Timing the "Why" in Scouting

Timing the Why in Scouting.

By Greg Nash

Using the three W’s, “What”, “Why” and “When” are a great guide when planning our scouting activities. We have “What” as in what are we going to do, this can be a camp or an outing and can be just a hall activity. “Why” why are we going to do it, to do badge work, to have some adventure or there is an important message to be delivered and it could even be on a theme. And “When” when do we run the activity, what time of year or is there a need to run the activity before an outing and so on. 

    

I have discovered over the years that timing is essential when delivering a scouting programme, that is, we put our time and effort into planning great fun activities for a purpose, be it, badge work or just for a fun experience. We plan great activities so our youth can get lasting benefits and we get back great satisfaction from seeing the value in what we do. But all our great programme plans can unintentionally come undone if we don’t deliver it with timing and an impact that emphasises the “why” in our activity.

If it’s getting out and about or having an activity at the hall, scouting programmes often have benefits beyond what our youth take away with them from the intended exercise and it’s the essence of the "why" of our programme that we want to stay with them. Indoor games, out in the bush or excursions to community places can deliver lasting impacts if the “why” we are doing it, is emphasised.

So, let’s look at what I’m trying to say. This is just an example: I organised with my leaders an outing for our Cub Pack to nearby bushland with the intent to do a little badge work, build bush shelters and have lunch that we had talked about at our weekly meeting, that week before. Our walk, in and out of the bush went without any problems, but unknown to any of the Cubs I organised the walk via the local milk bar as our last rest point. Once we reached the milk bar I gave the owner of the store a heads-up about what was going to happen with all these twenty-five Cub Scouts outside his store. Once I was back out with the Pack, I gave each one enough money to buy themselves an ice cream. We all sat nearby and enjoyed our treat. It was there and then I had nailed the lasting impact of our outing, every Cub was sitting around in little groups talking about their bush adventure, making huts, crossing the river (well, it’s called a river though it was only a trickle at the time we crossed it) and the snake that had made an appearance.

Having the Cubs sitting around chatting was great and it gave them good space before we reached our pickup point. If I had mentioned to the Cubs that we are having ice cream from the start of our walk they would have been asking “when are going to get our ice creams”, “how long before”, “what flavour” and “are we there yet”. All this chatter about the ice cream would have taken the emphasis away from what the bush outing activity was out to accomplish. The thought of having that ice cream would become a distraction.

My outing activity was all about the walk, badge work, bush shelters, lunch and the river crossing, and having an adventure, all in that order. Their treat was just the cream on top, as it gave them time and space to reinforce their day's adventure. At the pickup point, our Cubs parents asked the standard questions like, how was your day? what did you do? and was it fun? As it turned out, our ice cream break, allowed the Cubs to revisit the day’s activity and their parents had all the answers to their questions there and then.

This was one example, similar outcomes can be achieved and not necessarily everything I did was deliberate (the snake was a surprise to me). The timings were structured to allow each part of the activity to run long enough for full impact and realising that if activities over-run, or go too long, it can also affect the day's outcomes.

I guess what I try to do is take advantage of the planned activity and make certain each participant has a grasp of the “why” and that it sticks with them as an experience, an adventure and a good memory.

Remember to keep activities uncomplicated and timing in the programme so you have the flexibility that allows the “Why” to dominate. Oh, and if you have any surprises, keep it a surprise until the time is right or it could distract from the intended impact your activity was expected to deliver. 

SCOUTING OUT FOR HEALTH

Scouting out for health

By Greg Nash

In every conversation covering health issues, physical and outdoor activities among things like diet, how much is dedicated to screen time (tablet devices, mobile phones, TVs, etc.), seem to make up the main key discussion points.

For this blog, I’d like to talk about the “OUT” in “SCOUT” and its relevance to health. There’s strong evidence and supporting studies backing outdoor and nature activities are more than keeping fit, but the spin-offs are mind-blowing.

Getting out in my terms, are out, out of the house, out of the scout hall, up the street, over at the park, or going bush. Strictly speaking Scout wise there are procedures to be in place before stepping out the hall, one of which is a risk assessment, so let’s say for the purpose of me getting on with this, I’ll say that’s in place, and everyone will be safe, well that is the plan.

As Children develop through middle childhood (around 5–12 years), a shift begins to occur as children strive to master the world around them (Erikson, 1981). In this period, as their social world expands, children begin to develop autonomy and independence from their parents, together with a growing sense of competence (Huston & Ripke, 2006). A good Joey Scout and Cub Scout program covers the needs of middle childhood so well.

