TRAINING TIP

Den Projects

Bill Smith, the Roundtable Guy

Next to games, I would guess that the top den activity would be projects where the boys get to build grand and wonderful things. Boys of Cub Scout age love to build things. Several years ago I wrote a Training Tip that described some of the advantages of projects and the sorts of things that go on in a boy’s imagination when he builds something. If you are new to Baloo’s Bugle, you may want to go back to September of 2005 and check it out.

About eight years ago Brad Farmer, then National Director of Cub Scouting, suggested that we eliminate the word craft from the Cub Scout vernacular and replace it with the word PROJECT

Brad felt that describing a Cub Scout activity as “craft” had a strong implications of busy work or fine, intricate handicraft that rarely appeals to young boys. Project, on the other hand, brings to mind things more physical, more boy-like. Apparently his suggestion has been largely ignored since most Cub Scout literature still uses craft. On my little roundtable website, I try to avoid using the word craft and so far only one person has ever complained about it.

Several approaches I have heard by den leaders used in planning den projects:

1. We need to keep them busy for another fifteen minutes so lets give them construction paper, glue and ……

2. I saw these pretty gizmos in FunPax Magazine. The kids will just love to make them,

3. We need to do Elective 3 so we will make door stops next week.

4. We need some game equipment for our pack campout. Let’s look in the How-To Book,

Which approach is used will have a huge affect on the outcome:

Busy work is a downer. By the age of 6, most children will spot busy work with ease. Many will put up with it for a short while with some level of resignation, but they won’t line up to do it again. If your plan is to bore Cub Scouts, busy work will do it.

“Pretty” doesn’t work for most Cub Scout projects. Try to see projects through the eyes of a boy. Tools, wood and paint are things to look for. Fine intricate craft projects can be frustrating for many boys. Beware of them.

Advancement and its badges are there to provide adventure and challenge for a growing boy. (See last month’s Training Tip.) Badge chasing is the opposite. We should be more concerned with what happens to the boy rather than what happens to the badge.

What will it do? Making things that can be used for games works well. Look at some of the games on pages 3-38 through 3-41 of the How-To Book. Making the game equipment is just part of the fun. Using it is even better.

The best Cub Scout projects items do things. They fly, move, throw other things, explode, dig holes, fill holes, cut things, mend other things, float , sink, or save the world from destruction. Some can be used to help the boy himself do exceptional things. Others serve well because they engender a boy’s dreams of great exploits. The reason these work for den projects is mostly because boys at this age are mostly interested in doing. Remember the Cub Scout Motto? It’s about doing – doing one’s best. Look at that great list of projects on page 2-5 of the How-To Book. What will each of them do?

The Cub Scout Leader How-To Book lists several ways to judge the value and success of den projects:

·         Are the boys learning things that will be helpful for them later?

·         Do the projects reflect the interests and abilities of Cub Scout-aged boys?

·         Do the den and pack projects help create opportunities for more family activities?

·         Do the boys enjoy working on projects?

·         Do they have adequate working space, tools and materials?

·         Are the boys given an opportunity to use their own initiative and imagination in planning and making projects?

In general, projects require more planning and more preparation than most other Cub Scout activities. Just getting the material assembled and ready for use can be a major job – and expense. The really effective projects – the ones that grab boys’ attentions and prepare them for life – are special and deserve the leaders’ best talents and skills. My advice to den leaders is to look ahead and plan three or four good projects for the coming year that fit needs, resources and themes. Then plan for fun and success. Run each project through the above check list to assure yourself  that each has the potential for success.

Projects often require lots of one-on-one help for the more challenging steps. You may need more help at your den meeting if the project involves new skills or intricate procedures. Getting parents involved with your den meetings may either add to your difficulties or, on the other hand make your life a lot easier so plan accordingly.

It’s important to have enough help when you schedule building projects. One of the most valuable benefits of a good project is that feeling of accomplishment one gets from getting it right. Messing up is the opposite. Our den activities must never discourage or demoralize a boy who is trying to do his best.

It might seem like a trivial concern but our society tends to discourage large numbers of our youth to the point of limiting their hopes and aspirations. Consider The "Boy Crisis" from BoyProject.net.

Since the late 1970's, young women have soared in college attendance while young men have stagnated. Young men's literacy is declining. Many young men are disengaging from school. Young men are less likely to be valedictorians, to be on the honor roll, and to be active in organizations like student government. Young men are more likely to get D's and F's, to be suspended or expelled from school, to drop out of school, and to commit suicide.

We are losing young boys to a sense of failure that comes from schooling poorly adapted to their needs. We are losing adolescent males to the depression that comes from feeling neither needed nor respected. We are losing young men to life tracks that include neither college nor any other energetic endeavor.

A large, sullen, poorly educated group of men will not keep the nation vital in the twenty-first century. The nation needs the energy, initiative, and ambition of its young men as well as its young women.

The real benefit comes from the worthwhile things children learn as their self-confidence, inner strength, and self-esteem grows. Keep that Cub Scout Motto fixed firmly in mind. I was impressed by the sentiment expressed by screen-writer Tina Fey when she said, “I want to thank my parents for somehow raising me to have confidence that is disproportionate to my looks and my abilities.”

I hope that in years to come, America’s writers, teachers, builders and leaders will be saying similar things about each of you.

What are YOU going to do now?

Go get ‘em. We need all the help we can get.

ü  Also, be sure to visit Bill’s website

http://www.wtsmith.com/rt

to finds more ideas on everything Cub Scouting.

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