Gathering Activities

As the Scouts arrive, have them start playing games to review skills you’ve been learning, or to practice things like the Scout Oath and Law that they will have to memorize. We try to do at least one of these each week so they are constantly practicing. These activities are also good for throwing in at the end of a den meeting if you have a few minutes before parents come.

First Class Scout Badge puzzle: print the puzzle and have them put it together. They need to know what each piece means, as well as how it fits together. (This is a good one to do in pairs.)

Scout Law Flashcard: Each Scout gets his own set of flashcards. He puts the points of the Scout Law in order (using pictures or words) as fast as he can. I haven’t ever gotten around to it, but you could also make a similar game for the Oath, Outdoor Code, and Leave No Trace.

Charades: My Webelos have liked this one a lot more than I thought they would! The Scout who is “it” looks at the Oath, Law, Motto, Slogan, Outdoor Code, and LNT cards hanging on the board and chooses one. (He chooses one word strip, like “Loyal,” “Be careful with fire,” etc.) He then tries to act it out so that everyone else can guess. This has also been a good activity to help them understand what each part means.

Knot tying contest: You can have them review the knots you have learned for the Scouting Adventure by seeing who can tie each knot correctly, and fastest!

In general, we have found that anything we can turn in to a game, the more fun it is. This age of boy does not like to have worksheets or to be lectured at. We do games as much as we possibly can! Most requirements that have us talk about something can be turned into a game, whether it is a board game, a relay race, or whatever. Even when they have to explain something, when they do it in a game format, they’re more willing to do it. At least that’s what we’ve found!