Category: Pathfinders

Menstruation Guide

As a fully inclusive program of all genders, scout leaders need to be knowledgeable about menstruation and provide appropriate support for scouts who experience menstruation. The typical age for a first period is 12, with most people starting to have cycles between age 10 and 15. However, there are those who get them earlier and later, so age alone does...

Trail Signs: Which Way Do We Go?

Learning how to identify trail signs is an important part of hiking safely. It is also one of the skills pathfinders need to know for their Tenderfoot badge.  Need an easy way to show these to your group?  You can download this presentation here in Google Slides: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1MKuAlzI1esViVt4utbWcXyLXzEIifZydaiVM5a2xiCM/edit?usp=sharing

Playing with Pathfinders: Zoom Call Camping RPG

As we continue to meet over zoom, our group needed a lesson plan to work on some leadership skills and to do the second class first aid skills. This meeting outline could also work in person, just make appropriate adjustments to assign roles.  As written, the plan requires 4 adults, but can be adapted. Leader 1: Okay pathfinders, today we...

Defeating Sexism and Gender Inclusion

Okay, forgive my bluntness, but there are some key differences in leading girls vs. boys. In big, general terms that don’t apply to every scout, girls and boys tend to have some differences in where they most need us as leaders to push them along. Part of the challenge of the program we offer, is that we have mixed gender...

Paracord Bracelets: Kit It Up

With scouts still doing many meetings over zoom, what new ideas have you come up with? The 17th BlackBear pathfinders asked to make paracord bracelets. And as a scout led organization, the adults worked to help make that happen. Scout leader Richard Sowdon, created kits with buckles, and pre-fused paracord and mailed them to his pathfinders.  Cord colors were in...

Where To Camp?

As an OSG leader, one of your goals is probably taking the group camping. You probably even know a place or two you can go. However, as your group grows, you are going to want some ideas for exploring further afield.  What to do? National Parks Camping in a National Park is a very reliable way to find group camping....

Trebuchet Trouble: A Miniature Pioneering Project

What do the Pathfinders at the 17th Black Bears think sounds fun? Pioneering and Medieval Warfare of course! So, scoutmaster Richard Sowdon has been working on creating kits for every scout to work on these important skills! As part of their distance scouting program this fall, the Pathfinder scouts of the 17th will be given kits and directions to create...

Pathfinder Patrols

Sorting Pathfinders into Patrols is supposed to make scouting more fun, and easier on the adults. But, if you are new to scouting, you may be wondering how to sort the kids into patrols or where to start with that.  This is the story of how patrols evolved in the 17th.   Getting Started Robert Baden-Powell envisioned his patrol method...