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dolorsofmary
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| Posted: June 28 2010 at 8:23pm | IP Logged
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I was nervous about my almost 5 yr old joining the boy scouts as a k cub in our area. I inquired through an aquaintance who also homeschools and whose son is in higher up of boy scouts as an adult and they said that the boy scouts is the same as it has always been, fighting the good fight, not allowing gays to teach kids, etc.
So I was given the name of a local leader of k cubs and I basically asked him the same question and he said the same thing but that he personally feels that all walks of life are ok and that if someone wanted to come and in and volunteer he would let them no matter what regardless. So I feel on one hand I should have kept my mouth shut too see what really goes on, on the other hand maybe I dodged a bullet. There is so little for my son in the area. Homeschooling can be very isolating. There is a lot of little flowers activities but the blue knights fell apart and now that my son is almost blue kngiht age we are going to be doing it alone in our home. Ohwell.
Need encouragement or redirection please. Thank you.
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JodieLyn
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| Posted: June 28 2010 at 8:31pm | IP Logged
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at that age you or your dh would be with your son all the time anyway.. the youngest boys (tigers/1st grade and I believe I heard, would assume so anyway since the older boys are, the lion cubs/K) are done as a partnership with the parents. And at any level you should be able to stay.. but if this man is just in charge of the K's.. and you'd be there all the time.. and they're teaching out of the official books.. I don't see where there would be a problem really.
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G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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stacykay
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We have been involved in cub/boy scouts for over 16 years. All leaders are required to go through training before they can officially lead a den.
In our pack, as Jodie mentioned, parents are very welcome to stay for meetings. Family activities are emphasized. Also, in our pack, the Tiger parents (and assuming the kindergarten would be same,) are assigned a month to "be in charge" of the meeting. In the past, it has been some fun outing, say, fishing or visiting fire department...that sort of thing. Then there is one meeting in the school where the boys work on a requirement together.
Is the pack you are looking into affiliated with a church or a school? Ours is through our parish, and most of the meetings are held in the parish school. It would be nice for you to find a pack that has a Catholic affiliation.
Also, I really wouldn't worry about the kindergarten leader. You or your dh would be with your ds at all the meetings. Plus, there were three different Tiger dens for our #5 ds when he was a Tiger, so you may or may not wind up with a certain leader. Some leaders do drop out along the way, depending on their sons' interest in scouting as they get older. And, this man is definitely not speaking for scouting, let alone that pack. It sounds like he was just voicing his own personal opinion. Our cubmaster is extremely conscientious and works very hard to make sure everyone is on the same page with regards to scouting's ideals.
#5ds is in the midst of day camp this week and is loving it. I am so happy with our pack.
God Bless,
Stacy in MI
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guitarnan
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| Posted: June 28 2010 at 11:29pm | IP Logged
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What Stacy said.
The official Boy Scouting position is all about youth protection...the training that all volunteers, not just leaders, must go through is detailed and pointed. There are things that are Just Not Okay. You as a parent could actually go through the youth protection training if you wished, stating that you're thinking of volunteering, to see what it is like. I've done the training four times (once in class, three times online) and it is down-to-earth and situation-specific.
I am a big believer in Boy Scouting. My son's Eagle Court of Honor is just around the corner, so you might think I am biased, but if you look back over my Scouting-related posts here you will see that I have said the same things all along. Scouting grounds boys and gives them tools to succeed as adults. It provides healthy mentoring relationships. It challenges our sons to try new things and to not give up and to plan ahead. It connects sons and fathers and gives boys a chance to be boys in a safe environment, then allows them to develop skills and abilities that will serve them well as adults.
I encourage you to set up a time for you and your son to sit in on a Cub Scout den meeting so you can see how things work. When he gets to age 11 and gets ready to bridge to Boy Scouting he will be required to sit in on a troop meeting or two so he can decide which troop best meets his needs, with your consent and approval.
Scouting has given my son the chance to discover what he really and truly can accomplish, under a variety of conditions. Many of his happiest, most important memories from his grade/high school years center around Scouting. He would be the first one to tell you that Scouting has challenged and stretched him...and that he's glad that he had to step up and try to reach a litle bit higher now and then.
