Webelos III, Patrol Method, Boys into Men all together.

[BuffaloSR793]

 

 

I wouldn't want to send my son on an overnight/ week long event at school either with a teacher I knew nothing about.

 

It's not just the overnight thing or the outdoor thing. The biggest issue is trust and knowing who he's going with.

 

There are all types of scouters in this forum, thats what makes it so great. This thread needs to be in the Cub Scouting section, where we can get those opinions.

 

 

You cross over from Webelos to Scouts in February, summer camp is in June or early July. The new scouts are in a "new" patrol for 30 days before they are sent to their permanent patrols. That gives them 3 months to blend in to their new patrol.

 

All of this is dependant how well they blend. Remember, they were used to being the big men on campus in the Cubs. Now they are at the bottom of the totem pole. That's a little stressful along with going to camp for the first time without mom or dad.

 

Now think about it from a parents view. Take a parent who's been active in Cub Scouting, been on almost every campout with their son, and now you've crossed into a new Troop with people you barely know. They are all telling you it will be fine and you need to stay home, but you have reservations.

 

I'm a Webelo parent too, and I can sympathize how they feel. We used to be a tight nit group, but now for the first time in 4yrs we are going to be part of a melting pot of mostly people we don't know.

 

 

I don't have all of the answers, but personally, I would rather my son cross over in late summer/ fall. Have several campouts under his belt before embarking to summer camp for a week. He may be better equipted to do it without me, I certainly would have more time to learn the SM, ASM's and Patrol leaders.

 

It's been said that scouts who don't participate in summer camp are more likely to drop out of scoutg all together. I believe that statement. But... by pushing boys to summer camp that may or may not be ready is doing more harm than good. If you strong arm the boys and parents you'll wind up loosing them.

 

I'm curious. Of the boys who didn't go to summer camp, what was their reason? I bet most of the boys/parents had some level of discomfort and when pushed, they get out of Scouting all together. (I realize there are many reasons boys drop out of scouting and summer camp most likely is not the biggest reason, but I just have to wonder, how many drop out because of this.)

 

If I were a Scoutmaster (and I may very well be one of a new Troop soon) that I would offer/allow parents of new Scouts (especially new crossovers) to come along at summer camp. Their campsites would be separate from the scouts.

 

Most likely this will be their last campout with the Scouts (unless they are a leader) because as their boys get older, it will be very "uncool" to have mom or dad around. It's a win, win for the Troop. You have a parent to help at camp, you have a happy parent/scout and one that will stay with the Troop. Most parents, after they have made it thru Cub Scouts want to help the Troop in some way, they just need a little more attention that first year.

 

Knowing how I feel now as a Cub Scout parent, when I get to a Troop, it will be very important to send some Scouts to prospective Webelos dens to make them feel more comfortable about Boy Scouts. Involve them in some Troop activites BEFORE they cross over. That does not happen in my area right now. Parents are expected to bring the Boys to the Troop and disappear. Just not the right way to do it.

 

 

Like I said before, I don't have all or just some of the answers. I just want to honestly convey how some of the Cubbers feel about the new world of Boy Scouting.

 

Thank you for listening to my rambling.

 

 

Buffalo (of the Woodbadge kind)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Stosh]

I have had training and experience from Cubbing all the way through Venturing. I have seen the transitions and heard the concerns. The observations I have made are not meant to be judgmental, but they seem to repeat themselves over and over again. I'll offer up just one case in point. I transitioned 2 different Webelos units over into Scouting. In the first group I had one boy who was treated rather cautiously by his parents, he struggled through summer camp and soon quit scouting and went off on other paths. His parents realizing the dynamics of what happened didn't treat the next two boys the same way, severing the hand-holding as soon as they went into Scouting. Both of these brothers Eagled.

 

I can't say this will happen every time, but I can cite many cases in the past 20 years of scouting I have been involved in and protective parents have a tendency of holding their boys back in the early years of Scouting. Webelos is a time of making that transition from heavy parent involvement in Wolves/Bears and a gradual backing away in the Webelos years so their boys are ready for the independence offered in Scouting.

