Outdoor Code Gathering Activity

Explaining and agreeing to follow the Outdoor Code is a requirement to earn the Webelos Badge, so I made this fill in the blank gathering activity. Just print this off and have the boys start working on it as they come in. Gathering activities really help get our Webelos quiet and set the tone for a more productive den meeting.
I'm not good at attaching documents to the blog, so here it is, just copy and paste it into a word document. The answer key is below.

As an American I will do my best to

Be clean in my outdoor manners

I will treat the outdoors as a heritage.
I will take c_ _ _ of it for my_ _ _ _ and others.
I will keep my trash and g_ _ _ _ _ _ out of lakes, streams, fields, w_ _ _ _, and roadways.

Be careful with fire

I will prevent wild_ _ _ _ _.
I will b_ _ _ _ my fires only where they are appropriate.
When I have finished using a fire, I will make sure it is cold o_ _.
I will leave a clean fire ring, or r_ _ _ _ _ all evidence of my fire.

Be considerate in the outdoors

I will treat public and p_ _ _ _ _ _ property with respect.
I will use low-impact methods of h_ _ _ _ _ and camping.

Be conservation minded

I will learn how to practice good conservation of soil, w_ _ _ _ _, forests, minerals, grass_ _ _ _ _, wildlife, and energy.
I will urge others to do the s_ _ _.

I agree to follow the outdoor code.

Sign here _______________________________

As an American I will do my best to

Be clean in my outdoor manners

I will treat the outdoors as a heritage.
I will take care of it for myself and others.
I will keep my trash and garbage out of lakes, streams, fields, woods, and roadways.

Be careful with fire

I will prevent wildfire.
I will build my fires only where they are appropriate.
When I have finished using a fire, I will make sure it is cold out.
I will leave a clean fire ring, or remove all evidence of my fire.

Be considerate in the outdoors

I will treat public and private property with respect.
I will use low-impact methods of hiking and camping.

Be conservation minded

I will learn how to practice good conservation of soil, waters, forests, minerals, grasslands, wildlife, and energy.
I will urge others to do the same.

I agree to follow the outdoor code.

Sign here _______________________________

         

Keeping Track of Sportsman

Our Webelos den has a lot of boys right now (13!) and some of them play community team sports. To keep track of who has what, I created this excel spreadsheet so you can write down each boy's name, the individual or team sport and which of the requirements towards each belt loop they have completed. For example, I know a few of the boys play baseball, so they have done the practice, the game, but they need to explain the rules to a den leader, so I would write baseball under team sport and check off 2 and 3.

Here is a link:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4ZDOmoKe8TzZW5IOHAzUkJQdGc/edit?usp=sharing

Example of Our Webelos Schedule for 2014

We were asked to make a plan for the year for our Webelos. The Bishop of our Ward (we are LDS) asked for our plan specifically. On our plan I have also includes the Faith in God requirements that correspond to what we are doing for the month. This is just an example, I know lots of other troops try to get through ever activity badge in one year, but we mostly focus on getting the Webelos Badge and the Arrow of Light. Throughout the year we will fulfill other requirements as gathering activities -  such as discussing the scout uniform or learning about the webelos badge.

Here is our schedule:

Webelos Plan for 2014

January – Showman Activity Badge

·        Write play, Make puppets, Make backdrop

·        Faith in God Developing Talents #3

February – Citizen Activity Badge

·        Learn about history of the flag

·        Citizen Character connection – learn about being a good citizen

·        Service Project

·        Faith in God Serving Other #8

March – Geologist & Forrester Activity Badges

·        Learn about fossils and minerals

·        Learn about life cycle of tree

·        Collect samples

April – Fitness Activity Badge

·        Make a healthy meal plan

·        Learn about the Word of Wisdom

·        Faith in God Learning and Living the Gospel #7 and Developing Talents #9

May – Outdoorsman Activity Badge

·        Prepare for and go on a hike

·        Learn about Leave No Trace guidelines

·        Faith in God Learning and Living the Gospel #6

June – Readyman Activity Badge

·        Learn and practice first aid techniques

·        Make a home fire escape plan

·        Faith in God Learning and Living the Gospel #4

July – No Den Meetings

·        Day  Camp

August – Handyman Activity Badge

·        Learn how to make common repairs

·        Responsibility Character Connection – being responsible on your own

·        Faith in God Learning and Living the Gospel #9

September – Family Member Activity Badge

·        Discuss family duties

·        Perform home inspection

·        Job Chart

·        Faith in God Developing Talents #1

October – Artist Activity Badge

·        Discuss jobs in art field

·        Create art portfolio

·        Faith in God Developing Talents #4

November – Scholar Activity Badge

·        Discuss jobs in education

·        Positive Attitude Character Connection – positing attitude will help in school

·        Faith in God Developing Talents #6

December – Communicator Activity Badge

·        Discuss methods of communication

·        Invent den secret code

·        Faith in God Serving Others #2

Food Coloring Explosion Activity - Food Coloring, Milk, Dish Soap

Here is a fun activity you could use for the Webelos Artist Activity Badge #4 - List the primary and secondary colors.  Explain what happens when you combine colors.

