ScoutBox

Here’s to the membership,
Here’s to the children,
Creators of havoc
And makers of such a din.

They scream and they holler
And batter our ears.
They run and they tumble
And they drive us to tears.

But still, in the end,
They grow and they learn.
They show off the skills
And the badges they earn.

We guide them and teach them
Because, in the end,
They’re what it’s all for—

We do it for them.

(I’m not sure where I saw this. If you’re the author, please leave a comment so I can credit you.)

KidsOutdoors, the Scout Associations campaign to get more young people enjoying the outdoors, has a new page on Facebook, the popular social networking site.

The campaign aims to make doing things outdoors a more attractive alternative to TV and computer games. Something I think we can all appreciate.

They have 239 fans already, so why not be 240 and help spread the word.

KidsOutdoors on Facebook

Everyone’s favourite search engine, Google, has a grant programme giving charities free advertising within their search results. Using their AdWords system, it will place a link to your site in the part of the page usually reserved for ’sponsored links’.

To be eligible your group must be based in the United Kingdom and registered with the Charity Commission of England and Wales, the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator or by the Inland Revenue. There are a few non-eligibility guidelines, but I don’t think Scouting falls foul of any of them.

Google Grants (Beta)

The World Organization of the Scout Movement site has quite a few PDF files for download featuring educational activities for the Cub Scout age group. They come from a book originally published by the World Scout Bureau, Interamerican Region, for Cub Scout leaders and educators. There are over 60 ideas, split into six ‘growth’ areas (similar to our Programme Zones).

Activities for the Cub Scout Section (at Scout.org)

The cub supplement from the February/March issue of Scouting Magazine had an article on Programme planning (‘Easy Does It’ p.4). The author writes about how to get the best from your planning meetings, suggests resources and gives a few activity ideas at the end.

One of the tips suggests going to planning meetings with a blank master programme sheet – one for each week. The example given had space for each activity, leader and necessary equipment. I’ve recreated the example and made it available for download below. The download includes a printable template and example, as well as the original publisher file.

Master Programme Sheet (Weekly)