- went to Scout Shop one last time for the week. Got leadership patches - met PLC @ 5PM and headed to Camp Belzer for TLT Weekend Its only an Hour a Week Bryan Bryan Spellman [email protected] (317) 572-7199 Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry Permalink | Leave a comment »
Today I: Spent the entire day with my wife, and we did discuss a couple of Scouting related things over dinner. [OK, a bit of a stretch, but she is really good-spirited for a Scouting widow.] Hatched a new idea .
BSA Adventure Base 100 was in New Orleans. Take a peek inside the exhibit and meet Eagle Scout William McCorkle. William tells his inspirational story. Proud to be a Scout and mentor to his younger brother, he worked to help rebuild a community center after Hurricane Katrina battered the city.
Day 12 was a full day of Scouting! It was Day 2 of Troop Leader Training Weekend. We would be he all day if I recalled each and every Scout thing we did but here are some highlights: - Talked about The 8 Methods of Scouting - Servant Leadership - The Leading EDGE and Teaching EDGE - The 4…
Driving to church with the family this morning with an uncharacteristic amount of extra time to get there. A couple blocks ahead, in the right turn lane onto the freeway from the 4-lane road we are on, there's an SUV sitting there with its emergency blinkers going, blocking access to the freeway.
Today I: Worked on my " A Year of Celebration " award. Sent out last minute reminder for awards to present at the Blue and Gold on Wednesday. Ate the last of my Trails End trail mix! It has been a busy weekend here--how about where you are?
If you didn't get to see it, the weekend edition of Good Morning America did a nice piece on the 100th anniversary of Scouting a couple of weeks ago. It's not in the clip on the website, but anchor Kate Snow also mentioned on the air (and in her tweet ) that she has enjoyed being…
Waukesha County Museum (in Wisconsin) Hosts BSA 100th Anniversary Exhibit
The Waukesha County Museum hosts its largest exhibit ever to celebrate the 100th anniversary of scouting in America for a limited engagement beginning this week. The exhibit has been developed and installed by the museum staff under the leadership of J.
This morning my Troop and I stood in a snow filled gully. The crisp mountain air and the smell of pine filled the air as our Chaplains Aide rose his hand in the Scout Sign, the signal for all to prepare for the Scouts own service.
Mens Health Website is Featuring the BSA with a Special List
MensHealth.com has a list dedicated to the Boy Scouts in the Guy Wisdom section of its website. The Boy Scouts of America celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. Since 1910, more than 83 million American boys have worn the khaki, recited the Scout Oath, learned to "Be Prepared," and scoured the countryside searching in vain…
It was the last day of Troop Leader Training Weekend! - We finished strong, talking of Scout Spirit, Self Leadership and Trust! I have a great feeling about this PLC... - Got home wrote up 100 Days of Scouting: Day 12 after unpacking - made some changes to the next TLT presentation based on the weekend and feedback…
February 22nd marks the birthday of Lord Robert Baden-Powell the founder of the Scout Movement and is the World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM) Founder's Day . . Nearly all National Scout Associations throughout the world celebrate Founder's Day as an opportunity to learn more about B.P.'s life and his work.
Last week the Melrose City Council passed a proclamation recognizing the one hundred year anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America and the thirty year anniversary of Boy Scout Troop 68. Five Boy Scouts, and the scoutmaster and assistant scoutmaster, attended the meeting.
Changes are a'coming, but they are nothing too serious. Due to Blogger making some changes soon, and not supporting ftp sites once they are made, I am changing this blog from being Blogger based to Wordpress based. Unfortunately, this means the url for this blog will change slightly, so you will need to change your…
Featuring; Webelos Den Leader to Scoutmaster, Hiking story, 5th in the series Instructional Methods for Scouts, Scoutmaster Minute; Founder's Day. Scoutmaster Podcast 5 Thanks for all the emails and comments! Most of you know that us blogging podcasters or podcasting bloggers (your choice) thrive on conversation with our readers and/or listeners.
Today I: Helped a Scouter get the registration fees worked out for himself and his son. Wrote the first post for my new project to help new Scouts, new Scout parents and new Scouters. [Tentative launch of 23 APR. Be an early bird and sign up new posts in the upper left corner.
