Scouting Celebrates 100 Years In America

How could I let February slip by without mentioning the centennial of Scouting in America. Although it first originated in the United Kingdom in 1907 by General Robert Baden-Powell Scouting  first came to America on February 8, 1910 and this massive youth organization has been unstoppable ever since. Today there's 4 million youth members in the BSA and over 110 million Americans have been members at some point in their lives including Presidents Gerald Ford, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush.

No doubt about it, Scouting has had an enormous impact on American culture for 100 years and I am more sure than ever that it will continue in strength for another 100 years. Why? The simple answer in my opinion is because "boys will be boys" and the BSA meets their needs for adventure ten-fold. Despite a modern culture that now seems to foster less personal responsibility and self-reliance and with political correctness gone berserk at every turn.. I still predict that Scouting will become larger and stronger than ever before.

Scouting offers the experiences that a boy needs to be successful and the kind of activities that have been engrained in their very being for eons. It's hard to erase those impulses that makes boys boys.

Scouting is light years apart from the prepackaged entertainment produced by modern culture and overprotective parents. Sure it seems easier to just place the kid in front of a TV screen or video game inside the house all day but doing so will produce only mediocre adults at best. Boys need adventure, hands-on activity, competition, and opportunities for "in the field" leadership. Scouting is all that and much more.

Sometimes it can be pretty hard to "unplug" a boy when they first come to camp but it's usually not long before they begin to see the opportunities and to engage. There's just something about pitching your own tent and sleeping in it overnight... paddling a canoe for 50 miles, or learning to shoot a bow & arrow that brings out the best in a kid. These are the kinds of experiences that build real friendships, quality parent-son relationships, and the character that leads to the husbands and fathers of tomorrow who will always be there for their family. You'll never reach these kinds of levels by following the path of least resistance which can be found in abundance in today's culture where parents allow their children to play mindless video games with no limits. As seen in the pictures to the left, I had very little time for TV when I was a youngster.

One of the best things about Scouting is that a troop is youth led. At a certain age, usually by sixth grade, most boys begin saying to themselves, "That I don't need to listen to adults as much". But when an older boy tells them to "Clean up your tent" or "Do the dishes" they listen. Peer pressure works miracles and the Scouts of today are youth-led.

Membership in Scouts only costs $15/year and about $200 for summer camp. No doubt about it you can't get a better bang for the buck when it comes to building character for the next generation. So long as Scouts continues to be youth-led, high adventure, and 100 percent hands-on then it will be around for another 100 years. Happy anniversary!

A Random Minute During A Woodshop Class

This is a quick one minute clip from one of my woodshop classes last week. We build, carve, and burn a variety of projects but, like today,I find that students achieve the greatest success if they concentrate mainly on practicing simple woodshop techniques then gradually progress to a higher level.

This video gives you a very quick glimpse into a typical day of woodshop classes where approximately 60 kids each week have the hands-on opportunity to learn new skills. Unfortunately woodshop programs in our elementary and middle schools are disappearing at a rapid rate which is sad since such a program so perfectly compliments their conventional "in the desk" classes. And education experts wonder why boys are doing so poorly in school during the last decade.

Boys weren't made to sit still all day and listen to lectures. Boys learn best when they have a well balanced curriculum where "hands-on" and action/adventure based learning is part of their day. When educators figure this out then our next generation of boys will have a much greater chance of achieving great things.

A Kid's Education - Taking Matters Into Your Own Hands

I've said it before and I'll say it again... it is more and more apparent that our schools are failing to reach boys in the classroom. According to this article in the Washington Times nearly 58 percent of bachelor's degrees and 62 percent of associate's degrees go to women. That is a sad statistic for the future well-being of the country and the eventual consequences will be paid by all if a correction isn't put on fast forward soon.

Could it only be coincidental that at the same time of these alarming statistics our schools nationwide are also cutting hands-on and adventure/experiential education programs from the curriculum? If your child is attending a public school with a strong hands-on program then it's probably the exception these days. Strong education programs are most likely found in private schools because these institutions very survival depends on "real" results. Growing up I also never experienced a woodshop program during any grade through twelve but fortunately I had a dad who not only had a strong interest in woodwork but he also had his own sawmill, so I wasn't left behind by missing these valuable childhood experiences. Most kids today aren't as fortunate as I was.

