den chiefs

[Lisabob]

Just thought I''d share this with you...

 

I have a son in his third year of boy scouts. I''ve tried to encourage him to serve as a den chief for any area packs on numerous occasions, and he always responds with a horrified look and a very firm NO WAY. It is, I''ve been told, "not cool" to hang around with "little kids." Sigh.

 

So the other day I stopped in to a local pack round-up to lend a hand and because of the 101 other things on our schedules that evening, my son had to go with me. He sulked about this fact the whole way there (ah, teen agers).

 

So once we got there, where did he end up??? In the gym surrounded by a bunch of "little kids," teaching them to play games. When they all returned to their parents'' sides at the end of the evening, here comes my son with a big grin. And after being introduced to the webelos I den leader, she (WDL) asked him if he''d like to stop in to her den meeting in uniform every couple of weeks to lend a hand and share his skills with the boys. AND HE SAYS "YEAH, SURE. MIGHT BE FUN!" It was all I could do to choke back my laughter...

 

Yep, my son, the "non-den chief" den chief.

 

 

 

 

[John-in-KC]

Play that hook carefully Lisa, when you set it, you want it to set HARD

 

Then it''ll be time to get him to the training.

 

(Remind him at some point that DC is a POR all the way to Eagle )

 

Congratulations on what he''s done so far!!

[Stosh]

I find that rather strange that the older boys don''t want to play with the little kids. This last court of honor we awarded 3 Den Chief Service awards to 3 boys all having the rank of Life. Of course just because they got the award doesn''t mean they ceased their DC activities, they are planning on at least finishing out the year, that would mean June of next year. By then some of these DC''s may in fact be Eagles. How many packs/dens can brag that they have an Eagle Scout for a Den Chief.

 

Stosh

[eagle-pete]

I have found that most older boys are not at first over enthusiastic about being a Den Chief. It is primarily a leadership skills building position. Many times it does take time for a boy scout to warm up to the idea.

 

On occasion you get a boy who has natural leadership abilities and can catch on immediately. These are generally the exception, and it is a blessing to the Troop and to the Pack.

 

It is normal for a boy to be apprehensive at first when faced with the duties of Den Chief. Remember, we are "[preparing] young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law." Most boys need to be trained for leadership positions. This is, after all, what we are trying to do and it is surprising that some of the seemingly most unlikely boys respond well in these positions when properly prepared.

 

A good, well trained Den Chief is not only a valuable asset to the Pack, but also a leadership position we use to prepare these boys to become great leaders.

 

Eagle Pete

[ScoutNut]

Good for your son Lisa! I''m glad he discovered how difficult it is to say no when looking into the wide-eyed, awed face of a Cubbie! These guys LOVE Den Chiefs!

 

If they are working with good leaders and care about their Cubbies, being a Den Chief can be a wonderful learning, leadership opportunity.

 

My son was a Den Chief for 7 years and then graduated to an Asst Den Leader. Some of "his" former Cubbies, THEIR former Cubbies, and their brothers, are now all trained Den Chiefs.

 

At our Pack meeting last night I was telling the Den Chiefs how proud I was of them and what a great job they are doing. It was nice to see their chests swell up a bit!

 

 

 

[acco40]

Both of my sons participated as Den Chiefs soon after they became Boy Scouts. Let me share some of my observations about Den Chiefs.

 

1) I don''t highly recommend that a Scout become a Den Chief for his younger brothers den, especially if their age difference is two years or less.

 

2) Scoutmasters want to use the den chief position to train their inexperienced Scouts the basics of leadership. Den Leaders want troops to provide their best seasoned youth leaders.

 

3) Scoutmasters and Cubmasters should assign den chiefs, not parents or den leaders.

 

4) I found that for very young Boy Scouts, being a den chief to Webelos Scouts, sometimes only one year younger or less, can be a rewarding experience.

 

5) As a Scoutmaster, I assigned a pair of young Boy Scouts to a den as den chiefs. That way, they had back-up when busy (Troop meetings, Pack meetings, den meetings, patrol meetings, troop outings, etc. can be very taxing). Also, if you can provide a pair of den chiefs when both attend they have a peer to interact with.

 

6) As Scoutmaster, make sure the Den Leader and Cub master understand the den chief''s role. I''ve had bad experiences with a Den Leader who just treated the den chief as another cub scout and let him occasionally talk to the boys about what Boy Scouts is like.