Review

This Friday was a rather random week for the scouts.

Seeing that I had just taken over as SL, I had been handed the huge Record Card folder that I need to keep up to date with all the activities that the Scouts do... and of course it helps that it be up to date to begin with (which means sitting down with each sprog individually and going through their cards one by one). This, along with briefing the newbies on the basics like the Scout Law and Promise, just about took up the entire night for me.

What the kids did in the mean time ran not too badly. Mim found an idea on Programs Online where we would run a series of knock out games, when the sprog gets knocked out they would be given a challenge (like tie a bowline) and as soon as hey managed it they would be back in the game. The resource from POL came with a kind of record card... which on the whole worked, but Minty (who was issuing the challenges) said that some of the tasks, specifically the first aid ones, would need a bit more of a structure to the challenge (like fill out the questionnaire etc).

The way we ran the night was:
Scotland updating record cards
Minty issuing challenges
Mim running knockout games

Not only did we have new kids, but we have a potential new leader (who shall be referred to on here as Ireland... can you guess where he is from?). He ran games with Mim so that he could get to know the kids a decide if he wants to stay with us. Hopefully we didn't scare him off completely!

All in all, a successful night, although if we were to do it again we would probably tweak it so that it would run better

Send in the Clowns

... err excuse me... your balls have dropped...

what? ewww, how could you think that, don't be so dirty minded. Here was me just innocently telling you that you dropped your juggling balls.

*mental soap*

Not that long ago I was asked if I would run a circus skills activity session for the cubs, which resulted in me heading down to the hall on a Sunday night... balls in hand. Actually I had a bit more than balls.
The skills on offer: Juggling (scarves, balls and clubs), Poi (weights on the end of chains that you swing about, or balls in long socks), Staff Spinning, Diabolo, Plate Spinning and the odd random activity from them to do themselves
I got the cubs leaders to come down early so that I could teach them the basics of how to do it, so that they would be able to show the kids some stuff... I can't be everywhere at the one time

The evening started off with their usual grand howl and inspection (turns out that the leaders have been taking some notes from my new structure in the scouts!), then we did a little warm up session. We got the group to do some group juggling. It's not a complicated as it sounds:
get them in a circle. Give the ball to one of the kids and tell them that they are only allowed to throw it to one person (who can't be right beside them) and it goes round the group until everyone has had the ball and it gets back to the first person. I usually get the kids to sit down once they have had the ball to help show who still needs to get it. Once the ball for the ball has been created, it doesn't change. Start off with just one ball and do a couple of rounds without stopping, then add more and more balls. The kids seamed to enjoy it... although some of them were a bit pants at catching!

After a safety talk; where they were warned that ANY messing around would end up with them going home early and I was asked by a sprog if the staff was for pole dancing; the group was split into two for the activities.

All in all they enjoyed the activities and the random challenges that I would set them (always handy to have when they start getting bored with the fact that they can't do any of the tricks)

Down in a hole

Last night COLDnet went on a little outing, to meet the Lincoln Caving Club.

They showed us a couple of promotial videos (which, for videos about caving, had a surprising amount of flesh on show- i think they got calender-girls-itis for a while) before asking us if any of us wanted to have a go at there little obsticle course.

Most of us agreed (the only two that didn't had medical reason... so I suppose we had to let them off with that one!) so we had to get suited about booted. Getting into the overalls alone was a challenge for some... superheroes in their jumpsuits are going to have a run for their money with Tom in his skin-tight overalls. Actually I doubt that Tom would be able to run anywhere in those overalls, well, without loosing any potential offspring. Luckily for him the caving club pulled out some slightly larger overalls for him to use.

The obsticle course underneath the huts at Althum Terrace isn't too bad. They have a couple of squeezes for you to fit through, and other things for you to scramble over. The only thing that I would say against it is that its on hard concrete which can be rather sore on the old elbows and knees.

I think that everyone enjoyed the night, and I have to say that I would be tempted to go on one of the trips that the Caving Club organises.

Chocolate *drool*

mmmmm.... chocolate.... *drool*. Damn, (wipes up puddle on desk)

right, where was I? Oh yes, chocolate. More to the point Fairtrade chocolate.Following on from last weeks Banana themed night about fairtrade (where they had to say who would get how much out of the cost of a bunch of bananas)- I wasn't there last week, so it wasn't just my laziness that resulted in no post.

The night, in short, was a shambles. It was just Mim and I tonight (get well soon Minty) which didn't help in the first place. Apart from that, we had an activity off of Programs Online that Mim had found. I hadn't fully read the instructions for the activity (rooke error I know!) and it turned out that Mim hadn't read it in ages either. So, the two of us ended up having to figure out what happened to be a rather overcomplicated game while the kids were already in the hall.

needless to say confusion reigned

...but surprisingly the sprogs managed to figure out roughly what they were supposed to do (I think I can safely speak for both of us when I say that to this day neither Mim or I actually understand that game!). And even more surprisingly, they LOVED it! They were even asking at the end of the night if they could do it again sometime (fat chance of that happening any time soon)

The actual game itself required the kids to be either cocoa bean sellers, chocolate manufacturers or supermarkets and they would have to try to make as much money as possible (while the supermarkets had to fill their quotas to meet the customers demands). That is all I understand about this game. Other details like what actually marks the end of the game are still a complete mystery to me.

Personally I am going to shelf this activity, store it away in a big box with warning labels, flashing lights and spikes (and possibly a huge boulder to come rolling at you if you try to lift it- Indiana Jones style)... but if you want to try it for yourself then I have added the instructions to https://sites.google.com/site/diaryofascoutleader/home/scouts/activities

Be warned... use at your own risk!

Previously on...

Ok,

I apologise! I have been incredibly lax with the posting of scouting events... so consider this a little round up session (actually it might be rather long so bare with me!)

Well I suppose the first bit of big news is that I have been successful in my application to become an Assistant Unit Leader for Lincolnshire to the next World Scout Jamboree in Sweden (yeah baby!). The selection process involved a day at the RAF base in Wittering where the applicants were put through there paces.... interviews, presentations, team building games... and scones!!
Have since had a meeting with the unit leader team, and I think that it is going to be a good jamboree by the sounds of it (mind you I still have to work my way through the huge ring binder of information that I was given). I will post updates on here... but obviously I won't be able to publish everything straight away, somethings have got to be left as a surprise.

Second big bit of news is that Stacey has decided to leave the 9th Lincoln =(
Yes, I know, it is a sad day for everyone... but she had her reasons (which isn't my place to blab about on the internet, so I ain't talking). Hopefully she will stay in scouting and she will be happier where-ever she ends up. This, of course, means that there is a vacancy in the SL role... one which the Group Scout Leader, in a moment of insanity, has appointed some Scottish weirdo.

What do you mean "what Scottish weirdo?"

No... not Minty...

... *penny drops*....

Yup it's me!
Am taking on the challenge of running the Scout section (God help me!) I'm actually rather excited about it, am just hoping now that the parents and the sprogs are going to accept the change.

Normal sevice should return shortly