"Cub Scout RT492 - Pack Meetings"

First, don't think of your meeting as a 'meeting'. Start to think in terms of a one night show, a production. Meetings are dull, we go to them every day and rarely (if ever) look forward to them. A show, however, is entertainment! People want to be entertained, and while they'll forget to go to your meeting, they'll remember that they have tickets to your show!

Sean Scott

Sean Scott, sometimes Cubmaster, district trainer, Roundtable person and Council VP in San Diego thinks we all make a mistake when we refer to our monthly Cub Pack get together as a Pack Meeting.

Sean would rather we call it a production so that boys and parents find it entertaining. There's a lot to said in favor of this attitude. A lot of pack meetings are.... well, ugly dull. So let's make our monthly get-togethers a celebration, a party, and concentrate on having some FUN.

Generally, pack meetings are held to recognize and reward dens and individuals for their good Cub Scouting endeavors. They are sort of pep rallies to generate enthusiasm for the rest of the program. Let's take a closer look at some of the common reason to put some effort into your monthly meetings. If you think about it carefully, not much real Cub Scouting takes place at a pack meeting but instead it is the the introduction to all the rest of the program: the den meetings, the home and family activities, the service projects, outdoor action, and even to the Boy Scout p rogram. You might think of pack meetings as the gateway to Scouting.

Without pack meetings, those other things might not happen at all.

So you had better do your best to make 'em great.

You may honestly believe that you're doing this for all the boys in your community, but the truth is that the person who benefits the most from your work as a as Cub Scout leader happens to live with you. Your Cub Scout son sees what you do, he is aware of your commitment and attitude and he will end up copying a good portion of what he sees and admires in you. Your first responsibility as a pack leader is to be a good Akela to your son. So put on a good show for him. Let him see that doing your best, planning ahead, being a good team member, and especially having fun while doing all this: the sort of life you would like him to emulate. Be a good role model
The pack meeting must provide an arena for your dens to show their stuff. Strong dens perform regularly at pack meetings in ceremonies, skits and other activities that can be seen and appreciated by parents. When den leaders and Cub Scouts look forward to their parts in an upcoming pack extravaganza the den meetings take on a focus and excitement that just makes Cub Scouting fun. When dens have no part in pack meetings, they tend to fill their den programs with rank advancement - this, in turn replaces the family and parent participation. This can weaken the whole program and structure of the pack
The heart and soul of the Cub Scout program takes place in the boy's home with his family. Activities at the pack meeting must exalt the family's part in the program. Be generous with your recognition of the parents' contribution to the boys' advancement and their help with all phases of the program. As a general rule, you probably can never heap too much praise and accolades on parents
Your highest attendance usually occurs at pack meetings, making them excellent locations to get the word out. The trick will be to do it without messing up the flow of fun and idealism that you want in your pack meeting programs. Long, boring announcements are killers so you will want to replace them with better communication methods. Newsletters and flyers are great for explaining details like dates, times and meeting places of upcoming events. Posters and banners set up around the meeting room can emphasize future activities. It is amazing how something as simple as a few ribbons and a small fan can draw attention to a notice on poster board. Wrap your promotions for Service Projects, Friends of Scouting Appeals, and Summer Camp registration in skits, run-ons and parodies of songs or TV commercials. Use ceremonies to honor contribution of parents and others

VIOLATE THESE AT YOUR OWN RISK!

PLAN IT IN DETAIL
DON'T DO IT ALONE - GET A TEAM!
KEEP IT MOVING - NO DEAD TIME
NO ACT LONGER THAN 5 MINUTES
OPENING TO CLEAN-UP - 90 MINUTES MAX.
VARY THE MOOD, THE SPEED, EVERYTHING

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PLAN IT

Lack of planning ruins more pack meeting than any thing else. Plan everything down to the last detail.

Who is going to do what, when, and for how long?

Get as many of the participants (the TEAM) involved in planning as possible. This will help ensure that each member knows his or her part and is willing to do it.

Remember to plan the little things like pre opening activities, cheers and run-ons. The more you plan, the more spontaneous everything will play out and the more prepared you will be when something unexpected happens.

Write it all out and give a copy to everyone involved.

TEAM LEADERSHIP

A whole bunch of jobs have to be done to make a pack meeting work:

Master of Ceremonies - someone to introduce each star performer and lead the applause.
Cheer master - someone to lead the sparklers, the audience participation stunts and support all the acts.
Award Presenter - someone to open the envelopes, call up the honored and conduct the ceremonies.
Director - someone to keep track of who is up next, cue the acts, and keep the whole gang on schedule.
Stage Manager - someone to make sure that all the props are in place, the color guard has the flags, the artificial campfire is plugged in and the badges are ready.
Song Leader - in case the Cheer Master isn't up to a quick round of Do Wah Ditty.
Information Manager - someone to distribute newsletters and flyers, or stage gorilla theatricals to promote some noble Scouting cause.

