In more serious outings there may be mandatory gear checks, but for situations like a day hike, especially for a newcomer, it is a gentle real-life instruction to go ahead and let them get tired of carrying that water bottle. And, when they drink it all and are thirsty again, to offer some of the extra water I brought just for that purpose.
That is an excellent teaching opportunity to take advantage of, and bringing the extra yourself adds a margin of safety, however what do you do when the next event the scout does the same thing? Maybe he knows you are bringing extra and he doesn't have to worry about it? Maybe he couldn't convince his parents that he needs a bigger water bottle? Once people realize someone else will be prepared for them, it can get even harder to get them to do it.
One thing to keep in the back of your mind, is that some parents and kiddos are just never ever going to get it. (We had one family who, for years, always forgot something, ended up getting soaked, etc. The parents were split up and kids rotated houses, mom and dad couldn't agree, etc. etc.) We're responsible for them when they're out there with us though, so I and our group, always always go prepared for the inevitable "I forgot..." or "I didn't think I needed...." or "It was too heavy..." etc.
As leaders, we all pack and carry our own gear but, additionally, on Pack trips we do one of two things, in terms of group gear, depending on the nature of the outing:
For hikes, without an over-nighter, we bring a pack that's got a group FAK, a couple of 2-way radios, extra water, tarp, cordage, some emergency ponchos, extra hats/mitts/necker, paperwork, and enough flashlights and lanyards with whistles for everyone in the group. All the leaders know what's in that kit, and we rotate through the parents, assigning one to carry it each time. We review the contents with them before we hit the trail, and explain why we carry what we do. That way, we're helping train them to be better prepared for their family outings. We also bring a second pack with a big jug of hot chocolate and enough cups for everyone, to help with hydration and warmth, and also to help keep smiles on everyone's faces.
For over-nighters, we bring one of our gear trailers with us. It's loaded with tents, sleeping bags, stoves, FAKs, and just about anything we could possibly need out there. As one example of how I/We do it, here's a trip report I submitted about one of our camping trips last year, with a lot more details:
http://forums.equipped.org/ubbthreads.ph...true#Post253574
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