Now I mentioned already “Scout and Out”, so let's put scout as the adventure and out as just out, the adventure is what’s there when we go out. Childhood in the middle years is full of adventure and easy to cater to once given the opportunity and that’s where the plans of a good program kick in.

Putting things simply, a good scout program will by default have health benefits, they extend children’s capacity to regulate themselves and exercise self-control, which are important abilities for the transition to adolescence (Eccles, Wigfield, & Schiefele, 1998), and they develop a sense of what they are good at, which can involve experimentation and risk-taking through physical play and other activities.

Getting out just tends to deliver these befit so easily. Looking at scout programming from Joey Scout through to Rover Scout (6 to 26 years) outdoor activities feature strongly. I have found that giving children time to explore and free-play in a bush setting supports most of their individual needs. These scouting activities are positive in many ways. They tend to be physical or active in nature, and they enable children to learn how to make decisions, solve problems, practice self-control, follow rules, regulate emotions and develop and maintain peer relationships and the scouting mantra, learning by doing.

A challenge in scouting is to ensure that children are safe while at the same time providing opportunities and space for them to take risks and develop competence and self-sufficiency. However, parental fears about children’s safety continually surface in the media and in wider public discussions. The challenge in scout safe is keeping that balance without tilting excessively towards eliminating children from risks at the potential exposure to the benefits of having opportunities of taking risks.

RISKY SCOUT BUSINESS

Risky Scout business

By: Greg Nash

There’s a fair amount of debate about the risks and benefits associated with it when talking about youth development. It’s argued that young people need exposure to a certain level of risk in order to fully develop both physiologically and psychologically.

So what does this have to do with scouting?

There is a lot in what scouting offers youth that attracts the perception of risk; in actuality, we use this to attract membership. We offer risky activities that appeal to the needs of all of us. This is not always physical as we also offer mental challenges that are also risk associated, for example, a Group Leader has many challenges associated with their role that risks a group’s viability.

Scouting offers youth a variety of risky activities like Rock Climbing, Abseiling, Kayaking, Caving, Diving, Parascending, Four Wheel Driving, and much more. All these have physical risks and dangers associated with them. What is required for scouting is the capacity to achieve a balance between safe activity environments while still enabling youth to take part in a learning experience.

A balance is also needed between ‘cotton-wooling’ our youth and exposing them to healthy levels of managed risk. Too little challenge for young people can lead to inappropriate risk-taking behavior later in life.

POSITIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF RISK-TAKING:

Promotes life-long participation in physical activities; an issue that is becoming increasingly important with inactivity being associated with the rising incidence of childhood obesity. These are important considerations if children are to reach their potential and have active, healthy lifestyles.

The outdoors; whether it be the natural environment or staged activities specifically designed for youth, more so than in any other context encourages young people to be themselves, explore, experiment, move and make the most of the opportunities offered by the environment in a less restricted “unstructured” manner.

This view which is championed around the globe by The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) recognises that we need to move on from approaches where the emphasis is on protection towards finding a balance between safety and children’s exposure to healthy levels of risk that allows them to build resilience and personal duty of care.

THE PERCEPTION OF RISK

In the amusement ride industry, it is common knowledge that it is the perception of risk and not actual risk that is important. It is more dangerous traveling to the theme park than taking the scariest ride. All the hazards have been ‘engineered out’ – the hazards have all been removed by good design.

Scouting makes use of perceived risk to challenge youth, engaging them in their self-awareness and that of the environment they are in. It’s well known that scout-run adventurous activities like abseiling could look a bit scary, it is just a perceived risk. It is only through good training, good leadership, and quality gear well maintained – the exposure to danger is exceedingly diminished.

Training and standards

It is important to maintain a focus on training and the need to have a good deal of competency when engaging in risky activities. When leaders put on their uniforms a perception is held by participants, the general public, and others that the leader in uniform is trained. Scouts Australia Institute of Training ensures its methods of training are up-to-date and in keeping with National and World standards that benefit its membership. There’s more than an obligation for leaders to train, it’s the basis on which responsibility, personal growth, and membership are centered.

Leaders: Training for all scouting activities from weekly meetings to outdoor adventures is not an option but a duty of care for self and others.