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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lapazfarm
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| Posted: June 28 2010 at 11:45pm | IP Logged
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guitarnan wrote:
Scouting has given my son the chance to discover what he really and truly can accomplish, under a variety of conditions. Many of his happiest, most important memories from his grade/high school years center around Scouting. He would be the first one to tell you that Scouting has challenged and stretched him...and that he's glad that he had to step up and try to reach a little bit higher now and then. |
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My feelings exactly. My son has gained so much from scouting. (Right now he is on a two-week High Adventure trip in New Mexico.) I cannot praise it highly enough.
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Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
LaPaz Home Learning
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JodieLyn
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I guess I would just wonder why you're nervous about your son joining cub scouts?
it's a family program
you stay with them every meeting for the first 2 years (now that they have a K program) when we signed my son for Tigers he had to have an adult partner signed up with him who could be with him for every meeting (I would go when my dh couldn't) and then you MAY continue to stay as they advance. I even hang out at my son's boy scout meetings.. I mostly observe.
All the preventing abuse type of information is done BY THE PARENTS, not by anyone else.
So I guess if you could point out why you're nervous, we might better be able to answer you.
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Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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dolorsofmary
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Thank you for your encouragement. My husband feels that (I think because he was never a boy scout) that since I asked that question we should not go now. I am encouraged to go now because of your responses. Please respond. Thank you. My husband grew up in a part of the carribean where if you said the wrong thing you disappeared.
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guitarnan
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Theresa, is your son at Philmont? My son counts his trek as one of the best things he's ever done. (His international Scout Jamborette in the Netherlands is at the top of his list.)
Truthfully, dolorsofmary, you can pick whichever Cub Scout pack you want to join, so unless you live in a small town you have choices. I would suggest looking for your Boy Scout Council online and then looking for pack points of contact. You can visit a den meeting or pack meeting to see what it is like before committing to join. (In fact, that is encouraged.)
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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dolorsofmary
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| Posted: June 29 2010 at 9:38am | IP Logged
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well I am very happy because I called the original contact person and he is going to get me the contact info for other k cubs in the area and then I did some more research and found the contact info for the people who run catholic boy scouts in our diocese so they are going to get me the contact info for those troops too. Very very happy and i did not give them the litmus test, instead I'll attend and see what happens instead. Thank you so much for encouraging me!
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imcatholic
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| Posted: June 29 2010 at 11:14am | IP Logged
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Teresa! so is my son - his trek ends on July 3rd.
I am a cub scout leader - but - our pack is a small homeschool pack. I would encourage you to try and find a smaller pack. What he said is against BSA policy. I didn't know they had a 5 you k den. Tigers start at 6/1st grade. Tigers only meet 2xs a month.
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Kathryn
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I was going to say that my son belongs to the pack in our local parish and there are a number of den groups even within that pack for the various ages. We have a huge parish so you may not have that advantage but you could def. look around. Also, we were told that my son couldn't start until 1st grade either but may be that's a local decision in each pack. He's been involved 3 yrs now and the benefits are tremendous.
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(dd 16, ds 15, dd 8, dd 5)
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JodieLyn
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They've recently (last year) made available a "Lion's Cub" level for K boys.. when I found it online it's been tried out in some locations and should be available for any pack to offer this fall I think. Ah here's some info..
Quote:
The Lion Cub Scouts is a pilot program created to introduce a new Cub Scout program for boys age 5 or in Kindergarten and their adult partners. The program is focused on parent planning and delivery with support from the Cub Scout pack using literature specifically designed for the younger age group (Lion Cub Scout Adult Guide and Lion Cub Scout Adventure Guide). The Adult Guide contains a detailed plan for each month’s curriculum and breaks down each section into Family/Den Activities, At-Home Activities and Grand Adventures.
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Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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lapazfarm
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| Posted: June 29 2010 at 4:35pm | IP Logged
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guitarnan wrote:
Theresa, is your son at Philmont?
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Yes! And I know he is having a blast! They spent a few days in Colorado Springs before heading to Philmont, in order to acclimate to elevation (the troop is from the Keys)and he got to go biking on Pikes Peak, and rafting on the Arkansas river. Then they headed to Philmont for their trek. What a trip!
imcatholic wrote:
Teresa! so is my son - his trek ends on July 3rd.
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Neat!!!! Maybe they will meet each other! Wouldn't that be a coincidence! When your son gets back ask him if he met a kid named Sam from Alaska hiking with a crazy troop 914 from the Keys!LOL!
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Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
LaPaz Home Learning
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guitarnan
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Theresa, that sounds a lot like what my son's troop did. They toured the Air Force Academy, too.
imcatholic, I know your son will come home with some great stories! (Especially if they use burros.)