We did this as a lunch date activity for our kids but I'm sure the Webelos would love it too.

 
First you put milk in a dish, we used disposable aluminum pans. Then drop in a few drops of food coloring, dip a toothpick in dish soap and touch the drops of food coloring with the toothpick. The food coloring explodes in the dish.

If you do this for the Artist Activity Badge, you could drop in food coloring of the primary colors. After you let the boys experiment with the color explosions, have them mix the primary colors with a spoon to get secondary colors.

20 Blue and Gold Banquet Themes and Ideas

Last Thursday, when I went to Regional Roundtable, we discussed ideas for Blue and Gold themes. This list was so great that I thought I would post it. It would also be a great list for party theme ideas.

Pick a theme where you can have fun with Invitations, Dinner, Dessert, Drinks, Decor, Entertainment, Crafts, Music, Giving Awards, and Dressing Up!

Here it is:  

Mad Scientist: Have someone dressed as a mad scientist and perform an experiment as entertainment, make Flubber, serve root beer made with dry ice, pop rocks, nerd glasses and lab coats
Trip To Hawaii: Board a pretend airplane in one room and then the party is in another room decorated like a luau. Leis, pineapple, Hawaii Music.  
Snoopy: Doghouses, Peanuts Characters, Stuffed Dogs, Dog Biscuits, Dog Bowls  
Circus: Tent/Canopy, Balloons, Cotton Candy, Pop Corn, Three Rings, Parade, Aerial Wire, Clowns, Juggling, Wagons  
Monopoly: Chance Cards, Jail, Play Money, Houses/Hotels, Each Table a Different Property  
Fire Station: Dalmatians, Fire Trucks, Firemen, Ladders  
Baseball: Set up tables in a diamond, put a box for a pitchers mound and give the boys awards on the mound. Eat hot dogs, peanuts, cracker jacks  
Football: Goalposts, Pom-poms (in blue and gold of course), Yard Markers, Helmets, Footballs Olympics: Medals, 5-ring symbol, Theme Music, Award Stands, Torch, Events
Native American Indian Lore: Teepees, Bows/Arrows, Artifacts, Buffaloes, Dream Catcher Craft, Animal Hides, Drums, Totem Poles, Campfires
Trains: Station, Models, Luggage, Tickets, Conductor, Tracks, Platform 9&3/4 (for a Harry Potter theme)  
Patriotic: Flags, Eagles, US Presidents  
Western: Country Store, Barrels, Candy Jars, Wanted Posters, Cowboy Hats, Lanterns, Play checkers, Hay Bale, Eat sloopy joes, or BBQ sandwiches
Under the Sea: Surfing, Waves, Sea Animals, Snack on swedish fish and goldfish crackers 
Pirates: Ships, Treasure Chest, Skull/Crossbone Flag, Eye Patch, Gold Doubloons, Maps, Parrots, Cannons
Bees: Hives, Honey, Clover, Flowers, Honeycomb, Show clips from Bee Movie  
Highways: Road Maps, Cars, Traffic Signs, Bill Boards, Gas Station  
Noah's Ark: Ark, Animals, Rainbow, Dove, Raindrops  
Farm: Barns, Tractors, Hay Vales, Silos, Fences, Animals, Serve Pie  
Jungle: Monkeys, Trees, Jungle Sound Effects, Eat Fruit - Bananas, Mango

Here are achievements that can be earned with Blue and Gold Activities:

WOLF:
-A12f Make a poster for a Cub Scout Project or  a pack meeting
-E9a Help with a party: Planning the party, scenery, decorate/setup the room, serve the food and clean up.

BEAR:
9a,b,c  Make cookies, snack, and a dinner side dish
15b,c Play two organized games with your den and select a game that your den has never played. Explain the rules. Tell them how to play it and then play it with them.
18d Write an invitation to someone

WEBELOS
-Showman : create a puppet show, write it , make puppets, build stage
-Craftsman : make decor out of non-wood materials

Other ideas:
Decorating cupcakes as a contest.
Don't forget to write Thank you notes for the parents
Find themed music stations online on Pandora, Spotify, etc.

