What are the best new Cub Scout Advancement ideas?

[Scoutfish]

On the flip side, what do you think are the good things that have come from change?

 

Overall, there are several tings I like, but two stand out above the others.

 

1)The new focus put more emphasis on doing stuff at den meetings. Not that all stuff has to be at a meeting, or that it has to be inside a room, but I like that it's done at meetings.

 

Why? Because , for some scouts, the den meeting is the best quality they have in scouting. By that, I mean a DL might go over and beyond the minumun amount to qualify, while mom or dad may barely meet, not quite meet, or inadvertantly fail to even cover an achievement. No, it's not perfect by any means, but enables a more even standard of learning.

 

I'm not trying to support more work for a DL, but I support a more equal and even coverage of the acheivements for all scouts in a den....assuming they show up.

 

 

2) I like that during the Webelos years, mom and dad do not sign off like they did in lower ranks. Yeah, I know that the DL can allow it in certain situations: family travel or Family Member or the parents guide.

 

The biggest reason I like the DL being the one to sign off is that too many parents will check off requirements willy nilly without caring if they were done or because they don't quite understand what the true requirement was.

 

 

Am I the only one who has seen a scout hardly show up and have almost nothing done during the year, and then suddenly, 3 weeks before the end of the season, mom or dad brings in a book that is signed off on almost every single requirement and elective? And they turn in a list of 30 pins and beltloops that they swear Jr has done. What can you do besides tell mom and dad that pack policy is the pack only provides only "X" number of awards a month? They will still buy them for Jr!

 

So, what general or specific thing do you think is good about Cub Scout advancement.