Whilst safety issues can be addressed, avoiding the activity is not the solution as doing so limits youth participation in a wide range of worthwhile scouting experiences that promote their optimal health and development. Leaders in scouting are best placed to develop themselves and pass on a variety of life skills to our youth.

Confidence-building blunders that some leaders make.

Confidence-building blunders that some leaders make.

By: Greg Nash

I have mentioned in many of my earlier blogs the great benefits scouting offers our youth and adults. The Scout way is learning by doing and gradual confidence building.

Leaders back up their youth learning experiences by giving positive praise and moral support. But can we overpraise?

We all have the right intentions when we boost our youth member’s confidence but sometimes our efforts backfire and have the reverse effect.

Here are five mistakes leaders commonly make when trying to give their youth self-confidence a boost:

1. Over-praise: It is easy to become a praise junkie so that youth are praised for standing up straight. “Wow! You are standing up. What a guy!” Go easy on the praise. Too much of it and it means nothing. Avoid over-praising. Keep praise for genuine efforts and important results.

2. Accept second-rate efforts: Sometimes we lower the bar for our youth thinking we are helping them, but we could be doing them a disservice. Praise and encouragement are different and there are times when they need to be separated.
Instead: Differentiate between process and results. If the results are below par but their effort is parred or above then be ecstatic about that. Our youth do know the difference.

3. Use a peer or friend as a model: Sometimes in our efforts to inspire youth members, we use their peers or friends as role models. Comments such as “Look how hard Ben works on his badges?” actually discourage our youth rather than encourage them. Compare youth only with themselves, not others.
Instead: Develop the notion of Personal Bests so your youth focuses on improvement.

4. Mix encouragement with criticism: There is nothing like bursting a youth’s bubble by praising them up for good work followed by a ‘but… you could do better” or something equally deflating. Keep feedback and criticism for another time and let them enjoy a bit of praise.
Instead: Give your youth a feedback sandwich. That is, when giving them feedback encourage them first, tell them how they can do better, and then give them more encouragement. This maintains their confidence while giving them the skills to do better.

5. Practise conditional acceptance: Sometimes we accept efforts from our youth only if the results measure up to lofty adult standards. For instance, if your ten-year-old Cub Scout does their very best to run a game but was a little forgetful in explaining all the rules, then leaders stand by and avoid the temptation to fix it up.
Instead: Be thankful that there making an effort, and be assured, will get better with "timely" leader engagement and practice.

We all have the best of intentions when we try to boost the self-confidence of children and young people however if we are to do something we may as well do it well. There is a lot to learn about confidence-building. Scouting is meant to be fun for all concerned.

So remember the cup is always half full rather than half empty and there is no room for sink or swim approach to learning in scouting.

Scouting can be Dads time too.

Scouting can be Dad's time too.

By Greg Nash.

Dad let's face the facts, the research is in and we are just not spending enough time with our children. Scouting with your children has many benefits, more than the obvious time spent together.

The research has been done and it suggests that Australian children are not spending much time alone with their fathers. The Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS) says many children get to spend as little as 30 minutes a day with their dads during the week.

AISF deputy director Dr. Matthew Gray says children need paternal support during their development. "If we look at children that are eight to nine years old, on a weekday they're spending on average a bit under an hour a day with the father alone, about three-and-a-half hours with the mother alone, and about two hours with the parents together," Dr. Gray said. "So that's a total of six hours a day with their parents.

And on weekends when you might expect fathers to be spending more time with their children they spend 10 hours with the parents - of which only one-and-a-half hours is with the father when the mother is not present."

Why have I mentioned this study?

Working lives become busier, cities become more crowded and technology takes more of a grip on our lives, many people - particularly children - are spending more and more time indoors. The wisdom of this busier work life is being challenged by parents, schools, and health professionals who now see increasing childhood obesity. I see scouting as a way parents can confront this issue more in a fun way.

As Australians, we relish our reputation as lovers of the great outdoors and scouting personifies this notion. Parents spending time with their children, and sharing an intimate relationship with the natural environment creates life-learning opportunities.

A child's contact with nature will influence health in adulthood, increase cognitive functioning, and lead to long-term gains in attitudes, beliefs, self-perceptions, interpersonal social skills, and memory creation and retention.

So I have mentioned just some great learning experiences but it's back to the basics where the real benefits are. Our children are children for a short time and parents looking for work–life balance can gain significantly from spending time as a leader or parent helper in their child’s scout group. According to AISF, dads’ participation greatly benefits their children and themselves.

