I thought this was a very good thread, and thought it might be good to revisit this in the wake of the Boy Scout who died about 2 miles from his father's cabin in the White Mountains of New Hampshire last week.
Boy Scout's body found

One thing the father had stressed earlier in the search was that he was sure his son would be found alive, because of the survival skills he had as a Boy Scout. For those involved in scouting, what's your assessment of an average 10-year-old scout's likely preparedness to survive this type of situation - several nights to a week lost in thick woods, in fall temperatures?
Are there certain merit badges/curricula within the scouts that deal with this kind of situation specifically?
And to everyone, what kinds of things would you/have you taught your own kids, or had you been taught at that age, that would have helped? What's the first couple things you should instill in kids to help with this kind of situation - and when's about the right time to introduce it/what age or maturity level is too early?
Dave