Volume 6 Issue 5
December 1999

ADVANCEMENT CEREMONIES

Denner Installation Ceremony
Daniel Webster Council

This ceremony should be held in den meeting, as soon as denner is elected.

Equipment: Table, den diary (if desired), candle in holder, Denner Cord.

Staging: Den Leader or Den Chief can perform installation. Assistant denner could be installed at the same time.

Den Leader: (name), please step forward. (lights candle) Before you burn a white candle which represents the Spirit of Cub Scouting. It takes a team to keep the spirit alive, to keep the candle burning. You have just been elected to be a member of that team. As Denner, your duties are to assist me and our Den Chief. You will keep the Den Diary, help take attendance and collect den dues. (This may be varied depending on responsibilities which Den Leader wishes Denner to have.) During the week, you will set a good example for the other members of our den, by being honest, fair, and showing true Cub Scout spirit.

Do you accept these responsibilities which will help us keep the Spirit of Cub Scouting alive and the candle burning:

Denner: I do.

Den Leader: I'm happy to present you with the denner cord, which is to be worn on your left sleeve during your term of office. Wear it proudly and with honor. Congratulations.

 

Advancement Ceremony
Mt. Diablo Silverado Area Council

This ceremony can be done with little or no expense. Go to a local software store or computer repair shop. Ask them to give you any old, outdated, or broken parts of computers, or maybe old floppy disks. Attach the Cub Scouts awards to the items that you've gathered. Fashion a computer out of a cardboard box. (Some stores that sell computer centers have cardboard computer likenesses) Place the "computer" on a table, covered with a tablecloth. Call each den up to receive the awards. You can have an adult under the table to hand up the awards. The adult can also be the voice of the "computer" to act as the sidekick for the Cubmaster. You can say that the awards are the computer output". Use you imagination, and have FUN!


WORLDS LARGEST COMPUTER
Circle Ten Council

Preparation: A large box to be used as a computer monitor, another box to be used as a keyboard and, if needed, another to use as a printer. Cubmaster may wish to have an Assistant Cubmaster ready to put letters up onto the screen at the appropriate time. Letters are cut out or plain paper with letters written on them.

Cubmaster:
We have anxiously waited for this time to arrive. The year 2000 with its double digit 0 has mystified computer programmers, users, and the common man for many years.

Man has studied the potential problem for at least 2 decades. But we are past the 2000 problem. You see, we have just completed building the world’s largest computer and just in time! Many boys and their families have been working on achievements and advancements. All of their hard work has been entered into the computer and, tonight, we will find out the results! We have also entered into the computer the requirements for each rank and advancement. And now – let’s see how many matches we have!

Cubmaster pretends to key in the letters W-O-L-F and Assistant puts them up onto the screen. Have either a large page with each boy’s name listed to put on the monitor or get a printout and read the boys names. When each boy comes forward with his parents, hand them the awards and ask them to stand at the side. Repeat this for each award (i.e., B-E-A-R or W-E-B-E-L-O-S). You can give arrow points and activity pins with the ranks or handle them separately in a like manner.

Cubmaster:
Parents, you have helped to develop your boy’s character to what it is today and will be tomorrow. You guide them and help them to learn by their experiences on a daily basis. You have been handed your boy’s rank in Cub Scouts and he must do one more thing to get it sewn onto his uniform. Each boy is to do a good turn before his rank may be sewn in place. Until then, use the parent’s pin to hold the patch upside down on his uniform.

Advancement Ceremony
York Adams Council

[Note that this and other ceremonies should be reviewed and modified to suit the specific awards being giving at the meeting. This ceremony is written so that any particular award can be used or omitted without impacting the whole of the ceremony.]

Cubmaster: There are a lot of computer games on the market today, and while I was surfing the Internet the other day, I found a really good one that I want to share with you. It's called "Advancement."

Now unlike many of the games out there, this one doesn't have all the wiz-bang violence and high-speed flying and diving; it doesn't involve racking up billions of points on the scoreboard; and it can only be played by a very select group of people—Cub Scouts. This is a "game" that checks out your ability to "Do Your Best."

And as in any game, the player must first learn the rules of the game. In this program, the players start in any grade, from 2nd through 5th. They learn the rules, such as the Cub Scout Promise and the Law of the Pack; what the different signs and signals mean in the activity, like the handshake and Scout sign; and special phrases and messages used during play, like Webelos and "Do Your Best." Once they've learned these basic rules, they are ready to begin the game in earnest. And once the player has learned the rules, the computer places an icon on the screen that shows the player has completed the "rules" phase—the icon looks like this.

[Cubmaster holds up a Bobcat badge.] It looks like a Bobcat!

(BOBCAT) As a matter of fact, I think we have some Cub Scouts here tonight who also found that program and have been studying the "rules" so that they are ready to join in. [List names of Bobcat recipients and call them with their parents to the front of the room.]

As with any program, software or otherwise, we have to understand what we are getting ready to do and how we're supposed to do it before we get started. You guys have done that. Just to help remind the rest of the players, will join with me now in reciting the Cub Scout Promise?

[Hand parents the awards to present to the boys and congratulate them with the Cub Scout handshake. Offer the keyboard applause and ask them to take their seats.] own degree of skills required. To get to the firstlevel, the player has to get through 12 achievements. And like in other computer games, the player has to "learn" how to do things to complete these achievements. In the first level, the achievements include everything from doing physical feats of skill to learning about the flag and holding a flag ceremony to learning make the right decision in unsafe situations. And once you've completed the 12 achievements, another icon is displayed [holds up Wolf badge]. This one looks like a Wolf.