You can double up or rotate and share some of the functions but you should involve all the Assistant Cubmasters and most of your Pack Committee in these jobs. You will also need a few people to do run ons, help with ceremonies, and handle the lights.

KEEP IT MOVING

A successful pack meeting grabs and holds the attention of everyone there: the Tigers, Cub Scouts and Webelos as well as the parents, and siblings. You do this with short fast-moving bits. You change the mood of the audience with every dramatic and comedic trick you can borrow or copy or invent. Keep the pace changing with faster or slower sparklers or audience participation gags. Use the entire room so that if someone leads a song from the north end of the hall, the following den skit enters from the south-east corner. Move the center of attention around with action, sound and lighting.

Dead time is a killer. Make sure that when one bit is finished, the next participant is ready with a cheer, a magic trick or presentation. Don't let them sit still for the entire meeting - sprinkle in lots of stunts that get everyone standing, jumping, applauding and shouting.

BUILDING BLOCKS

Pack meetings are constructed from a variety of building blocks that you should use effectively. Here are some of the common ones:

Ceremonies - Main elements of your program. Build everything else around these. The openings and closings frame the program. Advancement and graduations are your highlights.
Den presentations - Headline acts. Set these up carefully so that they can not fail. Good den presentations build pack membership and retain good den leaders.
Games - Bundles of FUN for everyone. Involve parents and all family members. These are the activities that will be remembered long after the meeting.
Sparklers - Mood changers. Use these to build excitement and intensity or to settle things down for a more serious bit.Songs - More effective mood changers. Songs can be just plain fun or can make a closing ceremony very special.
Costumes - Great for setting up the theme of the month. You don't have to be in uniform every meeting.
Promotion - Create enthusiasm for upcoming special events.
Visitors - New families, someone from the Chartered Organization or a neighboring Scout Troop should be introduced with proper fanfare and even a special cheer.
Caution: be careful about letting them speak.

FLOW and MOOD SETTING

Each part of the meeting sets a tone or mood that will carry on to the next part. The opening ceremony will catch the attention of the audience and things usually begin in a subdued and attentive mood. You usually want to build the fun and excitement before you bring on a high-light event like a den skit. You can do this with sparklers, audience participation stunts, and games. If things get a bit dull, liven them up with cheers and run-ons. If the boys get too rambunctious, use a song or story to bring the mood down to earth. You may want to set a serious tone for a graduation ceremony or a closing so choose your stunts and gimmicks accordingly. A good team of leaders can, with a bit of practice, become expert at this.

VARIETY

Variety and surprise can do a lot to make your meetings successful. Vary the pace throughout each meeting and vary the elements, themes and moods from month to month. When the boys and parents start wondering what will this crazy bunch of leaders do next, then you have reached top form.

Plan your meetings well in advance using themes or special activities as focal points.
Confirm the time and place of the meeting. Reserve meeting places well in advance.
Make sure that someone is responsible for opening the meeting place ahead of time.
Assign den responsibilities in advance; e.g. set-up, opening, skits, songs, stunts, closing, clean-up.
Make sure that arrangements are made for transporting displays, props, special equipment, etc.
Make sure that awards, badges, pins, etc. are ready for presentation before the meeting.
Try to have displays set up before the meeting.
Have a gathering activity planned and use it when scouts arrive.
Conduct an Opening Ceremony that is serious and impressive.
While you have the scene set, transition to introductions and inductions.
Build spirit with den cheers, den reports, rousing songs and group activities.
Entertain with skits, stunts, songs, and games.
Take time to recognize pack and den accomplishments.
Have a Webelos Den demonstrate something related to an activity badge.
Use a song, story, or other device to transition the group to a serious setting.
Present awards and recognitions with an impressive ceremony.
Give special recognition to special accomplishments.
Recognize adult contributions - thank yous and special awards.
Give a very few words on coming events (give details in handouts, newsletters)
Have a Scouter's minute - leave the scouts with something to ponder
Conduct a closing ceremony.
Serve refreshments (optional).
Clean-up the meeting site and leave it as good as or better than you found it.
Evaluate and plan an even better meeting next time.

Put a priority on your awards. Is there some awards like belt loops that could be given at the Den meetings then the CM could mention their names at the Pack meeting or in the newsletter. Break up the awards with skits. I had a rule never give more than two sets of awards without a skit or song to break them up. There is nothing wrong with starting the meeting with giving the Tigers their paws.
[ Tiger Paws were an old form of recognition. Bill ]

Have story or song to introduce the award. I once had an American Indian (he preferred that over Native American) father who started everyone in a Indian Celebration Dance during the Wolves awards. The parents are still talking about that one.

