Do you teach conservation in your outdoor program?

[ronvo]

In your outdoor program what are you teaching besides outdoor living skills? Nature Study? Conservation?

 

How many units have boys who truly know the common flora of their area?

 

How many of you have boys who TRULY know how to distinguish between venomous and non-venomous snakes and which are indigenous to your area?

 

How many of the units represented here have done conservation service projects?

 

Just curious.

 

ron

[ozemu]

I don't teach much about the environment as I do not have a head that retains such detail. I can tell them some of what to eat as that knowledge is derived from a different ability. Besides there are schools to teach about the environment.

 

I do teach for the environment though. That is more in line with our spiritual aspect. Social, physical, intellectual and spiritual. Being a deep ecology type I teach FOR the environment and leave the minutae to science types.

 

Basically I encourage the Scout to look, listen, feel, smell and wonder. Sometimes also to taste but lets be careful.

 

I see outdoor skills as exercising a relationship with nature and I hope in a sustainable way. They are vital to our interaction with and honouring of nature. Identifying particular animals, plants, rocks etc is a skill also but unless we interact with the environment the Scouts are not so engaged or inspired I think.

[ronvo]

Ozemu,

 

Thanks for the reply. I feel from the lack of responses that either people here think its a dumb question - afterall isn't part of the requirements OR no they don't and don't care to admit it.

 

And I understand and agree with what you are saying. However, don't you think that by encouraging kids to "look, listen, feel, smell and wonder" that their curiosity will be stimulated and that in order to exercise "a relationship with nature" in a sustainable way, one would have to develop that relationship and get to KNOW the other party?

 

YIS,

ron

[fling1]

I like your question, Ronvo.

 

I am not a super-naturalist kind of guy, but I encourage my guys to take an interest and be open to learning something.

 

Whenever I have a chance to pass on something that I know, I try to incorporate a couple of "bonuses":

 

When and where I first learned about it, especially if it has been recently.

What I did to extend my knowlege a bit.

 

For example, I recently wondered, "what the heck are those little glowing worms?" when I was up at 2:30, walking off a headache. I had never seen them before! So I googled my way to the answer, then I shared both the answer and the process of discovery with my scouts.

 

I learned several interesting things about our local trees while a Cub Scout leader, and I always point out that is when I learned it .. I suspect a boy scout might want to be at least as learned as cubs, so it might stick in his brain a bit.

 

I have been amazed to discover, though, how little these guys really internalize about plant life. Several of mine continue to demonstrate uncertainty about poison ivy, which should be one of the things that gets drilled the hardest. So we aren't doing a great job of it, in any case.

[ronvo]

fling,

 

I really like your idea about telling when/how you learned something to your boys.

 

I, myself am not all that knowledgeable about all the flora and fauna in our area - but I am trying to learn - and to pass it on to my scouts. Only in the past few years have I even become real confident in identifying poison ivy. Now everytime our boys step out into the "woods" I test them on dicerning between poison ivy and virginai creeper. They are getting pretty good at it.

 

Let's face it - as presented in books the nature stuff is pretty boring and few people know enough to teach it well AND make it interesting.

 

BUT if we could make a game out of it! Hey that is the scouting way - has anyone done this and what did you do?

 

ron

[SeattlePioneer]

Personally, I'm not much on nature study. But it's a part of Scouting, and I aim to give it an appropriate nod.

 

The Commmittee Chair has liked to lead a hike on outings that included identifying plants. Having done that several times, I figured it was time to give the Scouts a chance to teach each other on our bicycle camping trip last weekend.

 

So while checking out the route we would use, I scoped out the trail in a park we would be passing. On the day of the trip, I sent the Scouts up the trail on their own, with a suggestion that they (1) learn to identify stinging nettles in a hurry (2) figure out how English Ivy can attack, injure and overwhelm local plant varieties and (3) identify as many other local varieties of vegetation as they could.

 

 

When they came back after about twenty minutes, they all had (1) down pat, had at least a sketchy idea of (2) and had polled their limited knoledge on (3).

 

I'd say it was a good exercise.

 

 

 

Seattle Pioneer

[Bob White]

I am trying to figure out how a scout would get to First Class if troops weren't teaching some of those things?

 

To try and write all that we do each year on nature and conservation would take several chapters. Again if you use the program you are teaching the information in the various scout handbooks. The further you stray from the BSA program the less of a 'Scouting' program you actual have.(This message has been edited by Bob White)

[SeattlePioneer]

Actually, they pooled their limited knowledge.

 

 

Sorry 'bout that.

 

 

 

Seattle Pioneer

[AnneinMpls]

This is near and dear to my heart

For Cub-age through Webelos I recommend the Crinkleroot's guides by Jim Arnosky. They tend to go in and out of print but are always easily available from used booksellers or libraries.

 

If you want lots of detail and project-based learning, Anna Comstock's Handbook of Nature Study is fabulous.

 

We also take advantage of the experts at our state parks and the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden. You absolutely have to be in the habit of getting out the door as often as possible. Get to know a particular trail or habitat in every season of the year, etc.