Just for fun, I started a new thing for the boys. Before Pack Meetings start, they can come
over to the Cubmaster and practice different knots. When they can tie certain knots all by
themselves, they will get a special neckerchief slide. When they learn the Knot Champion list,
they receive a blue Turk’s Head. After
they learn the Knot Champion list, they move on to the Knot Master list. Once they learn that list, they receive a
gold Turk’s Head. Don’t worry if he can’t
tie them all on the first night. The
point is, he’s supposed to work on them on his own or before the pack meetings
until he learns them all. Practice with
him. Any parent who learns them will
also receive a Turk’s Head. Tag-alongs
are also welcome to participate.
There’s several reasons for, what some might regard as, “silliness”.
1. Crowd Control
2. Teamwork & Belonging
3. Heritage & Tradition
Crowd Control - All day long, our children are told what NOT to do. “No talking in class. No whispering to your friends. No moving about; sit still.” But we have to remember that they are children. So by the time they get to the Pack Meeting, they are just about ready to burst. They need an outlet, but without loosing complete control. Enter the Cubmaster. My job is to let them blow off steam without loosing track of what we are doing. By having these momentary outbursts, the boys learn that they will get to have fun so they are more willing to pay attention and sit still for the other things. It may not be 100% foolproof, but it does help.
Teamwork & Belonging – A cheer is one thing they can all participate in. It doesn’t matter how tall, how strong, how fast, how smart or even, in the case of a song, how talented they are, they can all join in. It’s an old Scout saying (which means it’s said by Old Scouts) that, “If you can’t sing well, at least sing loud.” The point is they all do it together. No one boy is the star. They all get to have fun and they all work together to do the cheer or song or applause.
Heritage & Tradition – So what did people do before Nickelodean, Cartoon Network, and the rest of cable television? Before the radio? How about before electricity? When everyone got together, they had to entertain themselves. Such is the heritage and tradition of Scouting. What do you do around a campfire? <<GASP!>> Portable DVD player, did you say? Perish the thought! Think of the many places we do some of the same things in our life. At a football game, we sing the fight song and cheer for our team. Anyone from the military remembers a couple of “Jodys”, some of which might actually be suitable for mixed company. Who doesn’t remember a few good ditties from their youth? Many of these are handed down year after year, generation after generation in the Scouting community. We continue that tradition every meeting.
I almost forgot one. “It’s fun!!” Try it yourself. Next Pack meeting, after a long hard day at work, when you’ve had to put up with, well, you know the daily drill. Let yourself go for a few minutes and join in the fun. Scouting is a family oriented activity, not just for the boys. And why should the boys get to have all the fun anyway?