Every year, our troops usually pick up some new members as they cross over from Cub Scouting and set out on new adventures with us. At the same time, their parents, weary from several years of running everything from pack meetings and outings to fundraisers and banquets, make the decision of whether or not to become active in the troop. Part of that transition involves making what amounts to a 180-degree shift in the adult role, along with a completely new way of doing things for the boys as they go from being led by adults to by their peers. It can not only be extremely bewildering for the new parents, but difficult for those of us in the troop to try to explain it all to them. We try holding parent orientation sessions and writing parent handbooks or new member checklists, but invariably we miss a few things or don’t do a very good job of introducing our new families to Boy Scouts.
Enter a new book by the husband and wife Scouter team of Jeremy and Heather Reed titled Beginning Boy Scouts: An unofficial practical guide to Boy Scouting for parents and new leaders. Continue reading “Book review: Beginning Boy Scouts”
As the calendar clicks over another year, many of us take time to look back at where we’ve been in the last twelve months and look ahead to the next twelve. It’s also a good time to assess what your troop or pack has accomplished, how it’s benefited the boys in your unit, and what changes you can make or actions you can take to improve things. 
As a Scouter, one of the most important things you can do to improve not only your experience in Scouting but also to improve the program for the boys is training.