Today we celebrate the birth of Lord Robert Baden Powell, founder of the scouting movement. Thanks to Baden Powells efforts the scouting movement still strives today. So thanks BP, for making helping to shape our youth for tomorrow and deliver the promise of scouting! You can read more about Baden Powell on wikipedia here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Baden-Powell,_1st_Baron_Baden-Powell
It seems like only yesterday.... - today I updated TroopMaster with adult trainings - worked on our new parent meeting for next week - listened to The Scoutmaster Minute Podcast - got together a list for the SPL of all the Committee members contact information - made some flyers for the Troop Bulletin Board It's only an hour a week…
#215-Blue Quality unit suggestions, new leader assimilation, better customer service through dissension, BALOO, Adventure Base 100, flag retirement and more are on tonight's show. Links: Adventure Base 100 Video- http://dl.dropbox.com/u/504981/AB100.mp4 University of Scouting Video- http://dl.dropbox.com/u/504981/Class%202.mp4 Tonight's show sponsored by Badge Magic Join the forum discussion on this post - (1) Posts Share and Enjoy:
I've recently taken over as SM and our troop needs to reorganize it's patrols. We have 38 scouts in 3 patrols. One has 11 or 12 scouts, all young and most of them go camping; the second has about 6 active scouts, 2 camp regularly.
100 Days of Scouting marches on. 600 Scouters can't be wrong--take a look and share your news. Or even better, start your own 100 Days project --just remember to share the link with us in the comments so we can follow your adventure!
A little fun from Scouting magazine--what is wrong with the merit badges on the left? The ones on the right are the current* version. So why were they changed? Answer (scroll to the bottom). *Beekeeping is not a current merit badge, this was the last version of it.
One of the things my Scout Group has been considering for a while is getting a computer. We've been really lucky recently as I've been able to get a couple donated to us, so there is no cost to the Group.
My last post on reorganizing patrols has drawn lots of useful comment - In case you don't drill down into the comments I wanted to feature three excellent references that Rob posted: The Patrol System at WOSM "The formation of the boys into permanent Patrols of from six to eight and treating them as separate units…
Today I: Wrote three posts for Scoutsigns --two published today, one more will in the morning. Sent a long email to @ScoutingAsWeGo regarding Webelos Scout to Boy Scout crossover ceremony. Helped my SPL with questions for pending Court of Honor and with his training of our soon-to-be-Boy-Scouts Webelos Scouts.
In January, I asked the folks who visit HalfEagle to fill out a short survey. I even offered a $25 coupon for TrailStop.com to a random survey filler-outer. I'd like to share some of the insights from that survey as well as the winner of the coupon!
BSA Supply Group will shortly have this basketball shooting craft ($3.99) available for order from scoutstuff.org . The website notes that the craft is a " working model ." Link
#215-Blue Quality unit suggestions, new leader assimilation, better customer service through dissension, BALOO, Adventure Base 100, flag retirement and more are on tonight's show. Links: Adventure Base 100 Video- http://bit.ly/cbFGio University of Scouting Video- http://bit.ly/abIveR Tonight's show sponsored by Badge Magic Share and Enjoy:
Scouting magazine is due to your mailbox shortly. I really like the new design, and make use of many of the browser links in it (from the advertisers, too!). You don't have to wait for it to arrive in the mail though, read it online .
Tuesday on my mind: - printed out a bunch of things for different Scouts and Scouters - went to the Troop meeting - helped SPL in his first meeting - talked with TC member about next week's New Parent Meeting - worked with Troop Committee Chair on Adult awards for the District Dinner - met with Life Scout about Eagle Project…
I was looking at the Scout Association's website this morning and an article on the front page caught my eye. It seems that National Chairman of The Ugandan Scout Association David Bahati, who is a member of the Ugandan Parliament, is the author of a Private Members Bill which calls for the death sentence for…
2 Vote On Idea Can we do away with the dizzying array of obscure substandard quality generic patches which never seem to be available when the volunteers need them? How about a standard set of say, no more than 20 high quality generic patches of the most commonly used activities or activities that we really…
Today I: Prepped the awards for the pack's Blue and Gold dinner tonight. My Cub Scouts are loving the new belt loops! Signed up Scouts for summer camp-- one week for Cub Scouts , one week for Boy Scouts . I love summer.
