Information, Observation, and Inspiration for Scouters
Waiting at the mall for a table at a restaurant last week, I saw a young boy, probably three years old, spot a piece of paper on the floor.
Very matter-of-factly, he walked over and picked up the paper. He was already headed toward the trash can when his mother cautioned him that he shouldn’t pick it up.
But the boy was determined to throw away that piece of paper. Continue reading “A future Scout?”
The game of Scouting that we play is indeed a game. We hope that our boys are having fun, and one of the best ways to have fun is to play a game. William “Green Bar Bill” Hillcourt was the first to describe Scouting as a game with a purpose.
Most games we play have winning as the desired outcome. In order to determine a winner, a metric is needed: the score. Indeed, virtually every game – from sports to darts to cards – has a means of scoring the outcome. The football coach Vince Lombardi was the one who famously pondered:
If winning isn’t everything, why do they keep the score?
The boys playing the game enjoy keeping track of how they’re doing, whether they are playing a sports contest, engaged in a robotics or debate competition, or playing the game of Scouting. Continue reading “Why keep score?”
Last month we presented an article on the changes coming later this year to the Tiger program in Cub Scouting. We’ll continue with an overview of changes to the next level, the Wolf program.
As I mentioned previously, the website Cub Scout Ideas, edited by Sherry Smotherman-Short, has a great overview of the new program that officially begins June 1st. Briefly, the new Wolf program replaces the twelve achievements with seven Adventures, six of which are required and one which may be selected from a choice of thirteen electives. The remaining twelve Adventures are optional but fun, and Scouts will earn an immediate recognition belt loop for each one they complete. Continue reading “Wolf program changes”
The end of 2014Â brings with it a new resource for the often “hidden” Scouter – merit badge counselors.
MBCs tend to escape our notice sometimes because many are not regular Scouters. There’s no requirement that a MBC be registered in a unit. Anyone over the age of eighteen with the requisite experience in the subject matter (and youth protection training, of course) can be a merit badge counselor. Since it’s a no-fee registration, MBCs don’t receive Scouting Magazine unless they subscribe and pay for it, or are registered in a paid position.
Now, the Merit Badge Maintenance Task Force, part of the National Advancement Team has begun publication of a quarterly newsletter just for MBCs, Continue reading “A new resource for merit badge counselors”
I’m truly fortunate to have so many readers and followers here on Bobwhite Blather. I get a little kick out of seeing visitor statistics, a new follower on Twitter or a subscriber to the e-mail list. It’s good to know that my fellow Scouters are finding value in what they find here, and keep coming back.
There are many other Scouters who write for the world-wide web. You’ve probably discovered that you can find a lot of information on almost every conceivable Scouting topic.
But how can you tell which ones follow the first point of the Scout Law – trustworthy?
As our disclaimer reads, this blog isn’t to be construed as official information. That can come only from the Boy Scouts of America directly, and their several websites (chiefly scouting.org) provide the canonical reference on all things Scouting.
But many others are reliable sources, interpreting Scouting in line with official policy and traditional methods, and critical of those who would reinvent Scouting to advance their own ideas of what it’s all about. Continue reading “Follow my friends”