| Camping |
Ask any Beaver, Cub or Scout what their favourite thing about Scouting is, and you will almost
always get the same answer: "Going to Camp." Camp should be fun and whether you get the chance to go as far as a Jamboree or International camp or you never manage to get to anything more than the odd overnight / weekend or two, Camp memories should always be something special in anybody's life (Leaders included). There are many different types of camp available and you should usually manage to suit everybody's taste at some point or other. These can range from: Overnight, Weekend, Summer, International or Jamboree and can each be done: Indoors, Under Canvas or Backwoods (Bivouac) as well as having Badge camps, Themed camps, Family camps or simple fun camps This page is here to try and share a few ideas as well as possibly an education in what to expect or do differently the next time you go to camp. There are also a few tips for those of you who take part in District & Area Flag Competions etc. There are still certain rules which UK Scouting must adhere to, but all of these shouldn't get in the way of the kids having as much fun as possible. Some of these include the fact that there has to be at least 1 Leader in camp who has a valid Camping Permit, which incidently, has to be valid for the type of camp that you are attending. The Leader with the Camp Permit doesn't have to be the Leader in charge of the camp but it is usually preferable for this to be the case. However, this newer flexibility allows Scout Groups to 'borrow' Leaders from other Groups etc. to come to camp with them & therefore allow their kids to go to a camp they would otherwise miss out on. Badge Camps Badge Camps are usually set up to allow Cubs & Scouts do a group of Proficiency badges over the space of a weekend (or more). These are usually the type of Badges which aren't as easy to do during the normal Pack or Troop meetings. Good choices of badgework should see an even mixture of hard and fun varieties of badgework. Usually Camp Cook can be introduced to the weekend and other more difficult badges like Astronomer's etc. which are so easy to do when you know that the kids are never going to sleep on the first night at camp anyway. (This is 'Murphy's Law', 'Sod's Law', or any general Law that conforms to children all over the world!) Athletetics & Scientist Badges which can be time consuming or messy are great badges to do over the course of a weekend & put together allow kids to relax inbetween the more vigorous pursuits. Theme Camps Themed camps are usually the favourite type of camps which most kids I know have experienced. Themes can cover a wide variety of subjects from Medieval, Pirates to Space. I have listed a few ideas here for anybody who wishes to use them. The main idea behind a Themed camp is to come up with a central theme for the entire camp and try to run all your activities around that same Theme. It is usually a good idea to have dressing up as part of the camp. Either make the costumes at a Pack or Troop meeting or have everybody make their own at home and you can maybe even introduce a competitive element to things as well if you wish. A lot of kids I know will complain at the thought of dressing up in this day and age but once they have those costumes on, they are transformed and forget everything they had said and get more into the spirit of things than they would have if costumes hadn't been a part of the camp in the first place. An important thing to remember here is that, even if you are not the most imaginitive person in the world, you may only need to come up with a different name for something you do all the time. (Believe me, it works.) If you find these ideas useful, great. If you want to contribute some ideas of your own - even better. Here are some of the ideas we have used in the past: Cowboys & Indians Medieval Pirates Roman Secret Agents Space Wizards & Witches An important point to note, unfortunately in my opinion, is that you may have to be more generic in your choice of Theme due to the present day's attitude towards litigation and Copyright protection. If you think there may be a problem - pick something which comes close to your original idea. An example of this that I once attended was a National Cub camp which was originally going to be a Harry Potter camp, but due to worries over copyright etc. it became a Wizards & Witches camp. the face that a majority of kids actually turned up with Harry Potter costumes isn't a problem as they were bought and any copyright infringency is down to the shopkeeper, not you. Family Camps Family Camps are a lot more difficult to organise in this day and age due to the requirement of security checks on all adults who are coming into contact with children. If parents are happy enough to be checked and either the Group or parents are happy to meet the costs involved then these are definately a worthwhile exercise. What can be better than letting kids see their parents working, playing and making a fool of themselves on the same level as themselves? Or even having the opportunity to be the one to show their own parents how to do something. Kids love the chance to see their parents as being on the same level playing field as themselves. Or How great is it when parents finally realise just how much work the Group Leaders have to put into making these things work? Or How great is it when you and the parents actually get an opportunity to just socialise on a different level and get to know everybody a little bit better? Parents can learn a lot from these camps and you, as Leaders, can suddenly find opportunities which weren't previously available to you. This might be as simple as an offer to help clean the Scout Hall at some point or make use of a professional when next time, your boiler or electrics fail? Or next time you need financial help to keep your Hall open. You can almost guarantee that if you can involve parents in a family camp, you will find an unbelievable camaraderie and willingness to help where they can from most parents who have ever taken part in one of these camps. I know of parents who still talk about these camps 30 and 40 years on. District & Area Flag Competitions Here in Scotland we have annual Scout camping competitions. Each troop is represented at a District Flag competition and the winners go on to take part in an Area (Regional) Flag competition. The winners of the Area competitions every year then go onto a National Camping Competition which has recently rewarded the National winners with prizes from a National Sponsor. (these include sleepnig bags, rucksacks etc.) What is involved and what's the point? Well, having been involved at judging all three stages of these competions over the years, I would have to say that the most important thing is that the kids are still having fun and showing Scouting Spirit throughout the duration of the weekend. The competition usually covers all areas from Pitching Camp on arrival, meals, activities, personal & food hygiene, Campsite layout, Scouting knowledge, taking part and finally through to Striking Camp. (This list is not exclusive, nor is it all inclusive) Different Districts and Areas run their own camping competitions in their own way but generally cover as much of the above as possible to prepare the teams for the National Camping Competition, should they reach it. It should be well noted that by the time these Scouts get to the National Competition we are looking at a group of six Scouts (sometimes of mixed sex) who are not only able, but can provide for themselves in a very real sense. they have to be able to work together as a team, they have to be able to cook and feed themselves for an entire weekend, they have to be able to understand levels of hygiene (both food and personal) which exceed some adults understanding and they have to show that they can have fun whilst doing all of these things inbetween being asked to take part in wide variety of activities or challenges. |