So I posted the other day about a 'payday' moment. During a SMC for Eagle towards the end the Life Scout looked at me and said he enjoyed talking with me. It was different from talking with the old Scoutmaster, it was more like talking with a friend.
The February 2010 Cubcast from BSA National is now available. Cubcast is a monthly audio program for Cub Scouters from BSA National. (If your computer has speakers, you can probably listen by just clicking the links below.) Part 1 has ideas for den meetings and more utilizing the March " Take Flight " theme.
Recap: - slow Scout day today, printed recharter to update Troopmaster records - worked on New Patrol assignments...getting 35 scouts with 3 Patrols - Promoted but did not attend Troop Swim night (too sick) Some odds and ends but that is the jist of it....now back to work (and that's the paying kind I mean:) ) It's Only an…
The other night I was invited to speak at a local Cub Scout Packs Blue and Gold Dinner. It was a fantastic event and based on the amount of little Orange and Blue hats running around.. Scouting is and will be healthy for some time.
7 Vote On Idea outlying DE's appreciate the access to scoutnet, but if you don't use it for 10 minutes it logs you out. I understand why it does, but when it logs me out, it also logs out of bsamail.
Our pack celebrated the Blue and Gold last night, keeping the same simple format we always use for B&G. Introduction Flag Ceremony Awards Potluck dinner Last night, we invited the troop and the new venture crew to attend as well, since it was the Centennial of Scouting.
Have you been searching for an answer to a Scouting-related question? Ask the Expert is here to help. Send us your question, and Cracker Barrel will seek out the answer. We received the following question from Janet Riley : Our Patrol Leaders Council is a closed meeting.
1 Vote On Idea My youngest son started a Computer Gaming explorer post when he was 17 and it ran till he was 23, changing after three years to a Crew when Exploring shifted to pure career programs. The primary reason he and his friends set this up was to hold LAN parties every three…
9 Vote On Idea I would like to put in the recommendation and / or suggestion that the last Saturday of the month not have National updates and / or maintenance on Scoutnet. During this time we are inundated with applications, recharters, registration and questions that totally rely on Scoutnet as a tool to complete our jobs.
Today I: Finalized (almost) Cub Scout summer camp roster for the pack. Will have final couple of answers tomorrow. Finalized (almost) Boy Scout summer camp roster for the troop. Will have final couple of answers tomorrow. Wrote about last night's Blue and Gold event for Scoutsigns.
1 Vote On Idea On a GL entry - Does anyone know how to display the second line of description? If you can't display or print it, why is it there? Comments (0) Technology
Another easy day after 15 days of madness :) - ordered 23 new Scout Handbooks for the new Scouts that do not have them, also ordered 100 Quality Unit patches! - invited 2009 Eagles to the District Dinner last week - talked with new Scout Webmaster about the website layout ( www.troop199.org ) - worked on agenda for Gettysburg Trip meeting in…
Another stop for Adventure Base 100 means another great video from the team behind this nationwide tour. This edition takes you to Tupelo, Miss., birthplace of Elvis Presley. It's also the home of the Tomes brothers, who prove that Scouting can truly be a family affair.
Philmont and Northern Tier require Wilderness First Aid certification in each crew. The American Red Cross has offered a course for this certification for a few years, developed by an ARC chapter in North Carolina. This spring, an entirely new, national ARC course titled Wilderness and Remote First Aid takes its place.
Read this at Seth Godin's blog Compliance is simple to measure, simple to test for and simple to teach. Punish non-compliance, reward obedience and repeat. Initiative is very difficult to teach to 28 students in a quiet classroom. It's difficult to brag about in a school board meeting.