 

Remember, I'm not advocating parents are to wave good-bye forever when the boy crosses over, but a marked difference should be felt by the boy as he turns from the protection of parents to the world of independence.

 

Also if parents are truly concerned about the quality of Scouting leadership of the troop their boy will be going to, it would be ok for them to visit as much as they wish to get to know these leaders. Surely it shouldn't take but 3-4 meetings to get to know them, that's even more than what most parents have with their children's teachers in school. Any parent that has concerns about my leadership of my troop only needs but to ask and I'll even buy the coffee. If they don't like what they see in how I do things, I will work to help them find a troop that meets their needs for their son.

 

Stosh

 

 

[Knight]

Parents on a new scout campout - certainly - but we need to educate carefully the parents to keep their distance.

 

We recently has a Second Class Scout at a camp where his family went along. The family set up their tent away from the Scouts.

 

Nevertheless, that Scoout many times many times reverted to the cry of "Mom!" when he could not find something or did not know how to accomplish this task or that.

 

Buffalo is right:

"Most likely this will be their last campout with the Scouts (unless they are a leader) because as their boys get older, it will be very "uncool" to have mom or dad around. It's a win, win for the Troop. You have a parent to help at camp, you have a happy parent/scout and one that will stay with the Troop. Most parents, after they have made it thru Cub Scouts want to help the Troop in some way, they just need a little more attention that first year."

 

 

[BuffaloSR793]

I really appreciate the input from others who have "been there done that".

 

I'm at the stage right now where our boys and parents are transitioning from Cub Scouting to Boy Scouting. That the reason this topic hits such an emotional nerve.

 

I see good in everyones point of view. I appreciate the opportunity to share experiences. It makes us all stronger.

 

 

As a Webelos leader, I will incorporate more Boy Scout methods to ease the transition. We've already divided into patrols and are having the boys making more of the decisions. When we camp, the boys set up their tents and cook for themselves (parents and leaders closely observe for saftey.)

 

When I have boys come to me either to offer a suggestion or complain, I refer them to their patol leader. Our meetings start with the Cub Scout Law/Promise and end with the Boy Scout Law and Promise. At the end of each den meeting we have a meeting with the patrol leaders and seconds to discuss outings, patrol business and advancement planning.

 

Webelos is really a fun time. Its tough, because everyone is in transition. The boys and the parents included.

 

My scouting know how is expanding just as much as the boys right now. It's really fun to be able to enjoy this with the boys and parents.

 

 

Jeff

[Stosh]

Buffalo,

 

You have certainly gotten a great grasp of the transitional period for your boys.

 

If I might be so bold as to offer a suggestion to your structure. Invite 1-2 Boy Scouts from the troop you are planning on crossing to and have them be the "adults" on your campouts. Instead of having parents/DL's giving guidance and support, have these Scouts there for that purpose. Definitely keep your adults around, but only for observation purposes. It is unfortunate you were not able to secure a DC for your process because he would be an excellent role-model/guide for your boys. It would have given your parents a person in the new troop that they already knew and trusted and would make an excellent TG for your boys after they crossed. Other than that little liason link I think you are doing an excellent job of preparing these boys for Scouts!

 

My last big HURRAH outing for my Webelos was always as you described but with my older Scouts coming in to help out.

 

Stosh(This message has been edited by jblake47)

[AvidSM]

About overprotective parents, I agree that it's getting worse. I don't blame them for being overprotective. Look at all that's going on, with child abductions and internet stalkers.

 

I let these parents go on campouts - because otherwise, they would not let their sons go. Like Knight mentioned, at a campout when they can't find something or didn't know how to do this or that - they go right to their parent - not a fellow scout or adult leader. This kind of defeats the whole pupose of them being there in the first place. So, what's the point of them being a boy scout?

 

Over the years, I have seen more and more Webelos II's who were not ready to be boys scouts yet. They needed time to mature and build self confidence. Some stay with the troop with the help of their overprotective parents - it's a tradeoff that a Scoutmaster has to accept. Yes, it's like a "Webelos III" transition period. Yes, these parents are a pain in the butt to keep in-line at campouts. But, I have seen scouts go through this transition and are now really into scouting and developing rapidly into fine young adults.