WEBELOS

Aquanaut

Buddy Tag

Sam Houston Area Council

Materials: Lightwood, Waterproof ink, Drill, Board

Directions:

1.        Cut a two-inch circle from lightwood.

2.        Drill hole for hanging.

3.        Write Webelos Scout’s name on the circle with waterproof ink.

4.        If desired, you can indicate swimming skill with stripes – red for non-swimmer, blue for beginner, green for swimmer.

5.        Add stripes as boy improves skill.

6.        When he and his buddy are in the water, their buddy tags hand on board.

7.        When they come out of the water, the boys take them off the board.

Water Game
Sam Houston Area Council

Penny Hunt
Scatter pennies on the pool bottom.  On signal, players don masks, fins, and snorkels and begin search.  The one who retrieves the most pennies wins.

Scavenger Hunt
Play in a river or lake where debris has collected.  Wearing old sneakers or shoes for safety and gloves, the players bring out as much trash as they can.  Winner is the one with the biggest collection.

Flapping Fins Race
On signal, players put on fins (no masks or snorkels) and race to the other side of the pool and back.

Water Balloon Soccer
Move balloons back and forth with feet only, without letting them touch the bottom.

Table Waiter Races
Each swimmer carries a paper plate with a cork on it.  He starts in the water and goes toward the finish line with the plate held at shoulder level with one hand.  He may replace the cork if it falls off.

Grand Canyon

Swimming and water sports provide the finest exercise a boy can get and the skills involved last a lifetime.  The boy who is a swimmer has self-confidence.  Learning to swim well is an opportunity for personal adventure as he proudly learns to be an achiever and to never stop trying.

The National Cub Scout Learn to Swim program is encouraged for all Cub Scouts.   Webelos Scouts have an additional opportunity, through the Aquanaut activity badge, to take part in a character building process as well as to learn skills which could conceivably one day save his or another person's life.

Suggestions For Den Activities

1. Discuss the importance of the buddy swimming system.

2. Have a demonstration of mask, fins, and snorkel by an expert.

3.Take the den swimming.  Let them try to pass the 100-foot requirements, and surface dive and snorkel optional requirements.

4. If a rowboat is available, have boat safety methods and rowing techniques demonstrated by an expert.  Give boys a chance to practice the methods.  Invite parents to come along.

5. Teach the four basic rescue methods.  Let boys’ practice reaching and throwing a lifeline for rescue.

6. Practice rescue breathing on dummy.

7. Go to a swim meet or diving exhibition.

8. Go to a canoe or sailboat race.

9. Invite an expert to explain how to handle emergencies in the water. (Contact a swim instructor, the YMCA or Coast Guard)

10. Visit a boat yard.

11. Have a quiz on boat safety rules.

12. Study the safe swim defense plan.

13. Learn about water pollutants in lakes and rivers in the area. How do they affect water consumption and recreation?

14. At the end of the month, have a family splash party where Webelos Scouts can demonstrate proficiency in swimming, snorkeling, boating, and water rescue.  Include games that the whole family will enjoy playing.

Circle 10 Council

Every Scout is a swimmer!  The Aquanaut Activity Badge teaches swimming skills, water and boat safety, and snorkeling.  Aquanaut is in the Physical Skills group.

Objectives

·         To teach safety precautions on, in, or near the water.

·         To increase the boys’ swimming skills and endurance.

·         To introduce Webelos to snorkeling.

Where to go and what to do

S        Have a pack meeting at a local pool.  Be sure make a reservation!

S        Have a splash party for your Webelos and allow them to bring their friends (a good recruiting idea).  Alternately, have a parent and scout swim coupled with swim tests and instruction in fins, mask and snorkel.

S        Know the rules of small-boat safety and practice at a local body of water.  Watch the sun set from offshore.

S        Invite a scuba diving expert to a den meeting to tell about his equipment and activities.

S        Invite a Boy Scout who has recently visited the Florida High Adventure Camp and who is skilled in snorkeling and scuba diving to tell about his experiences.

S        Ask Boy Scouts to demonstrate and teach water rescue techniques.

Games for Aquanaut

The Guess What I’m Doing Game

On separate slips of paper, write some directions. (Make them rules from Safe Swim Defense).

Put the slips in a hat and ask the first player to pick one.  He reads his directions silently and pantomimes the action.  The player who first guesses what he is doing becomes the next pantomimer.

Yacht Race

Line your gang at one end of the swimming area, giving each racer a soda straw and a small sailboat made of a flat board, an upright stick and a paper sail.  Make the sailboats as much alike as possible so that everyone has the same chance of winning.  The Cub Scout regatta boats could also be used.  On a signal, the swimmers must begin to blow their craft forward by puffing through their soda straws.  The use of hands to put the boat back on course is forbidden.

Nuts And Bolts

A good way to get used to being underwater is to play this game.  Toss a large bolt with a nut on it into waist-deep water.  Bend down to find the bolt and unscrew the nut while you are under the water.  If you can’t finish the job, you must drop the bolt, come up for air and go down again until you have separated the two.  When they are separated, straighten up to show them, throw them in again, and go under to replace the nut on the bolt.  This may be played individually or as a team relay game.

Note: Be careful of throwing these bolts into a plastic lined swimming pool so you do not damage the liner.  Be sure to remove all nuts and bolts after the game so they do not rust and stain the lining of the pool.

Find The Number

About twenty large, flat rocks are plainly marked on both sides with numbers ranging from one to five.  These are thrown into water that may be from two to six feet deep, depending on the swimming ability of your group.  On a signal, everyone dunks to try to bring back as many numbered rocks as possible to his station on shore.  Only one rock may be carried at a time. The player who collects the highest total when the numbers on his rocks are added up is the winner.  Any flat, non-floating objects may be used instead of rocks.