Sam Houston Area Council celebrates 100th Anniversary of the BSA
Scouts, Scouters, and supporters of the Sam Houston Area Council gathered Feb. 18 to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America and look toward the next 100 years. Held to honor Scouting's century of service, the evening drew many special guests including Houston business and community leaders, elected officials, astronauts, Distinguished Eagle…
The Boy Scouts of America's National Executive Board today announced a change in the age and grade requirements for the Venturing program. Effective May 1, 2010 , the minimum age/grade requirement will be changed to 14 years of age or 13 years of age and completion of the eighth grade .
I'm off to the new Intro to Outdoor Leader Skills. It isn't really a new course as far as I know It's just the first time my council has offered it since it became a requirement for Webelos Leaders. This meant that council had to make a new flyer for the Class.
Report giving unit leader info. and Charter Org. info.
4 Vote On Idea It would be nice to have a report that gave Unit's Number, Chartered Organization, Chartered Organization's Address, Unit Leader's Name, Address, Phone number and e-mail address. Comments (0) Technology
6 Vote On Idea It would be helpful to be able to obtain a spreadsheet or report that gave the leader's name, address, home phone number, business phone number, cell phone number and email address. When this info. is downloaded into an excel spreadsheet, it does not include all phone numbers.
A report that shows a unit what training their adults have taken
6 Vote On Idea Several Unit leaders come to the council wanting to know what training courses their adults have completed. It is very time consuming to pull each adult and print a person profile for them. Comments (1) Technology
Today I: Distributed new Venturing age and academic eligibility requirements to our crew and council on Facebook. Posted new Venturing age and academic eligibility requirements to council's blog . Shared the council's new Eagle Scouts with the world! Congrats guys! Made a minute to wish a Scout "Happy Birthday"!
Quick news before the weekend: Effective May 1, 2010 , the minimum age/grade requirement will be changed to 14 years of age or 13 years of age and completion of the eighth grade . So a slight change. Or is it? Will this impact your recruitment efforts for the spring?
BSA Adventure Base 100 is in Tupelo, Mississippi. Take a peek inside the exhibit and meet the Tomes brothers. For them, Scouting is for the whole family, proven by the fact that all three reached the rank of Eagle Scout at the same time!
After posting the press release about the release of "A Scout Is…" , Author Todd Shaw sent me a few signed copies of his Scouting book " A Scout Is… Values for a Lifetime " to review and give away to Scouting News readers.
Kind of! One of the Scout's parents kindly knitted a little jumper and necker for Rachael when she was born and last night she wore it for the first time when she visited the Beavers and Cubs! She wasn't phased by all the noise, although she did jump slightly at the beginning of the Cub's…
More Centennial changes! Scouting.org has posted the FAQs about the new age and grade guidelines for the Venturing program. This adds a lot of information to the announcement. It was great to see so many tweets yesterday passing the word around quickly that the change was coming!
Today I: Talked to the sales guy at Lowes. Found out he was new to the area, had been a Scoutmaster for 15 years, is OA Vigil, has an Eagle Scout for a son and hadn't been in touch with the local council yet.
It's a twofer today: Friday was another quiet day as I have been sick this week... - worked on website ideas for New Scouts - added Critter to my Wood Badge presentations - talked to District Eagle Chair about Eagle Projects Saturday (today) I worked at 4am - listened to a PTC Media Podcast - organized Scout paper work for…
100 Days of Scouting had a great day to wrap up the first 20 percent of the challenge. Scouting blog aggregator HalfEagle.com has even opened a section just for 100 Days of Scouting ! We--you and I--are making a difference in Scouting.
Boy Scouts of America It's golden! Congratulations to the U.S. bobsled team, piloted by Eagle Scout Steve Holcomb, on Olympic gold. http://bit.ly/cGXhCD
100 years ago, William Boyce, brought scouting from England, via several discussions with Lord Baden Powell. Scouting, then, was about teaching young men to become self sufficient through games featuring campcraft and scoutcraft skills which was to make them become outstanding citizens within their respective community.
Today I: Had a conversation with a Scout that many Scoutmasters have never had. The Scout wants to earn the Hornaday Award . Much rarer than Eagle Scout. Answered more questions about summer camp. Posted " A Scout is Kind ". This is going to be popular--I bet you see it a lot over the next few days.