Scouting leadership is not just small talk.

Scouting leadership is not just small talk.

By Greg Nash

As adult leaders in Scouting or even holding management positions in our working life, we find that from time to time we need to start articulating our messages to others, either to small or large groups and even at occasional public forums.

So if it’s just a small group of like-minded leaders or a larger gathering it makes sense then to have plenty of practice in public speaking. Scouting definitely provides plenty of speaking opportunities for its adult and youth members.

Many will agree that the ability to stand before an assembly of strangers to deliver a speech or to give a presentation can be a most confronting experience for adults let alone our younger members. As leaders, the great advantage scouting can give our youth is that when there is an opportunity for them to take that first step, they can be well supported by their peers and their leaders.

Let’s look at how scouting helps its youth members get used to speaking on their feet.

Provide two types of speaking opportunities for youth. They are:

Informal opportunities that don’t require preparation. E.g thanking a visiting leader or giving an impromptu report on recent activity.

Formal opportunities that require preparation. E.g speaking at a Group Annual Reports night, presenting their badge work.

Informal activities involve spontaneity and develop the ability to stand and deliver more than the more formal type of speech or presentation.

Regardless of the type of presentation here are five simple speaking tips:

Speak clearly: Clarity is critical. Encourage youth to speak slowly and pause rather than pace.

Say 3 things: Three is a critical number in speaking. Try to incorporate content under three headings. If thanking a speaker just say 3 things – thank them, say something personal about the message, and call for a round of applause.

Stand strong: Voice follows stance so when youth stand with their feet comfortably planted their voice will sound confident too.

End your talk well: How youth end their talk will usually determine its impact. That is what people remember most. End with a laugh, a point, or a story.

Have fun: This is vital. Encourage our youth to just enjoy their talk and don’t fuss too much about technique. This comes with practice.

As leaders, we should look at opportunities in all our programming to give each of our youth a chance to grow in self-confidence and so provide multiple opportunities for them to get on their feet and deliver a message. Encourage them to use very few notes and help them to become comfortable speaking on the spot in front of others, a great life skill.

Scout time is play time

SCOUT TIME IS PLAYTIME

By Greg Nash

It’s well known that Children these days live highly organized, structured lives and at times we too become unwitting accomplices so that the concept of free play becomes more foreign.

A balanced scouting program can create the possibilities for safe free play.

The importance of play for children is often underestimated and free, unrestricted play is the right of childhood. Playtime is growing time as Children begin to explore their abilities in judgment-making, limits in physical skills, and the impact they have on others around them as they become more self-aware.

Our scout founder Robert Baden-Powell (BP) had always intended scouting to be a game and I'll bet you, that he knew exactly what he was doing. Throughout many of his world tours, BP would always remind us to enjoy the great “game of scouting” and maybe it was his way of reminding us of just how important play is, not only for our youth but also the adults.

Playtime has some serious spinoffs that can not be undervalued:

It has impacts on all aspects of the way children develop. Outside games develop balance, coordination, and fitness. Singing and rhyming games promote language development. Board games and puzzles help intellectual development. Free play at home is therapeutic for children. Play is an important way that children can express and work through their feelings. When children use dress-up boxes, art boxes, and other objects they use their imaginations and initiative when they play. Older children and I’m not excluding our Rover section with this comment, still enjoy these things but usually, they like board games and outside games and sports that challenge them and maintain their interest. In reflection to all, I’ve just said without a doubt that it all makes aspects of play in our scouting program even more important and should never be undervalued.

There are some playtime rules to follow that encourage self-development and one of them is to remember that when Children are left to their own devices they generally attend to about the right ratio of work, rest, and play - that is, play comes before work and just after rest in most children’s scheme of things. Enjoyable play generally happens as long as it doesn’t always turn into lessons. This is where training leaders in presenting planned activities as a fun game that ends up looking like play should be in all Scouter training levels. Parenting experts say that the key is to be led by children and to allow enough time to play on their terms and that in the last decade, there has seen almost universal acceptance by parents and caregivers of its place in building self-esteem in a child’s development.

We should be careful not to over-organize and over-complicate our youth activities at the expense of free, unstructured play for the sake of promoting healthy self-esteem.

The Scoutmaster teaches boys to play the game by doing so himself. Quote by: Robert Baden-Powell. (1941)

Remember, learning time is scout time and scout time is playtime. That’s my quote. (2010)