Campout form?

[SpEdScouter]

I have noticed when our patrol leaders organize a campout they write all the information out on a piece of paper. Information being like location, dates, names of patrol members attending, menu for each meal, chore lists, etc... But each scout seems to do it in his own way.

 

I am wondering, is there a "form" or "worksheet" out there which would be a kind of "fill in the blanks" tool to help the scouts organize their trip? This way they can be sure that nothing get missed. Also such a form could be checked off by the SPL or possibly the scoutmaster. After the trip or outing then such a form, with any followup comments, could be filed away for future reference.

 

Is there such a form?

 

Is something like this a good idea?

[Hedgehog]

Is there such a form?

 

 

Here is a Boy's Life article with Trip Plans and Emergency Response Plan: http://boyslife.org/outdoors/outdoorarticles/14567/forms-for-planning-a-backpacking-trip/  I used these for the Backpacking Merit Badge.

 

Additionally, BSA provides this for Venturing Crews: http://www.scouting.org/filestore/venturing/pdf/510-022_Fillable.pdf

 

 

Is something like this a good idea?

 

Yes, but have the boys sit down and develop the form.  Don't make it an adult implemented paperwork requirement.

Edited August 17, 2016 by Hedgehog

[TWCub]

I'm interested in what other do.  Right now, each time we go it's different.  A basic form would be great.

[T2Eagle]

We've tried various things like this.  We have generic menu planners and duty rosters, but they don't really get used and are almost always a response to what adults, including me, perceive as a lack of organization.

 

Really, how much do you need written down, and for whom and when do you need it written down?

 

The scout or scouts that are bringing food need to bring the food, whichever scouts they are need to go home with a menu, they can develop a shopping list for themselves from that.

 

Come Friday evening for each patrol there need to be enough tents packed, a dining fly if you use them/need them, maybe a stove, and a chuck box or whatever you keep your kitchen stuff in --- that's four things, every thing after that is gravy.

 

Written duty rosters are nice, but as soon as someone extra shows up or someone who is sick doesn't make it they're rearranged any way.  Somebody needs to cook, somebody needs to clean up, somebody needs to get water and wood; the scouts can decide this on the fly without any real trouble.

 

I would guess that on 75 -- 80% of our trips there is no written plan for anything after the menus get written out.  That doesn't mean there isn't a plan.

 

If you were going camping every month with six of your buddies,  how much would you have written down by the third time you went?

 

 

 

ETA: There are dozens, at least,  of these types of forms available from other troops on the internet.  If your scouts don't want to reinvent the wheel they can search for them and pick one for themselves, pick one one and tweak it, or pick a few and synthesize them.

Edited August 17, 2016 by T2Eagle

[SpEdScouter]

T2

Good response. I guess I'm a person who is trying to always fix things.

 

I will though bring it up to the boys and see if they want to try using one.

[Beavah]

Yah, I'm with T2Eagle, eh?   I've seen adults try to offer boys forms a few thousand times.   Probably best to stop and think about how annoyed yeh get by fillin' out somebody else's bureaucratic form at work before yeh push it on kids. 

 

We don't want the boys to become young bureaucrats, eh?  We want 'em to become self-directed and self-organizing.  If they decide they need a form, then yeh can help 'em with it, but not before.   And yeh can only help 'em with it if you're actually better at shared Google Docs forms on your phone than they are. 

 

Beavah