Tracking Webelos Advancement - Spreadsheet

Here is a file that you can use to track your Webelos as they earn badges and advance. I can't credit the original author since it was given to me by our former Webelos leader (I'm not sure where she got it), but I did update it a tad so it better suited my needs. I wanted one that would fit on one page, so the font is quite small. If the font is too small, then it will give you a good example to look off of to create your own in excel. Others I have seen have included a place to mark the dates that each boy was a Denner etc. I have also seen an example that added the Faith in God activities (for LDS Webelos). Since it is a PNG file, when you go to print, change your settings to Fast Draft so it won't print picture quality and use a lot of ink.

Tracking Webelos Advancement - Spreadsheet

Webelos to Scouts "Graduation" Cake

Here is a picture of the cake we made for one of our boy's transition from Webelos to Cub Scouts. We frosted graham crackers as the trees and used pirouette cookies for the campfire. My favorite part is the camper in the tent. We took half the chocolate off a whopper for his head and used red two small pieces of red licorice side by side for his sleeping bag.

It really took no time at all! -  (compared to a lot of cakes decorated with fondant that we saw on pinterest).

And the best part was that he loved it and it made him feel special!

Making the Scholar Activity Badge Fun!

The scholar activity badge can be more than just having the boys do paperwork. Here are two ideas we came up with to make it fun!

Careers in Education Charades - Instead of just writing down and discussing full-time positions in the field of education, we decided to have our boys act out these careers. We came up with the positions, wrote them down and put them in a bowl. The boys acted them out and when the others had a hard time guessing, they used words to describe the career.

School System Chart with Chalk - Using information found online about our local elementary school and school district, I made five difference charts, one for each boy. After explaining each section to the boys and how they fit together, we had each of the boys recreate each chart on a section of my driveway with chalk. This was a very interactive and fun way for the boys to learn about their local school system and how each job fits together.

Keeping parents informed

The best way that we have found to communicate with our parents is through email. Especially for requirements that need to be done at home. We have found that the notes we send home with the boys may or may not be seen by parents. My co-leader and I like to meet quickly on Sundays so we usually send an email to all the parents on Sunday. The email tells them what we have done in our last den meeting, what they need to do at home, what is coming up in future den or pack meetings, and what requirements of Faith in God (LDS church) correspond to the activities we have worked on so the parents can sign off in the Faith in God booklet. I think it is nice for the parents to have announcements in email form so they can refer back to them for dates in the futures.

I have heard that other leaders like to send a weekly email and follow up with a text to the parents the day of den meeting if there are any reminders like a change of location or something the boys need to bring with them.We email weekly, then give each parent a phone call if we need to remind them of something.

We spoke with our parents and this seems to work the best for them...and us!

Gathering Activity - Learning the scout law with a tennis ball

I recently went to a scout training and heard this great idea for learning the scout law. This would be great as a gathering activity. As the boys arrive they can join in the circle. One boy starts with the tennis ball and says "A scout is trustworthy", then he bounces the ball in the circle to another boy who says "A scout is trustworthy, loyal" and then he bounces the ball to another boy and continues with the next word. This is a great way to prepare the webelos to learn the scout law since it is a requirement to earn the Arrow of Light.

Once all the boys arrive, then you can proceed with den meeting as usual. We like to have our Denner assign a boy to offer a prayer, assign another boy to lead us in the pledge/flag ceremony, and assign another to lead us in reciting the scout law, oath, sign, handshake etc (ideally we do one or two at the beginning of den meeting and one or two at the end).

In our den we say the prayer first, this way it shows the boys that God comes first in our lives before country (the pledge) and den (the scout law etc).

Quick Idea: Duct Tape Wallet for the Craftsman Activity Badge

I found out that a friend of mine is also a Webelos leader. This week they made duct tape wallets for the Craftsman badge and the boys loved it! Here is a link to some great instructions I found on pinterest: http://craftsbyamanda.com/2010/04/how-to-make-duct-tape-wallet.html.

Visit craftsbyamanda.com

Artist Badge - Primary Colors with a Halloween theme

This week we worked on #4 of the Artist badge, learning about primary and secondary colors, and #1, talking to an artist and learning about careers in art. I found acrylic paint and foam brushes on sale at Michaels last month and cute wooden halloween masks to paint.


First we gave the boys red, yellow and blue paint on paper plates and had them mix the colors to get secondary colors.


 


Then they painted the halloween masks.

FrankenScout

We ended the den meeting with a visit from an artist in our neighborhood that works for Disney. She taught the boys about all different kinds of careers in art including graphic design, interior design, and architectural design. She ended by showing us the commercial that she produced.

This was a fun way to work with paint and the boys really loved our visitor. This week was definitely a success!