For the time being parents might need to take matters into their own hands when it comes to a full-circle eduction program for their children. You don't have to be a professional woodworker, woodcarver, or a marathon runner to be effective but it is important to have an intense interest in learning together with your children. There are tons of how-to books and magazine articles available on woodworking and woodcarving projects that you could achieve together. With even basic search skills you can find enough wood oriented projects  for a lifetime by browsing  the internet.

Adventure/experiential education is another critical area that every boy should have exposure before and during their teen years so if you're not a fanatical long distance hiker, paddler, or bicycler like me, then may I suggest the Scouts. The Boy Scouts offer one of the best youth programs in the world providing parents and their sons an opportunity to learn together valuable hands-on/adventure skills from woodcarving to camping. The Boy Scouts will be celebrating 100 years of Scouting in America during 2010 so I can't think of a better time than now to get involved.

If you have children or if you just care about the well-being of the next generation then there is plenty you can do to make a difference. If you are waiting for your local school to provide a well-balanced educational experience for your child then you might be waiting a long time. If you believe that politicians and government are the answer then you are most likely being led by the blind. If you think that putting your child's future in the hands of anyone else other than yourself then your child could get left behind.

Will America Lose A Generation Of Boys?

While recently reading an article on the purpose of boys in the November/December issue of Scouting magazine by author Sean Mitchell one paragraph caught my attention. Now several weeks later I have continued a struggle to not only understand it's underlying meaning but even more I have become increasingly concerned about the consequences of a future that is clearly neglecting the unique needs of boys. Mr. Mitchell stated, “Obama has started a President’s council on girls and women,” Gurian points out. “So did Bush and so did Clinton. There’s no President’s council on boys and men. We’re still fighting the fight to get people to talk about boys. It’s not an either-or.”

While I don't intend for this blog to become political at first I was surprised to learn that presidents in both major political parties seem to be letting down a generation of boys. After a couple of weeks of thought I realized that this neglect has perhaps been due to an over-reaction from politicians to appear politically correct while innocently attempting to correct generations of injustice. Whatever the reason I would have to stand by the late Martin Luther King, Jr. when he said, "that an injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."

With that said it seems apparent to me that both boys and girls should be receiving equal attention to their own unique needs. As for boys, yes they are different and yes they have different needs than those of girls. From a total of 28 years of working with at-risk kids it is clearly apparent to me that boys are first and foremost "action" oriented. It is a fact that boys process what troubles them best when they are busy doing something with their hands or engaged in an action based activity. Whether it's in a school woodshop class building a birdhouse, paddling a canoe, or casting his rod & reel on the lake... boys brains are at their best whenever they are engaged in movement or activity.

Mitchell goes on to say that, "The urgency for boys is that they don’t ruminate and reflect as much as girls do. They don’t set up coherent bonding systems as much as girls do." Although both boys and girls equally need to open up and reflect their experiences with a trusted adult, from my experiences a boy opens up best when they are first engaged in some form of action activity as I mentioned in the last paragraph. While a girl can perhaps reflect best in a quiet, settled environment, a boys mind is at its best when they are busy doing something with their hands.

During this age of information our educational system seems to be much more focused on the maths & sciences when presenting their curriculum for both boys and girls with little or no offerings to the unique needs of boys. In the article Mitchell also mentioned that Gurian, author of The Minds of Boys, which examines why boys are not doing as well as girls in school and how to change that.Without even reading the book I can tell you that what boys need in our current school curriculum is more hands-on learning and school woodshop programs can meet those needs. We're now asking our boys to sit still and listen in a classroom all day long then wonder why they are falling behind. Fortunately there are a few great leaders in a few great schools that clearly understand the action based needs of boys and those administrators are going the extra mile to ensure that students are receiving a well-rounded curriculum but these days that is the exception, not the rule.

At one point in the history of this country a much greater importance was placed upon a hands-on education. If we are going to save the next generation of boys then it is time for the leaders in both political parties to once again understand that both girls and boys have different ways of learning, reflecting, and processing information. Hopefully too there will be more school principals who are willing to make the sacrifices to provide our children with a more "complete" education because only then will no child be left behind.