a den leader who finally convinced her third son not to join tiger because she is tired from serving and taking her two older sons to den meetings. It's a pitty that the third boy cannot experience cub scouting as his two older brothers did. On another example, when my oldest was a wolf, the parents in his den got tired of meeting every week (eventhough their sons like it well). They started to stop driving the boys to the den meeting. I had to make an offer that they could simply drop their sons off and my assistant den leader and I will work with them with one caviat that they help with at least one den meeting in the year. The boys started to show up again. It's about convenience of the parents. It's all great how we can just say that this is a program for the boys, but we all have to be sympathetic to the parents as well, especially the working ones. Tonight was our recruiting night. We took in 30 boys. There were two or three who left and didn't join because of the committment required.

 

One final thought ... a den meeting is worth it if it is fun and keeps the boys interested. If the den meeting is there to just work on requirement or do monotonous arts and crafts then it is one too many meeting! If the den leaders are spirited, are great with kids, and are very energetic where the den meetings are fun then whether you have one or four ... they will come back over and over again ... and they will remember. The annual planner will help but it's in the den leader and the parents that keep the boys interested. I asked a few of my current Life scouts whom I know since Tigers of what they remember about cub scouts ... they agreed on the fun, ie. pinewood derby, campouts, skits, den games, and my corny jokes!

 

1Hour

 

(it's just my opinion)

 

 

[madkins007]

We told our DLs that they really ought to have an activity a week- pack meeting, den meetings, outing (with proper paperwork), etc.

 

Over the summer, we asked each DL (with some others helping) to host an activity a month open to the entire unit. The CM, ACM, and CC ran one as well, which gave us 4 or 5 per month- about one a week.

 

I think 'one a week' works nicely.

 

[Cubmaster Jerry]

If I were a gambling man, I would bet that kids would more likely lose interest if meetings were scheduled less than two a month rather than get burned out from having one every week. At the younger ages, it is more the convenience of the parents. However, I think that during the last two - three years of Cub Scouting the boys start to become more involved with other activities and playing more with friends. If Scouts isn't there constantly, they will forget the fun involved and choose not to go. Most begin (and continue) in scouting because their friends are involved. If they can get that same fellowship elsewhere more often, they will likely lose interest.

 

Jerry

[Prairie_Scouter]

I think a get together of some sort each week for Cub Scouts is a good idea, whether that be a den meeting, outing, or pack night. That assumes that the leaders are able to put together fun meetings for the Scouts, something that's fairly easy to do if you make use of the meeting guides that are readily available from BSA. If the leaders can only put together 2 meetings a month, plus pack night, you're probably better off doing that than trying to "force" more meetings that the Scouts will get bored with.

 

In the pack that my 2 sons were in, we had weekly meetings of some sort, except for during school breaks and over the summer. Over the summer, we held several summer activities instead, including family camp and day camp.

 

From my own experience, I think the burn out factor isn't really coming from Scouting, I think it's Scouting, plus baseball, plus soccer, plus volleyball, plus band, plus etc. Many kids today are over committed. I partially blame the parents for this, for not saying "enough".

 

 

[EagleInKY]

Our Tigers usually meet twice a month, plus a pack meeting. Wolves and Bears meet at least twice, and are supposed to do at least one outing, in addition to the pack meeting. Webelos are encouraged to meet every week (except the week of the pack meeting). This means that Wolves, Bears and Webelos should be getting together weekly (at least) for one purpose or another.

[cubbingcarol]

Count me in on the once a week meeting group (except for the week with pack meeting)!

I had one in July (100% attendance)and one in August (90% attendance). BTW we are Bears.

I have a good repoire with all of my parents, of course, I only have 6 boys in my den but it works like a dream. I have 2 assistants and we have just as much fun as the boys. In fact at last night's meeting we were playing balloon games and I thought my mom (one of my assistants) was going to pee her pants because she got to laughing so hard watching the boys.

 

What's not to love with this thing they call Cub Scouts?

Carol(This message has been edited by cubbingcarol)

[theysawyoucomin']

One hour per week is best.

 

That being said, I had it for 2 1/2 hours twice a month.

Got them right off the school bus at the VFW hall. Assistant Dl and one parent so the ratio was about 3 cubs to one leader plus a Den Chief.

 

Didn't follow the time guidelines but I was well prepared for each meeting. I think my "customers" were happy and attendance was always good. I did not waste the first 15 minutes of every meeting waiting for a late boy.

The time between 2:30 and 5:00 is lost parent and child time anyway. So I did not take up any family time. Suffered very few confilcts.

 

Planning and preparedness prevent poor performance.

 

Three per month with one Pack meeting is best.

[Its Me]

I try and meet 4x per month (1 Pack 2 Dens, 1 Outing) but:

September, November, December and January all have holidays that usually cancels out one meeting. Not always.

[CubScoutJo]

Quote:

----------------

One told me that the thought of once a week for a whole year is tiresome whereas in sport ... it's once a week for three months until next season which is 3 to 6 months away.

-------------

 

Around here sport are more like 2, 3 and 4 nights per week depending on which sport it is. I have boys in my den who are doing football right now and it is two nights a week practice plus a game on the weekend.

 

Jo

 

[ScoutMomAng]

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

[ScoutNut]

Most of our dens meet once a week for about 1 hour except for the week of the Pack meeting.

 

We have had Webelos dens that met every other week for 2 hours & it seemed to work well for them.

 

There are times, if the den is working on something special or going on an outing, that the meetings run longer than 1 hour.

 

Once a month meetings are just not enough.

[JeffBear]

Two years with one Den meeting and an outing per month plus Pack meeting seemed ideal for our transitive, somewhat finicky, parents.

Was I blown away when, after two "successful" years had passed and planning meeting was nailed down to a Sunday afternoon in the Colorado Mountain community.

The first of my 8 Scouts to drop out had his mother, drop the bomb. Pick ONE activity. He chose baseball. Once the pressure was off to be the 'first' then two others, then finally a fourth dropped out with excuses from dance/music lessons.

I was blown away! It really hurt. The remaining parents and boys met and determined we would survive with a more committed bunch, anyway.

We decided then, to meet twice a month, plus our outings and a Pack meeting.

I picked up one recruit from roundup. I miss those who dropped out. I had hoped to see each of them earn their Eagle Scout.

Keep it lively. That's what we focus on.