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2. Webelos to Boy Scout Transition
(Bridging the Divide)
Tom Sorensen
Troop 46, Freeville
Wood Badge N
Webelos to Boy Scout Transition (Bridging the Divide)
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3. Why Should Cubs Become Scouts?
Lifelong Benefits of 5 or more years of scouting:
Graduate from high school (91% vs 87%)
Graduate from college (35% vs 19%)
Earn higher annual household incomes ($80,000 vs $61,000)
Value family relationships highly (81% vs 72%)
Have lifelong friendships (89% vs 74%)
Attend religious services (87% vs 77%)
Believe helping others should come before one's own self interest (92% vs 83%)
*Ref: “What Will Your Son's Future Hold” (BSA Brochure No )
Scouting is the world’s best youth program for boys. Boys that have completed at least 5 years of scouting are statistically more likely than boys who were not in scouting, or did not complete 5 years to be better prepared for life. Cub scouts is only a 4.5 year program, coming up short of the critical 5 year threshold. A successful transition to boy scouts is required for the lessons to sink in and take root.
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4. Cub Scouts <> Boy Scouts
Adult Planned, Adult Led
Purpose is to prepare youth for boy scouts
Grouped in dens (all same age / grade)
Boy Scouts:
Youth Led, Adult Guided
Purpose is to prepare youth for adulthood
Grouped in patrols (could be mixed age)
Cub Scouts is NOT EQUAL TO Boy Scouts:
Cub Scouts is planned by adults and led by adults. The goal is to have fun while introducing scouting's core values and exposing the cubs to a wide range of experiences. Cub scouts are grouped by age into dens. Dens typically only interact at monthly Pack meeting.
Boy Scouts is planned and led by the scouts; adults are there for guidance and support. The goal is develop skills, learn leadership, and put scouting's core values to into practice; to produce young men of character and resolve. Boy scouts are grouped into patrols, which may be mixed age. Patrols often compete at troop meetings to build teamwork and esprit de corp.
The differences between the two programs may not be obvious to the boys or the parents, and if not planned for, the transition can unnecessarily risk the loss of great scouts.
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5. Meeting Comparison CUB SCOUTS: BOY SCOUTS: Closing
Preparation of materials
Gathering
Opening
Talk time
Activities (crafts, games, etc.)
Closing
Review / plan for next meeting
BOY SCOUTS:
Preopening
Opening
Skills instruction
Patrol meetings
Interpatrol activity
Camp out planning
Announcements
Closing
Cub Scout and Boy Scout meetings have a similar flow: informal activities before the meeting starts, an opening flag ceremony, activities, a closing ceremony. But, for the cubs the activities are planned and run by adults, and typically involve lots of motion and changes of pace. For boy scouts, meetings are more business like, run by the boys, and often with more sitting, thinking, and writing.
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6. Who Plans the Meetings? CUB SCOUTS: BOY SCOUTS: Den leaders
For a trained leader, quality of meetings will be consistent.
BOY SCOUTS:
Patrol leader conference (PLC):
Senior Patrol Leader (SPL)
Patrol Leaders (PL)
Scoutmaster (advising)
SPL and PL’s serve for ~6 month, so meeting quality will vary as boys learn to lead
Cub scout meetings are planned by adults. Boy scout meetings are planned by the boys in the Patrol Leaders Conference (PLC): the senior patrol leaders and the patrol leaders of the individual patrols. SPL and PL’s will change roughly every 6 months, so quality of troop meetings will rise and fall as new leaders are selected and practice leading. Mistakes are to be expected
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7. Tom’s Observations of the Poor Footing of the Crossover Bridge
Did not pick a troop that fit scout and family
Parent commitment / involvement
Not prepared for summer camp
Not prepared for youth led program
No follow up
Expense
These are my observations based on 8 years as a cub master and two years with a troop.
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8. The Importance of the Right Troop
In my opinion, not picking a troop that fit the scout and his family is the most likely reason a transitioning scout will drop out
No two troops are the same, each offers something different, with its own personality
Do not pick a troop just because it has the same unit number as the Pack, or because it has the same Charter Organization - CHOOSE THE TROOP THAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU!!!!!
Just like every boy is different, every troop is different. There is no best troop, a stellar troop with a top notch program might be perfect for one scout while being a complete mismatch for another. Shop around for a troop, one that addresses your needs and fits your style and family.
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9. Choosing the Right Troop
Visit multiple troops (troop meetings and a camp out):
Are troop activities the kind you would enjoy (ask for calendar of upcoming events, ask about activities over the past two years)?
How do the scouts interact with each other?
How do older scouts interact with younger scouts?
Are older scouts active in troop (indicates exciting and well rounded troop)?
Is the troop youth led?
Are you comfortable with adult leaders? Are they trained?
What do the parents say (are any at the meeting)?
The decision is not final: You can change troops at any time, for any reason!!!!
Shop around. Visit multiple troops in your area. Go to more than one troop meeting for each troop (both announced and unannounced – are there any differences between when they knew you were coming and when they didn’t?). Go on a camp out. Ask questions. Be informed. But, most important of all, the decision is not final. If the troop you chose turns out not to be the right one, don’t quit boy Scouting, change troops.
