Need ideas for Tiger requirement

[Sprocket]

Hello, I've been lurking on the boards for a couple months, but this is my first post.

 

I'm going to be a new Tiger Cub Den Leader this fall, and am trying to plan out activities for the parents and I to put together that 1) the boys will enjoy and 2) will allow them to earn their Tiger badge by the Feb. Blue & Gold banquet.

 

What kind of things have people used for requirement 1G: "Go to a library, historical society, museum, old farm, or historical building, or visit an older person in your community. Discover how family life was the same and how it was different many years ago."

 

I'm having a hard time thinking of things that the boys wouldn't find boring. With trying to tie things into the Program Helps themes, we'll be doing this Go See It relatively early in the year, and I don't want to lose anybody by starting out with something lame.

 

I've been thinking of doing the October Go See It at a pumkin patch (should count as an "old farm") and tie it in with Halloween stuff & whatnot.

 

Thoughts? Ideas?

[travers211]

You might find that your boys may not be as bored with historical places as you may think.

 

Case in point, we took our Tigers to a local house that's nearly 150 year's old. It has been preserved by a local historical society to remain as "true to the period" as possible. The tour guide was dressed in period clothing as well.

 

The guys had a ball. They were absolutely fascinated by the phone that you had to crank by hand to get to work. The old-time phonograph, with the big horn on top, was a hit, too.

 

You gotta' think like a 7 year old.

[Sprocket]

You're probably right.

Yesterday we went and checked out Whitehaven, the Ulysses Grant National Historic Site, which is very near here. My 6 year-old thought it was "boring," but for scout groups, they have a program they put on to show kids how things were done 150 years ago. The ranger made it sound more hands-on. My son probably would've had more fun if his friends were along, too.

 

It doesn't help that I've been feeling a lot of pressure lately since the other parents in the pack and some of the incoming Tiger parents have heard that I'm an Eagle and seem to make a deal out of it. I feel like there are these big expectations.

[MaScout]

Sprocket--number one & crucial to the success of a den program is enthusiasm! You can make most anything fun...it is what YOU make of it.

 

Program ideas: check Tiger book, see if anybody has any old Tiger material (it has fun, age-appropriate ideas), internet, and don't forget to ask YOUR son & den members what they'd like to do!

 

I'll try to remember some of the things we did with my last son (he's 12, oldest is 20 -long time since then to remember & program has changed a lot.) We went to a library, visited the newspaper office, a museum, a bank, and went to an afternoon high school football game. We made scrapbooks, then I took digital pictures of activities, & printed copies for the boys. We went for a hike & learned LNT principles. We did some crafts (I'm not a crafts person, but one of the other moms helped here.) We made a cottage cheese, strawberry, & blueberry flag -- then ate it. It's been quite a while, & my records are filed...if I find them, I'll send more ideas.

 

Ma Scout

[funscout]

That's great that you are organized and planning ahead. That puts you ahead of many new leaders, so don't worry too much about the parents' expectations. Just remember KISMIF: Keep it simple, make it fun! Also, you may find that some of the parents have ideas or ties to particular places. One of my parents was related to the Fire Chief, so we had a great tour of the fire station, and a ride on one of the fire trucks.

 

My son's Tiger den enjoyed our visit to an old house that is also a historical museum. I'd been there before, and knew that the lady who runs the tours is great with kids. Since this house had been part of the Underground Railroad, the boys were most interested in seeing the hiding place, down in the cellar, (dirt floor) where runaway slaves could hide.

 

It's great to have a goal of getting the Tiger badge by the Blue and Gold. Just make sure everyone knows that it's a goal, and not a requirement. It's great when all the boys can make rank at the same time, but it doesn't always happen, if some boys miss den meetings, and don't work on requirements at home as much.

 

Have a good year!

[Lisabob]

I know a lot of den leaders who visit their public library with their den. Many public libraries have a children's librarian on staff who will probably be happy to do a program for your den. Additionally a children's librarian will probably have some good ideas about what kinds of books might be appropriate to teach the boys a little about what life was like "back then" while still holding their interest.

 

Other options- do you have any old military installations in your area? For example we took our cubs to visit an old WWII submarine that has become a museum. Torpedos, guns, etc., they loved it. Old forts are always a big hit. Since you mention that you went to White Haven I'm guessing you're in the St Louis area? How about a trip to the Museum of Westward Expansion, located below the arch? I see they run programs for wolf, bear, and webelos dens and I bet they'd do something for your Tigers if you contacted them. They seem to have a good Native American collection too. What boy isn't fascinated by indian lore?

 

Keep in mind that you shouldn't be doing all of this yourself! Encourage (expect) the other tiger parents to help with activities and share the load. Just because you are an Eagle scout doesn't mean you're the only one who can put together a good den outing!

 

Most of all, have fun with it.