(WOLF)

Among all of you computer wizards out there tonight, it turns out we have some who have reached this level of the program. [List names and invite them with their parents to come forward.] These players have spent a lot of time learning new skills and have reached the Wolf level. [Hand out badges to parents to give to the boys. Congratulate them and offer Power Outage applause. Have them sit down.]

Once the program advances the players to the next level, the achievements become a little tougher and the players have to make some program choices to complete this level of the program. I guess the program uses "if… then" statements or something. Anyway, at this level, the players again try to complete 12 achievements, but in four different subject areas—God, Country, Family, and Self. Once they've completed 12, a new icon is displayed

[hold up the Bear badge].

(BEAR)

Again, we've got some real program experts with us tonight who have completed these achievements. [List off Bear candidate names and invite them and their parents to the front of the room.] These Cub Scouts have mastered their level to get the Bear icon, but they are encouraged to keep working on this level until the program moves them up to the next level. [Hand parents the awards to present to the boys and congratulate them. Offer the Computer Freeze applause and ask them to take their seats.]

The Advancement program is a little different than other programs. Because once you've gotten the Wolf icon, you still stay at that level until the program tells you it's time to begin working on the next level. But while you're working at the Wolf level, you still do other things and learn new skills. And as you do, the program gives you bonus icons [hold up arrow points]. An arrow point is awarded each time a boy completes ten electives; a gold arrow point for the first ten and a silver arrow point for each ten after that.

(ARROW POINTS)

[List off Arrow Point candidate names and invite them and their parents to the front of the room.] These players (in both the Wolf and Bear levels) have really mastered the program and are gaining a lot from it. Tonight we award them with the extra arrow points they've earned. [Hand parents the awards to present to the boys and congratulate them. Offer the "You've Got Mail" applause and ask them to take their seats.]

This Advancement program is really a pretty smart program. Whether or not a player gets the icon for a level, the program automatically advances the player to the next level when the player is ready to take on new challenges. For those who have advanced to the level above Bear, they begin to get ready for an even greater, more challenging program that they'll be able to enjoy in just a couple of levels later—it's called the Boy Scout Advancement program. So the players in the next level begin to "prep" for this Unlike the Wolf and Bear levels, this next level of play involves completing separate activities for which the program recognizes the player. These activities are more challenging than the Bear achievements, but then again, the players are ready for them too. While the player completes the activities, he also works on special challenges—part of the "prepping" I mentioned. This assures that the player will understand the rules and requirements of the program after this one. As the player completes an activities, he gets a mini-icon [hold up Activity Badge pins] and when he has gotten certain mini-icons and completed the "prep" challenges, the program gives him yet another icon [hold up Webelos badge].

(WEBELOS)

With us tonight are some players who have done just that. They have worked the program to get several mini-icons (or Activity Badges) and some have even completed the prep challenges to get the Webelos icon. [List names and invite them with their parents and Webelos Den Leaders to come forward.]

[Hand parents the awards to present to the boys and congratulate them. Offer the Pac Man applause and ask them to take their seats.]

So the program seems to go on and on. But really, there is a "finish" to the program, and some very hard-working players even reach the pinnacle (the top) of the program by going all out. These players have to "capture" other mini-icons and complete even more of the challenges in this level of the program. But when they have, the program awards them the top icon [hold up Arrow of Light Award]. It takes a lot of program skill and perseverance—sticking to it—just like with any other computer program. This icon is so special, that the players who get it carry it over into the next program, Boy Scout Advancement.

(ARROW OF LIGHT)

Tonight we recognize those players who have displayed their skills in the program, have worked hard to master the challenges of the "game" and have come out on top. [List names and invite them with their parents to come forward.] [Hand boys the parent's Arrow of Light pins to present to their parents. Then give parents the awards to present to the boys and congratulate them. Offer a BIG applause and ask them to take their seats.]

One final word about this program. Anyone can play. And for the players who Do Their Best, they all come out winners!

 

Computer Invention
York Adams Council

Equipment: Box made up to look like a computer, large cards with Bobcat, Wolf, etc. on them, actual awards.

Cubmaster: In keeping with our theme of "Does Not Computer", I would like to unveil my latest invention. (Uncover, or bring in "Computer") This amazing device is able to collect all the information that comes in from our pack committee members, den leaders, Webelos den leaders, and parents. It can then determine which Cub Scouts and Webelos Scouts are eligible for which awards. Allow me to demonstrate.

(Hold up Bobcat card. Insert into slot in machine. Pick up pre-positioned Bobcat awards from rear of box.)

Will (name) and his parents please come forward? (Present awards).

(Follow similar procedures for awards of Wolf, Bear, arrow points, and Webelos badge and activity badges).

(Hold up Arrow of Light card. Insert into machine. Call for Arrow of Light recipient). These young men may or may not be real inventors, but they have shown the truth of the old saying 90 percent of success is perspiration. They have worked long and hard - some as long as three years - to achieve their goal. What they built was not a better mousetrap, but something far more valuable to the world today, better young men. In recognition of this achievement, we present them with an award that is so highly thought of that it is the only Cub Scout badge that can be worn on all other Scout uniforms. (Present awards). I want to congratulate all of you and your parents. The whole pack is proud of your accomplishments, and we're sure you will continue to "Do Your Best".

Materials found in Baloo's Bugle may be used by Scouters for Scouting activities provided that USSSP, Baloo's Bugle and the original contributors are cited as the source of the material.




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