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10. Parent Commitment and Involvement
If the parents are committed and involved in the troop, it is more likely the scout will stay involved
Commitment: Make sure parents know the lifelong benefits of scouting:
see page 3
“Values of Scouts: A Study of Ethics and Character”, by Harris Interactive, May 2005, BSA for more details)
Involvement: Youth run, adult guided – parents are still critical:
Assistant scoutmasters
Committee members
Fund raising
Two-deep leadership on campouts and summer camp
In my experience, the boys most likely to stick with scouting or to become Eagles are sons of adult volunteers. So, get parents involved. Make sure they know the documented long term benefits of scouting. Get them on board in some form or another: as an assistant scoutmaster, a committee member, the fund raising guru, a camp out volunteer (the boys get tired of seeing the same adults all the time). There is room for every parent in a troop! Keep boy scouts as family oriented as cub scouts.
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11. Not Prepared for Summer Camp
Even cubs that have done two Pack camp outs a year for 5 years are unlikely to have been tenting for more than two nights, or been away from a parent for a week:
Attend Cub Scout resident camp at least once (longer duration, often without parents)
Attend a camp out or two with your chosen troop before summer camp
Summer camp will be more enjoyable if the newly transitioned scout has more than single nighters under his belt. Cub Resident Camp is tailor made for getting this experience before Crossing Over. Cub res-camp is from 3 to 6 nights and is available to Bears and Jr. Webelos. Attending a couple of camp outs with your new troop before summer camp to get used to them will make summer camp more easier.
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12. Not Prepared for Youth Led Program
Used to learning from adults, playing with other youth:
Use Den Chiefs – get the Webelos listening to and learning from other youth
Make sure the Webelos (and their parents) know the purpose of a youth led troop and that the scouts will make mistakes as they learn to lead
Give leadership opportunities within the den to the Webelos so have some experience leading (and to learn empathy)
Have troop leaders help cubs with Arrow of Light requirements
Cubs are used to being led by adults. It can be hard for them to accept taking orders from another youth, especially if it is someone they know well or don’t particularly like (or worse yet, a sibling!). Using den chiefs provided by a number of troops can help break the ice, as they tend to be several years older than the Webelos.
They (or their parents) might also be slow to forgive mistakes – which are inevitable as the youth leaders learn how to lead. Adult leaders will limit the severity of any mistakes, but they can have a lasting impression of cubs new to the purpose of a youth led program. Giving Webelos leadership roles in their den can give them some empathy.
Use troop volunteers to help the Webelos den with the final push to complete Arrow of Light requirements. This both makes the scouts more familiar to the cubs, but gets them used to learning from and listening to the troop’s youth leaders.
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13. No Follow Up
As outlined above, there are many opportunities to fall off the bridge when crossing over to a troop, or to get lost shortly thereafter.
Parents and youth are unlikely to have gone through this before, whereas the Pack and Troop leaders probably have. It is up to them to follow up with each new scout and see how they are doing, and to suggest remedial action if something is amiss.
Boy Scouts is the world’s best youth program, but just be cause we know it does not mean a new scout recognizes it immediately. Follow up is critical.
One of my own personal worst deficiencies, where I know I’ve lost a few scouts because I did not follow up in a timely manner to ask how they were doing or if they were having any issues. A frank discussion soon after the transition to boy scouts might have headed off issues outlined above before they led to a scout dropping out.
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14. Expense
For a year-round activity, cub scouting is relatively inexpensive.
Boy scouting tends to be more expensive due to the cost of summer camp and necessary personal camping equipment.
Costs can be offset via:
Use of troop equipment
Fund raising
Pack money transferred to Troop for Crossing Over Cubs
Cubs can get away with a couple of blankets and maybe a tent. It is relatively inexpensive, especially for a year round activity. Scouts, on the other hand, will need a back pack, a sleeping bag, mess kit, summer camp, etc.. Costs can be offset with troop equipment and fund raisers. The pack can also transfer a portion of any money the cub earned in the Pack to the Troop when he Crosses Over.
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15. Resources / References
“Webelos to Scout Transition” BSA Pamphlet No
BSA “Cubmaster's Disappearing Packet”
“Crossing Over”, by N.H. Francis, Scouting, March-April 2015, pg. 28 – 33
Baden-Powell Council, University of Scouting, 2008 CD-ROM:
(WEBELOS2SCOUT-handout.pdf)
“Webelos to Boy Scout Transition” Class (Webelos-ScoutTransition.pps)
Baden-Powell Council, University of Scouting, 2015 CD-ROM:
“Webelos to Boy Scout Transition” Class (webelos2scout2011.pps)
“Webelos to Scout Transition: A Parent's Guide” (webelos to scout transitio.pdf)
Webelos to Scout Transition Plan, (webelos_to_scout.pdf)
*“Retention: Six reasons Scouts drop out and how you can prevent it”, Bryan on Scouting (blog), June 1, 2011
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