Scouts Year-End BBQ and a Surprise!





9th Pickering Scouts 2012

Jonas and I went to our Scout group's annual year-end BBQ last night. It's always a lot fun. All the kids, parents and leaders really only get together as a whole group a few times a year and this one of those times that we all look forward to. Last night we played with our homemade Whack-a-Mole and giant slingshots and the kids loved it!

A big part of the night are the ceremonies for the youth. Last night, we had three Beavers move up to Cubs, (a very emotional moment for this Beaver Leader, I have to tell you!) eight Cubs moved up to Scouts, and we also presented awards to the sub-groups (Pack "Sixes" and Troop "Patrols") and individual Scouts who had significant achievements this year.

For our Cub Pack, we congratulated the youth for the results of the weekly Inspections. Jonas's Six got the highest team total and several of the Cubs were acknowledged for their personal successes. Guess who lead the Pack with the highest percentage of Inspection success? Jonas!

This is a pretty big deal for him. Every week during Inspection, the Cubs are required to:

• Wear their uniform correctly - clean shirt, pants, necker, sash, belt and indoor shoes, woggle, shirt tucked in, etc....
• Have clean paws (hands), claws (finger nails), fur (skin and hair) and fangs (teeth)
• Have their badges sewn onto their sashes within two meetings of receiving them
• Bring their 2 books to Inspection
• Call before the meeting if they are going to be late of absent

Each Cub can earn up to 30 points each meeting, and then we work out the averages. If they miss a meeting, they can't get any more than 5 points and only if they let their Six know before the meeting that they'll be absent. Jonas missed a few meetings but called or e-mailed every time and finished with an average weekly total of 29.89 points!

That is a HUGE accomplishment for this kid. Memory and attention to detail are not his strengths but, in addition to working on a merit badge a month, he was pretty focused on doing his best on Inspection every week. Early in the year we started a system of  using a hook by the front door for his uniform and a backpack for his boots, shoes and other things he needs for our weekly meetings. Reminders from mom, beyond, "Get your uniform on" and "don't forget your backpack", stopped after about Halloween. He's quite honestly achieved this on his own andI have to say, I am one proud mom.

The Cub Motto is "Do Your Best" and he did!

 Cheers!