 

Lisa'bob

[clydesdale115]

For this one, we went to the "Indian Mounds" - a national monument in our area where Native Americans once lived and thrived. We went during a Native American Festival - got to see authentic dress, dance, food, etc. Toured the Indian Mounds (tunnel underground that leads to a cental meeting area beneath the Mound), learned about life back then. Nothing boring about that go-see-it :-)

 

This was in the fall (October) - we had set a goal for completing our Tiger by March. There were many "old time" craft festivals going on during that time also. Many were at old farmsteads, so there were actually several options.

clyde

 

[ScoutNut]

I have 2 words for you - SHARED LEADERSHIP!!

 

Please don't skip this EXTREMELY important aspect of the Tiger Program.

 

Your Tiger Teams are doing more than just working toward Tiger rank. They are learning about Scouting, your Pack, & each other. Shared leadership helps show the Tiger families what "Help the Pack Go" means. It immerses the Tiger families in Scouting, & family participation is what Cub Scouts is all about.

 

Have your Tiger Teams each sign up for 1 month (more or less, depending on how many Tigers you have) of activities. If you take the first 5 months & work on 1 of the 5 Tiger achievements each month, you have a pretty good chance of meeting the goal of reaching rank by B&G.

 

Don't plan the activities for your Tiger Teams. Help them with ideas & resources, but do not do all of the work for them. You will be surprised the ideas they come up with.

 

Here's an idea to give to your September Tiger Team - A Reenactment. There are medieval, Revolutionary War, Civil War, Voyageurs, etc. There are usually a number of them around in the fall months because it is cooler then for wearing the costumes.

 

For #1G we have gone to a Revolutionary War reenactment complete with weddings, battles, & hatchet throwing, visited a historical farm, visited a War museum, gone on a local historical tour, visited a historical mill that was a stop on the Underground Railroad, gone to nature centers, visited a historical schoolhouse, visited the dinosaurs & lots more. I will usually keep the library for a "back-up" trip for when families miss the regular one.

 

Many parks, zoos & museums have scout programs. Keep them in mind for all levels.

 

Don't feel intimidated! Take training ASAP, use your Tiger Teams, & have FUN!

[Sprocket]

Thanks everyone for all the suggestions (please, keep 'em coming!)

 

ScoutNut, I took my training back in May so I'd have it done before the start of the school year. I plan to use the shared leadership, but it hasn't been done in prior years' Tiger Dens in our pack. As some of the parents have older sons who've been through Tigers without it, I don't want shared leadership to be too radical of a change, and be seen as a negative. On the other hand, these parents with older sons are also a good potential resource.

 

What I plan to do is to map out what I'd like worked on each month advancement-wise, and give them info about the monthly theme, along with some suggestions/ideas for activities they can organize, but they could always do something different. This way they won't have to think up too much from scratch, if they don't want to.

 

I have a feeling I'll have a mix of parents. There's a few that I know will be really helpful, and some that I think don't feel they have time/ability/interest in doing things. It looks like we'll have around 10 boys, so some parents could easily decide they'd rather not take a month and it wouldn't cause problems.

[Scouting Mom]

We did the Pumpkin farm when my son was a Tiger. Most of them have displays of old farm impliments.

 

Other options in our area include a couple of historical homes. There's an annual Farm Festival that has a museum of old farm equipment. We've also made visits to the local veteran's home (or nursing home). We did this at Christmas time and did crafts with the residents and talked to them about when they were as young as the boys or when they were in the service.

[CC Tonya]

Our town has a small historical museum that has artifacts from our city's history. (I had always wanted to visit the museum and never had, so I was really into it) There was lots of farm & household things, a mock classroom, mock kids' bedroom, etc. So we were able to have the kids point out how things are for them, and then be able to contrast it with what they were seeing at the museum. The biggest hit was a player piano they had. :-)

 

The kids actually enjoyed it, and being a small museum we were only there for about an hour. And the exhibits tied in with the town they live in-names of streets were the same, or people in the pictures had the same names as streets where their preschool was, etc. It turned out to be a really fun visit.

[Greg Nelson]

Sprocket:

 

Two things that jumped out at me from a recent post:

 

"We'll have about 10 boys" and

 

"Some parents could choose not to take a month"

 

These are both bad ideas.

 

With 10 kids, you should split up into two groups of 5 teams. I know a lot of times the leadership just isn't there for 2 dens, but with 10 boys, some of the kids will get lost in the shuffle, and you'll get more parents willing to sit on the sidelines.

 

I made the mistake when I was a Tiger leader of letting one of my parents off the hook for putting together meetings. As a result, that boy never got the chance to be host, and his dad never got the chance to be a hero to his son.

[Lucky Red Lion]

We visited a local Hawaiian Culture Museum (we live on Oahu). Our shared leader time scheduled a special Saturday tour for the den that included an interactive diorama and pupped show on the development of the Hawaii ecosystem, a tour of a giant model volcano, and a hands on childrens' museum section. The shared leader Mom coordinated the scheduling, tickets, food, etc. The Tigers and parents had a blast.