good job. My son is five & a half, what age do kids start boy/cub scouts? have great respect for the org. but don't know details like that

Congradulations on getting elected SPL. It is good recognition by your peers of your leadership capabilities.


Tiger cubs typically start around 6 years old. Regular cubs start at 7 years old. You should get info passed out in your grade school in September during the first grade year.

Cub scout typically starts at around 6 or seven but I don;t recomend putting your kids into that program, as everyone I have ever seen just bores the cub scouts and they tend to lose interest and not join Boy scouts, scouts typically starts at 11 r when they graduate 5th grade

Don't be too negative. All scouting on the local level is run by volunteers. Mostly parents. They are only as good as their dedication and training.

I started out with 7 youth in my wolf den. I had 9 out of 11 crossover from Webelos to Scouts. Of the original 7 that started out as Wolf together, 4 achieved Eagle. They had their ceremony together.

Cub scouts is a great stepping stone. I would encourage any parent to put their sons in the program. I would also encourage them to be involved as well. BSA is not Baby Sitters of America. Involved parents keep the boys involved.

I will get off my soapbox now.

Congratulations on your promotion Climberslacker,

It is evident from your posts on the forum that your are well-versed/enthused in the Outdoor Adventure field and principles of Scouting. I have confidence that you will make a fine Senior Patrol Leader!

Mike

Here's my Cub Scout story:

I was the den leader from day one. In the first year each of the parents take turns running "the show", which is good because it spreads out the work and each of them can pick a topic that they like - which makes things better and more fun.

The second year (Wolf) I - the den leader - tried per the BSA plan to do most of it by myself with some help from the assistant den leader. Since both my wife & I work fulltime, it was a nightmare. I struggled to get things ready in time and to keep the quality up. I think I did good, but at the end of the year I knew something had to change.

The third year (Bear) I - the den leader - told the parents that we either needed to go back to something more like the first year's model (each person takes turns each month) or else I needed to step down to let someone else take the lead. They all quickly stepped up to the plate, did great jobs leading month-long programs (I organized them month-to-month and made sure we were getting things done).

This continued through the 4th & 5th years (Webelos) too. The parents were VERY active - each in turn. The boys got very high quality meetings and activities, and my life wasn't ruined by Scouting.

Today I'm entering my 3rd year as an assistant Scoutmaster with my son's Boy Scout troop. My son has some special 'issues', so he'll never be a big time leader, though he's having fun and learning a lot.

I'm pushing as hard as I dare to enforce the boy-lead nature of the troop, to 'try' to get other leaders and parents to help plan for the future, to ask for youth and adult leader training, and to let the boys plan their year's program. Our Scoutmaster just stepped down and now a new dad (his son is in his first year) has been selected as Scoutmaster. I'm already on his back to ensure that things are boy-run and patrol-based. So far so good.

This weekend is the troop's first campout with real patrol boxes and real patrol-owned gear. Too bad the patrol boxes each weigh a ton. We'll all figure things out as we go along.

A fact'o'life: all patrol boxes weigh a ton... thats why there are older scouts

I know that my scoutmaster wouldn't even let his son (one of my best friends) even be a cubby for fear of him quiting. The reason I say that cub scouts are "bad" is not that I am trying to be negative, its just that from what I have seen, and also from what I remember from my child hood, is that it takes some getting used to for the cub scout to get used to actually having to do things, and for the parents, if they go along as an adult leader, wich I recommend, to leave their scouts alone. But this is just what Ive noticed in my 4 years of being a boyscout.

But if you find a good pack/den then go for it as I know that scouting can be fun

As much as I like the idea of my son getting into Scouts as a Wolf (which would be about 5 years off), I do have to admit that very few of the guys I was in Cubs with lasted very long in the Boy Scouts. And only 2 besides myself made it all the way to Eagle. Now, this may have little to do with them being in Cubs. Some quit after the first camping trip when they were swarmed by mosquitos. Other discovered girls in their early teens and were finished. Cub Scouting is a sufficiently different program that he who loves one may not enjoy the other.
I guess we'll have to cross that bridge when we get there...

That is hugely important. big Big BIG!!

In my troop I've become the "let the boys do it" police. And that comes from a guy whose son has some special 'issues'.

BTW I don't like to use the word 'needs', because the only thing he needs is patience from the other Scouts and adults because he can be a bit slow at doing/understanding things and he has a tendancy toward meltdowns when things don't go well - all due to a known medical issue - he really does try hard though.

It is all too common for me to tell a parent/adult leader: "Sit down! Let the Scouts do it" and "As your (senior) patrol leader." Some adults I'll literally have to follow them around and insist that they step back and let the Scouts handle things.

My biggest battles have been with the Troop Committee Chair who wouldn't let the Scouts participate in planning and didn't beleive in training, and to a lesser extent with the Scoutmaster (the Chair's husband) who was great, but didn't give consistent expectations and messages. It was hard for Scouts to keep up with his ever-changing rules & expectations. They both are stepping down. Hopefully the future will be bright.

Scouts are remarkably resourceful and capable IF adults stay back and let them fail a bit and celebrate their successes. Let them get uncomfortable so they'll learn from the experience. Let the older Scouts be the coaches.

We tried doing the New Scout Patrol thing, but we found that the older Troop Guides didnt' hang with the younger Scouts enough for it to work well. Next time we have younger Scouts we'll encourage patrol formation such that it mixes them with older Scouts more. AND we'll have youth leader training within a few weeks of elections.

Climberslacker - Congratulations and good luck with the SPL position.

Seeker - Tigers are now regular Cubs... they meet with the Pack, have their own dens and den leader. They changed from being a separate thing about 4-5 years back.

Peter
Eagle, Wischixin, Scoutmaster, used to be a Fox...