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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lapazfarm
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guitarnan wrote:
Theresa, that sounds a lot like what my son's troop did. They toured the Air Force Academy, too.
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Oh, yes! They did that too! He loved that.
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Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
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imcatholic
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guitarnan wrote:
imcatholic, I know your son will come home with some great stories! (Especially if they use burros.) |
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I know they aren't doing the burros - the boys were more interested in hitting every shooting range available. 
Since we are coming from the SE - the went through OK and toured a lot of the museums close by the day they arrived. On the way back the highlight will be stopping at the "Big Texan" steakhouse in Amarillo.
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imcatholic
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Thanks Jodie, I will have to check into it - maybe they just haven't started here yet.
JodieLyn wrote:
They've recently (last year) made available a "Lion's Cub" level for K boys.. when I found it online it's been tried out in some locations and should be available for any pack to offer this fall I think. Ah here's some info..
Quote:
The Lion Cub Scouts is a pilot program created to introduce a new Cub Scout program for boys age 5 or in Kindergarten and their adult partners. The program is focused on parent planning and delivery with support from the Cub Scout pack using literature specifically designed for the younger age group (Lion Cub Scout Adult Guide and Lion Cub Scout Adventure Guide). The Adult Guide contains a detailed plan for each month’s curriculum and breaks down each section into Family/Den Activities, At-Home Activities and Grand Adventures.
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Beth
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Karen T
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It sounds like most of you have had very positive experiences with the Cub Scouts. Mine have not been as good (not in the way the OP was asking though). My dh was a Boy Scout up through Eagle, and worked at Scout camp as a teen and young adult so when oldest ds was ready, we jumped right in. While it's true that a parent stays with the young boys the first couple years, our experience was that few of the parents were interested in disciplining their kids. The dads mostly stood around and chatted (kind of like us moms at homeschool meetings  ) and ignored really bad behavior IMO. My dh worked nights a lot so it was me that had to attend a lot of the meetings, with a baby and toddler in tow but I was still paying enough attention to keep ds in line. they met for monthly pack meetings at a local church (not ours) in a youth room or recreation room, and at every single meeting there were boys climbing on and jumping off of the pool tables, pingpong table, etc plus just running, yelling, etc. The individual den meetings were slightly better, only b/c they met at the leader's house, usually on Sun afternoons outside, and with only 10 boys or so, so it was not as loud, but very little ever got accomplished. Ds ended up quitting right before Webelos, and then rejoined in 6th grade, for the regular Boy Scouts. By then most of the kids had finally matured enough to follow directions and pay attention, and he enjoyed it a lot.
So when ds#2 wanted to do Scouts, we waited until last year, when he was old enough for Webelos. He and dh visited a couple local packs (we;ve moved since the oldest was in it) before deciding on one. His Webelos den is great, but again, the younger boys are allowed to run and scream throughout this church where it's held and I am constantly amazed at what is ignored by the dads. Sometimes dh is home to take him, but he travels a lot, so I still end up with a lot of the weekly meeting stuff.
btw, we checked into the group that our parish has, but the leader is a mom, and the meetings are on Monday afternoons, right after the parish school gets out. Dh was not happy with that, b/c how could many of the dads participate when you're meeting during working hours? And it's almost completely parish school kids and we've found those families to be rather cliquish.
So, I'm just wondering if our experience with the younger cubs, tigers, etc is unusual or pretty much the norm?
Karen
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JodieLyn
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not our experience.. well, let me rephrase that.. the boys are allowed to run around and be noisy before and at the ends of meetings.. but during the meetings they are held to higher standards of behavior.. with lots of reminders.. they are wiggly little boys.
That is very individual to the dens, pack and troop leaders though (and one may be bad while others are not) And while it can be regrettable, you're right that it's not like what the OP was concerned about. I do know a friend who's dh started a new troop because the only ones available to them did not expect decent behavior of the boys. So it's certainly not unheard of. Though this was older boys and not treating other boys well.. using poor language choices, calling names etc.
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Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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lapazfarm
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That hasn't been our experience either. Both of our boys started as Tigers and have worked their way up the ranks.We have moved around a lot and so our boys have been in a lot of different packs/troops. There have been packs/troops that were better than others, but for the most part there have not been any discipline problems.
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Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
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4Real Forums : Nurturing the Years of Wonder
Topic: cub scouts for my son
