Scout Magician
(From "Prompt Me!" (c) 2014 Mike Walton)I was bored, hungry and in no mood to hear hungry children -- in any language. There were other things going on with me too, but we won't go down that trail, okay?Eating dinner by myself has always been something I have tried to avoid as much as possible. I love having a dinner companion, someone who shared some bit of interest in what I do, why I... [More]
By: Mike Walton (blackeagle) On: 2020-09-07Circus Games
Have you ever thought about running your Pack Meeting like a world-class circus? The Cubmaster is attired as Ringmaster, and all Cub Scouts are in costumes. You could try this and see how to set up competitions between Cub Scouts in carnival circus games and contests. It might begin something like this: Ringmaster: Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, welcome to our show "Under the Big Top!" Let's greet our circus performers as they make... [More]
By: InsaneScouter On: 2020-09-03Eagle, Smegal: Give me a First Class Scout!
(In the American Boy Scouting program, First Class is the rank after Boy Scout, Tenderfoot and Second Class; but before Star, Life and Eagle. The BSA estimates that more than a half-million boys earn First Class each year; unfortunately, we lose a significant number of those Scouts soon afterward mainly because their units do not recognize that important "fully trained Scout" in a lot of cases. A friend of mine explained it this way:... [More]
By: Mike Walton (blackeagle) On: 2020-08-31Snot Rags
She calls them that so as to get a reaction from me - it never fails. She knows full well what they are and how they are worn; she used to be a Girl Scout. But then, Girl Scouts don't wear a NECKERCHIEF! Wikipedia defines a neckerchief in the following manner: "A neckerchief (necko, necker, kerchief or less commonly scarf ) is a type of neckwear associated with Scouts, cowboys, and sailors. It consists of... [More]
By: Mike Walton (blackeagle) On: 2020-08-24Scoutmaster-assigned position or project
Screen capture from BSA advancement website Jim wrote to me a while back and asked: "I understand that there are certain positions Boy Scouts must hold in order to earn the higher ranks. In a large Troop like ours, we run out of those positions rather quickly. I see in the book whereby the Scoutmaster can assign a project to a kid to do instead of holding a position. Isn't that against the "service project"... [More]
By: Mike Walton (blackeagle) On: 2020-08-17Club Scouts
During the recent National Annual Meeting of the Boy Scouts of America, held in Atlanta, I attended several sessions geared to share information and to bring it back to my local Council to share with them. Since my "local Council" (Transatlantic) serves youth in some 60 (I haven't counted the total number of countries, so I'm guessing 60) countries on three continents (Europe, Africa, Asia) within 13 time zones, I decided to share my Scouting... [More]
By: Mike Walton (blackeagle) On: 2020-08-10Lego ®
Lego Scouter and Sweetie by Mike Walton (Throughout this entry, I refer to the small plastic building pieces trademarked and called "Lego®." I don't place the registered trademark symbol anytime except now, but the word and the pieces themselves are registered to the Lego Corporation, with no attempt to infringe on their trademark.) I love Lego. If you ever want to give me a present for any occasion (my birthday is next week, for instance),... [More]
By: Mike Walton (blackeagle) On: 2020-08-03Reuse old printer paper
Image by 41330 from Pixabay During the pandemic lockdown, I had a lot of time sitting around my home office thinking. It occurred to me how much paper we waste by only using one side of it. With some more thought, I came up with a number of ways you could use the backside of that piece of paper and not just for notes or to color on. First, it's worth noting that some printers,... [More]
By: InsaneScouter On: 2020-07-27Virtual Trips
Image by FunkyFocus from PixabayWe thought that since many people still had to stay inside, or at least not be able to go on that summer vacation that the family would typically take…that we would investigate some virtual tours and places to see and visit from inside your home. Many museums and other vacation spots all over the world are enabling folks to try to find new things to see and do by offering free... [More]
By: InsaneScouter On: 2020-07-23What Can Scouts Learn From Their Favorite Superhero?
It has been hard to ignore the soaring popularity of superhero movies in recent times as there have been many incredible films released over the last 10 years. Many of these are from familiar universes featuring iconic superheroes which have resulted in some of the highest-grossing movies of all time. But there have also been a few lesser known — but equally brilliant — additions.While scouts may not be able to fly or have any... [More]
By: Scott Robertson On: 2020-07-22