Get all the Scouts involved. Get them to say a cheer or the Scouts name when he and his parents are called up. "CRY OF THE WOLF, STRENGTH OF THE BEAR, WEBELOS"
Another thing I did at the beginning of the meeting is I told the Scouts when I hold my arms straight out, they were to clap, but if I held them up then the were to clap and cheer LOUDLY while stomping their feet. Then we practiced a little (actually a lot). When things like announcements, awards or uniform inspections got a little long, I would raise my arms. Keeps them on their toes and they get to do what the do best.

The important thing here is put yourself in their shoes, does this seem boring? then change it or get rid of it. This Scouting stuff has got to be FUN, FUN, FUN. It takes a little practice but once you get the hang of it you will keep their attention most of the meeting and you will only need one leader up front. With that many ACMs, you all plan different parts of the meeting.

SCOUTS-L Barry Runnels "Mighty" Pack 339

DON'T BE A ONE MAN SHOW. Putting on a ninety minute show is a huge job. It's a lot easier and things run smoother when you work as a team. Use your Assistant Cubmasters, Committee members to help. For example, one person is the Master of Ceremonies - only introduces the acts; another is a Stage Manager - sees to it that everyone keeps on schedule and that dens, awards and things are ready; another the Cheermaster - leads cheers, songs and audience participation; a fourth may be the Awards Chairman.

VARY THE PACE. Keep things moving at different speeds, different volumes, and different moods. Use songs and cheers and lively songs to speed things up, stories and ceremonies to slow them down. Build toward the big event of your meeting - it may be rank awards or a special visitor but make it special.

INVOLVE PARENTS. Don't let them sit at the back of the room and talk. They should be drawn into every part of the meeting - especially ceremonies and audience participation stunts. Have the occasional game just for parents - the kids will love it.

HIDE ANNOUNCEMENTS. Put most information about upcoming events in your news letter. If you need to to say something about a big event, do it the form of a run-on, skit or ceremony. All you need is some fun gimmick to draw attention to where the details are written down.

USE SONGS. Most - almost all - of us start with the assumption that we could never lead a song. With Cub Scouts, it is really the easiest thing in the world. Kids love to sing - the dumber and livelier the song, the better. Start by leading some of the audience participation stunts in Group Meeting Sparklers or Program Helps. Next, try a very simple song like Tarzan of the Apes. All you need is three or four songs you and your pack like to sing - most of them you may learn at summer camp. It does wonders for your pack meetings.

LET THE DENS BE THE STARS. Feature several dens at every pack meeting. they should be doing opening and closing ceremonies, skits and other presentations. Give Webelos Dens opportunities to demonstrate the spectacular things they have learned as they worked on Activity Badges and Arrow of Light. Reward every den with a special cheer.

USE PROPS AND SPECIAL EFFECTS. Flags, artificial campfires, den doodles, candle-lit ceremonies all add drama and interest to the meetings. (And they help cover up the fact that we are all a bunch of amateurs doing this.) If your pack doesn't have all these, assign groups of parents to make them. Check the Cub Scout Leader's How-To Book for starters. Also they will look great in the photos for your web site and your next roundup.

In my pack, we have a trophy that we give to the den with the best percentage of family members in attendance. I just give an attendance sheet out to each den leader. They take attendance of their den. Since we are a pack with a large number of single moms, we just give each boy 1 credit for himself and 1 credit for a family member. The den with the most percentage of credits wins the Pack Attendance Trophy for that month. They get to keep the trophy until the next Pack meeting.

For example, Den 1 has a total of 6 boys (for a possible total of 12 credits - one for each boy and one for family member). For 100% attendance, they need to have all 6 boys at the Pack meeting along with at least 1 family member for each boy. If only 5 boys (5 credits) show up and only 4 of those boys have a family member in attendance (4 credits), their attendance percentage would be 75%. 9 credits divided by the total possible of 12).

There have been some months where two dens tied with perfect attendance. In that instance the dens work out between themselves transferring the trophy so that one den has it for 2 weeks and the other den has it for the other 2 weeks of the month.

CT- Mary Abulencia, Pack 180, Hiawatha Seaway Council

Bill's Unofficial Cub Scout Roundtable A compendium of Ideas For Cubmasters, Den Leaders and those who help them.
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CUB SCOUT

PACK MEETINGS

PURPOSES

Why do we do this, anyway?

BASIC RULES

PLAN IT

TEAM LEADERSHIP

KEEP IT MOVING

BUILDING BLOCKS

FLOW and MOOD SETTING

VARIETY

PACK MEETING PLANNER

PACK MEETING FUN

SOME TIPS FOR PACK MEETINGS

ADULT ATTENDANCE AT PACK MEETINGS

PACK MEETING RECIPE